ENVIRONMENT ISSUES

The original title of this page was "Web of Life", which reflected the general "conservationist" philosophy that we hold at Tioman Dive Centre.

But our regulars will know that Yeen and I are both passionate about conservation, not just of the marine environment, but of the terrestrial environment as well. Our activities with Malaysian Nature Society, of which Yeen is now a council member, are testament to this.

And it is perhaps the greater awareness of the condition of our environment today that this hands on involvement brings, that has led me to move this page to the top of the list of page links on our website, because we believe it is that important.

Perhaps some would call us gloom and doom merchants, perhaps all that stuff in the media about the decline in our environment is conspiracy theory material (wouldn't that be turn up for the books!) - hey, perhaps Bush is right and Global Warming is not really happening!

But our observations, admitedly anecdotal and non-scientific, suggest otherwise.

We recognise that what we can do is limited, but we do at least try to encourage our divers to consider the issues, and that is what this page is all about. So please, have a look, keep an open mind, and most importantly, get educated!

We recently became aware of a new campaign run by The Ocean Conservancy which we think all divers (in fact, everyone!) should be aware of, so have a look at this new link if nothing else.

To some degree, it could be argued, that our desire to protect our own island comes partly from selfish reasons: Tioman remains a beautiful island, but we fear for its’ future if planned developments go ahead in an uncoordinated manner.

But there is more to it than this. Here are some facts:

◊ Population growth: The world's population doubled between 1950 and 2000. UN projections have this increasing to nearly 9 billion in the next 50 years. We can't even feed all the people we have now. How will we manage with another 50%?

◊ Shrinking forests: The earths's forests have shrunk from an estimated 5 billion hectares at the begining of the 20th Century to only 2.9 billion Ha by the end of the Century. But demand for the principal forest products (firewood, paper and lumber) are increasing. What will we do when we run out of forest?

◊ Fossil fuel use: To pick one, if China's fast growing economy leads to car ownership as wide as that in the USA, it will need more oil than the world currently produces to fuel this growing fleet. And this is aside from the contribution of fossil fuels on global warming!

Something obviously has to give! Perhaps better us than our eco-system.

The two biggest problems we encounter when talking to people about environmental issues are:

◊ Lack of information: Many people still seem to be largely ignorant of the problems facing us, due to lack of information.

◊ The "what can I do" attitude: Even those who are aware of the problems seem to be overwhelmed and don't know what they can do.

So this page is our little contribution to addressing both these problems, to raise awareness of the issues and help people to make more informed decisions.

The idea for this page has been germinating for some time, but its final format came to me after reading a book called “Eco-Economy” in February 2004 (by Lester R Brown of the Earth Policy Institute). It contains the most readable description I have yet seen of what we are doing wrong to our environment, and what we can do about it. Read it – it really could change your life. Many of the facts and figures you see here are taken from it.

So why did I originally call this page "Web of Life"? Consider. Why should we recycle that piece of paper? Because that piece of paper comes from a tree which does much more than merely service your needs for something to write on, Trees:

◊ Help to prevent erosion: by trapping water in the soil and slowing the flow of water runoff. In 1998 the Yangtze River basin, which has lost 85% of its original tree cover, experienced some of the worst flooding in history. In 2000, similar problems occured on the Limpopo River in Mozambique. The Limpopo has lost 99% of its original tree cover.

◊ Help to prevent dustbowls: by recycling rainwater. Three quarters of the rain falling on coastal forests evaporates and is carried further inland from the original forest. Without coastal forests, less water reaches inland areas, leading to rainfall decline and dustbowl formation, as is happening in China's northwest.

◊ Provide products for human use: including firewood (over half), paper and lumber. Use of these products is expanding, putting pressure on existing forests.

◊ Serve forest ecosystems: by providing habitat, breeding grounds, seed dispersion, etc. Forests also store nutrients.

Truly a web of life. If we can all save a piece of paper we can help to save a tree and make a contribution.

So what can you do? I have included below some books that we have read on these issues, and which we recommend. They will help to inform you of the issues. Let me know what you think of them - or tell me about books you have read, and I will include them on the list. There are also some links to useful websites, plus some more statistics!

Obviously the first step is to take personal responsibility. Why not recycle cans, bottles, paper, etc? Even here on Tioman recycling is becoming possible. Everything you recycle means less extracted from nature.

The other thing you can do is lobby. Anyone! Join an environmental orgainsation (eg. The Malaysian Nature Society, which is a largely voluntary organization dedicated to preserving the environment in Malaysia – click here for more details). Or, contact your local MP and make sure he or she is doing whatever is possible to promote environmental agendas in your region. Also – stay informed. The more informed you are, the more informed choices you will make in your purchasing decisions, which is where most of us can make a difference.

Sorry to have to say this, but it is going to take more than just tutting disapprovingly at the latest environmental scandal to hit your area. We are all going to have to make changes to the way we live if future generations are going to be able to survive.

Write and tell us your thoughts!