Regarding plans to 'build' a reef in Pulau Hantu's lagoon
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wildsingapore/message/429

The Blue Water Volunteers want your views!
email reef@...
or visit the BWV website
http://www.bluewatervolunteers.org/

Blog entries
-------------
First step to create marine sanctuary on Pulau Hantu (?)
Where??!! What??!! on the Reefwalk blog
http://reefwalk.blogspot.com/2006/03/first-step-to-create-marine-sanctuary.html

Other discussions
-----------------
Another Hantu Census?
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nature-singapore/message/2702

Jeffrey Low says...
I question the motives of SUF in this regard, going public at this
point. Several questions come to mind, in no particular order:

1. Who has been consulted in this project? I do not see mention of
NUS,which, through the Marine Biology Lab has been working on reefs
for more than 20 years. NParks is also not mentioned, whose combined
efforts with volunteers from Blue Water Volunteers in the last few
years have also been surveying the reefs. For more info on the state
of our coral reefs, check http://coralreef.nus.edg.sg

2. Who is the sponsor of the $100,000? Is this only for the surveys?
If so,much, much more can be done with that money if volunteers are
being mobilised.

3. What kind of sand filtration system is being used? My
understanding of sand filter systems means a major facility on Hantu
to work the pumps etc.

4. Have the government agencies been consulted? No mention of that
in the reports.

5. As for the implication that corals in the lagoon is the same as
saving the reefs ... the reefs fringe the island (ie, they surround
the island). Effectively, with the closing of the lagoon, what you
get is big pond/aquarium.

6. Transplanting corals is by no means a tried and tested method. It
is usually only used in aquariums, and if there is NO OTHER RECOURSE
to save the reef and corals. Survival rates of trasplanted corals
can range from 0% to 70% depending on how you fudge the numbers.

7. As for showcasing the "rich marine biodiversity of Singapore",
there are some people who have done more in the last 3 years than
most people combined in the last 10.

8. What is scientific basis for this project? Are the methods tried
and tested, and does it warrant the money and effort spent?

Personally, I would be very wary of this project, and will require
many, many questions to be answered before I would support this.