Living Seas Hong Kong honors World Oceans Day at Lobster Bay
(Hong Kong, 11 June 2016) In honor of World Oceans Day, enthusiastic volunteers joined Living Seas Hong Kong (LSHK) to identify and remove ghost nets and rubbish surrounding artificial reefs in Lobster Bay (Lung Ha Wan). The goal this year was to explore the artificial reefs placed there and search for ghost nets or rubbish that might be harmful to marine life.
Abandoned fishing nets are commonly found in the bay. LSHK volunteers collected a significant pile of nets and garbage in the area. Ghost nets are hazardous to both marine life and humans. These nets become entangled on the coral reefs, the seabed or simply drift in the water. They restrict the movement of sea animals, causing starvation, laceration and infection, eventually death. Divers and snorkelers can get entangled too.
Mr Jeffrey Lee, Co-founder of LSHK said, “For the past several years, area students have been building and placing steel constructions about 1.5 m x 1.5 m in size near each other to create an artificial reef. In the first year, only a little marine life is attracted to each one, but after 3-4 years, the artificial reefs are teeming with life, with many juvenile fish and crabs, as well as large sweetlips, snappers and scads and groupers surrounding each one.”
“These, in turn attract fishermen who drop their nets near the steel artificial reefs. Sometimes they leave their nets behind, and they become ghost nets.” Lee added.
“Hong Kong’s marine environment is being literally destroyed by overfishing and now Hong Kong’s people are increasingly aware of the damage caused by marine litter,” said David O’Dwyer, the Chairman of LSHK. “Our daily litter can easily end up in the sea, where it smothers corals, traps marine life and enters the food chain, which ultimately affects our health. We have done some cleanups at Lobster Bay, but the solution lies in everyone reducing their consumption. Remember the three r’s: Reduce, Reuse then Recycle.”
LSHK supports World Oceans Day 2016. A healthy ocean is critical to our planet’s survival. Every year, World Oceans Day provides a unique opportunity to honor, protect, and conserve the world’s oceans.