Sooner than Later
Posted by envirodiver | Saturday, July 29, 2006 at 1:43am
How do I get it done or do I?????
This adventure really began in March when I was approached by the sales rep for Light & Motion Underwater Housings to travel to The Komodo Island Marine Park in Indonesia and share in a trip with other camera people of like interests. Of course I turned this into another documentary opportunity and the planning began.....
Now I am only three and one half weeks away from my departure and I still haven't been able to get the film permits necessary to interview officials of the park, government or the organization that now runs the new mariculture operation on Flores Island, PT Karamba. This doesn't mean I can't shoot my film, a permit, or lack there of, never stopped me before but I truly like to do it right and having those permits would certainly make that a reality and, almost certainly, guarantee cooperation form all involved.
One would think that it should be no real mystery to obtain the appropriate documments but consider this, all the government web sites for the departments that issue the permits are down, all the phone numbers are for Indonesia only and everyone I need to contact seems to be out of town, oh, and did I mention that nothing has a name, only an acronym....... I have, literally, written thirty letters in my effort yet there is next to no response except for the people who work for The Nature Conservancy, who have been outstanding in their efforts on my behalf.
I am beginnig to think this could be because some of the relevent questions may require answers that no one wants to give. First and foremost, what happens to the byproducts of feeding captive fish? In the US many aquaculture projects were forced to cease operation due to the pollution caused by feeding penned fish and supplying the medication and vitamins necessary for them to survive in their captive environment.
The mariculture project in Komodo has encountered some issues in this area but I have been informed that modifications in protical have corrected this. I would,however,feel more comfortable with documentation of this. The directive of the project is to supply the Asian Live Fish Market with enough fish to replace the need to actively use the current techniques of Gill Netting, Long Lining, Dynamite and Cyanide. All of these fisheries cause damage to both the aquatic populations of fish and the reef creatures which support the ecosystem.
Being that Komodo is within the Coral Triangle means there are a possible 7,000 different species of fish or nearly 25% of all known species of fish as well as more than 600 species of reef building corals(stats courtesy The Coral Triangle Center & TNC). On top of that statistic, consider the various species of aquatic animals like tunicates, coelenterates, cephalopods and more invertibrates than could possibly be listed. So an answer to this question is an imperative for objectivity in my report. Of course the real proof will come when I drop beneath the surface and begin filming the mystical world of Komodo. It will be quite apparent how healthy the reefs are and the signs of abuse and coral bleaching stand out like an 800lb Gorilla so I wait with baited breath for my first dive....
Now I am only three and one half weeks away from my departure and I still haven't been able to get the film permits necessary to interview officials of the park, government or the organization that now runs the new mariculture operation on Flores Island, PT Karamba. This doesn't mean I can't shoot my film, a permit, or lack there of, never stopped me before but I truly like to do it right and having those permits would certainly make that a reality and, almost certainly, guarantee cooperation form all involved.
One would think that it should be no real mystery to obtain the appropriate documments but consider this, all the government web sites for the departments that issue the permits are down, all the phone numbers are for Indonesia only and everyone I need to contact seems to be out of town, oh, and did I mention that nothing has a name, only an acronym....... I have, literally, written thirty letters in my effort yet there is next to no response except for the people who work for The Nature Conservancy, who have been outstanding in their efforts on my behalf.
I am beginnig to think this could be because some of the relevent questions may require answers that no one wants to give. First and foremost, what happens to the byproducts of feeding captive fish? In the US many aquaculture projects were forced to cease operation due to the pollution caused by feeding penned fish and supplying the medication and vitamins necessary for them to survive in their captive environment.
The mariculture project in Komodo has encountered some issues in this area but I have been informed that modifications in protical have corrected this. I would,however,feel more comfortable with documentation of this. The directive of the project is to supply the Asian Live Fish Market with enough fish to replace the need to actively use the current techniques of Gill Netting, Long Lining, Dynamite and Cyanide. All of these fisheries cause damage to both the aquatic populations of fish and the reef creatures which support the ecosystem.
Being that Komodo is within the Coral Triangle means there are a possible 7,000 different species of fish or nearly 25% of all known species of fish as well as more than 600 species of reef building corals(stats courtesy The Coral Triangle Center & TNC). On top of that statistic, consider the various species of aquatic animals like tunicates, coelenterates, cephalopods and more invertibrates than could possibly be listed. So an answer to this question is an imperative for objectivity in my report. Of course the real proof will come when I drop beneath the surface and begin filming the mystical world of Komodo. It will be quite apparent how healthy the reefs are and the signs of abuse and coral bleaching stand out like an 800lb Gorilla so I wait with baited breath for my first dive....
Next up, the pack, ughhhhhh.......Envirodiver
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