Berungus community protect reefs from fish bombers

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PITAS: The Berungus community here are not strangers to conservation efforts.

Long before the arrival of the WWF-Malaysia onto their shores, situated on the coastal mainland of the district, about 30 minutes speedboat ride from Kudat town across the Marudu Bay, the fishing community were already aware of the negative implications of

cyanide fishing and fish bombing activities on their reefs and on their catch.

Hence, it was no surprise that fishermen involved in such activities were frowned upon by the community and were chased away.

Karim Laing, chairman of the Kampung Berungus Village Development and Security Committee, said they had been taking care and patrolling the Berungus reef, chasing away fishermen using destructive fishing methods from their reefs and fishing ground for more than 10 years.

Unfortunately, such activities are not without their perils, he said.

He had received threats from fishermen whom he had chased away, warning him personal harm if he continues to chase fish bombers and cyanide fishermen from the area.

As proof of this, Karim showed a police report he had made against the fishermen who had made the threats to the WWF team who visited the place.

Not surprisingly, the Berungus reefs are a favourite amongst the fish bombers and cyanide fishermen.

Due to the protection by the Berungus community, the (reef) fish stock in the area are still abundant compared to other areas that have seen depletion of fish resources.

The Berungus reef is also located at the river mouth of Sungai Liu, a large river than runs through Kampung Malubang and Kampung Berungus into the Berungus sea. During the rainy season from July to March, the river is murky and influence the sea water around

Berungus. This provides de-facto protection to the fish in the nearby reefs. This allows the fish to thrive without threats from the cyanide fishermen who need a clear water to be able to conduct cyanide fishing.

Come April to June, the Berungus people will be on guard to ensure that the reefs around their village are well protected against the fish bombers and cyanide fishermen. During this time, the Berungus community will also be able to catch life reef fish using the

environmentally friendly method of hook and line or trap, and sell them to the Kudat traders at a good price.

This small fishing village consists of 59 residents, with more than 90 per cent of them being full-time fishermen while the remaining are mostly women involved in activities such as weaving mats for personal use or sale and small-scale farming.

According to Angela Lim, senior communications officer of the WWF-Malaysia’s Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion programme, when WWF-Malaysia first arrived at the village, the community had already been proactively protecting their fishing area against fishermen using destructive fishing methods (fish bombing and using sodium cyanide)

for more than 10 years.

“Due to this prior high level of awareness and independent conservation initiative, and unlike Maliangin, less extensive consultations were needed to get consensus from the Berungus community to establish a community managed area. The community agreed that this area will be called the Berungus Marine Managed Area,” she said.

Within the 1,000 hectares of community managed area, there are 70 hectares of coral reefs declared as a no-take zone, patches of mangroves along the coastal area and areas dominated by seaweed beds which are feeding ground for sea turtles.

Angela explained that as a pilot alternative livelihood project, the community in Berungus are engaged in supplying sustainably caught fish to Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort in Kota Kinabalu.

“Kota Kinabalu is located more than 100km from Berungus, therefore logistics and keeping the fish fresh are issues to be addressed. These issues are being addressed in further community consultations in order to get the most appropriate and beneficial solutions,” she said.

Angela also said that linkages between the Berungus Marine Managed Area members, Sabah Foundation, Sabah Department of Fisheries, Banggi Youth Club, Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort and Sabah Wildlife Department were identified.

She said that these different entities play different and specific roles in the alternative livelihood programme in Berungus.

The Sabah Foundation has taken interest in Berungus as a potential area to be developed as an eco-tourism destination. The interest led to the Sabah Foundation donating money for the development of infrastructures (jetty, well, fishing nets) in the village and sending selected villagers to attend leadership workshops within the state and co-organized a few capacity building workshops with WWF-Malaysia.

Sabah Department of Fisheries and Sabah Wildlife Department both benefit from the community enforcement activities as the community are supporting the enforcement of the Fisheries and Wildlife Acts against destructive fishing and protected species such as sea turtles.

While the alternative livelihood programme is still in the development stage, Berungus is receiving a small grant from WWF-Malaysia to carry out enforcement activity within the Berungus Marine Managed Area. The fund covers the cost of fuel for community’s  patrolling boat.

According to the community members in Berungus, there has seen significant improvement in the condition of coral reefs since about ten years ago when they started their own initiative to protect their fishing area from destructive fishing practices.

She said that the adjacent protected sea area had constantly been able to supply the community with enough fish for own consumption and generate income to support their daily lif.