Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry intends to focus on the preservation of maritime resources to keep a sustainable marine ecosystem on the back of illegal fisihing and the trading of protected species, a top ministry official said on Wednesday.

The ministry's director general of maritime resources and fisheries surveillance Asep Burhanudin said his office had concerns that it would focus on this year: the protection of maritime resources, the monitoring of protected fish species, the monitoring of destructive fishing practices and the monitoring of illegal sand, tin and iron mining.

The directorate general will focus on four protected species, namely the manta ray, the whale shark, sea bamboo and the sea turtle.

"These species keep the balance of the ecosystem. For example, the whale shark eats plankton. If the number of whale sharks is depleted, there will be a plankton overpopulation that will lead a reduction in oxygen because [many] plankton consume more oxygen than other fish," he said.

He also said that a decrease in the number of sea turtles would cause an overpopulation of jellyfish, the sea turtle's main food, which in turn could put fish at risk from the poison emitted by the jellyfish.

Meanwhile, Tyas Budiman, director of monitoring and maritime resources management at the directorate general, explained that the decreasing number of protected sea species was also caused by destructive fishing methods that were common in the country, especially along the eastern shores of Sumatra.

"The fertilizers are explosives materials produced in Malaysia and smuggled into Indonesia through Riau and South Sumatra," Tyas said.

The ministry will also intensively monitor waters around Bangka and Banten as well around Buton Island in Southeast Sulawesi where illegal mining has been detected.

The illegal mining of tin and sand was detected in eight locations and several illegal miners arrested in December.

Moreover, Asep said the ministry was also concerned about reclamation projects in Benoa Bay in Bali and the Jakarta Bay.

Despite the projects having permits, he said that such projects could affect the sea'€™s ecosystem.

Balinese and environmentists have strongly rejected the Benoa Bay reclamation project for fear that it would have negative impacts on the Island of the Gods'€™ environment.

Asep added that the ministry worked closely with the Jakarta administration on the Jakarta Bay reclamation so that the project would use sustainable construction methods. (rin)(+)

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