Biorock Indonesia - A New Hope
I woke up beside him, his warmth on my body, his golden skin against my brown limbs. I tousled his hair and got out of bed.
For the last time we donned our swimming costumes, got on our bikes and pedalled into the rising Sun. This time we decided to skip the turtle point and went straight to the northern part of the island. The sea was calm, a single boat lazed by but other than that we had the entire beach to ourselves. We waded into the sea and immediately saw two turtles coming up for air. A little further a couple more! Fuelled by the sight of the turtles, I swam deeper and deeper until I realised I’d crossed the threshold and I was in the realm of the coral reefs! I watched with delight as multihued corals, bulbous like brain, emerged infront of me. This was the first time I had ever seen live coral and the sight was something I was not prepared for. A mixture of awe and angst. Awe for the beauty of the life below me: vast shapes of spongey coral in a dizzying array of colours and inbetween hundreds of fish in electric blues, flame oranges and acid yellows. Angst because I realised I was in someone else’s territory. A delicate territory where the disturbance of even a small part meant that the entire ecosystem could collapse.
The Greenwich museum in London states that although coral reefs make up 0.1% of the entire ocean, 25% of marine life depends on them for their survival. Many consider corals to be rocks but in fact they are animals, closely related to jellyfish. When free-swiming coral larvae attach to rock or other submerged surfaces, they form vast reefs of various colours that house a rich array of sea life such as starfish, octopus, clownfish and mollusks. They form mutualistic symbiosis with algae which give them energy through photosynthesis and in return the corals protect them from grazing oceanic species. In fact it is these algae that give corals their myriad hues and vibrant colours.
A few days earlier we had been swimming in the private sea fringed across from Sunday’s beachclub in Uluwatu and I was again deeply disturbed by the amount of dead coral. I could only imagine what they must have looked like before the onset of tourism. People have been fascinated by corals and infact, the Greenwich museum reports that the various industries emmerged from people’s visits to these beatiful oceanic territories bring in roughly $36 Billion in revenue a year.
I looked at the coral with a torrent of emotions pulling at me. I could see why people were so fascinated by them. But at the same time I couldn’t help feeling guilty. I had made it a point of wearing reef-friendly sunscreen from Tropic but I wanted to do more, I wanted to learn what was contributing to the bleaching of corals and what I could do to stop the decline further.
Back at the villa, I began my research and came across a blog post written by Lila Green and found out that as sea temperatures rise due to human-caused global warming, the corals expel the algae that feed them and as a result begin bleaching which eventually results in their death. Unsustainable tourism such as destructive snorkelling or diving practices result in people unintentionally touching or stepping on the coral, thereby damaging their delicate nature. Sunscreen containing oxybenzone, octocrylene and octinoxate further cause significant harm.
The fishing industry in Indonesia also contributed to vast losses of coral reefs: in order to catch as many fish as they could, fishermen would use handmade dynamite bombs to stun the fish whilst simultaneously destroying coral habitats. Thankfully, this practice has now been outlawed and perpetrators face 5 years in prison if caught. In fact, awareness of these harmful practices is growing and with education, communities that depend on fishing for their livelihood are taught to manage the reefs and protect their health, thereby increasing their yield of seafood by 15 tonnes per square kilometer, per year.
I also found about the amazing work carried out by Biorock Indonesia in reversing some of the damage caused by the aforementioned harmful practices. Biorock is an ingenious technology discovered in the 70s by architect and marine scientist Prof. Wolf Hilbertz and marine biologist Dr. Tom Goreau. Vast metal structures are installed at the bottom of the shallow oceans fringing tropical islands and are fed with a very low voltage of electricity. The electricity enables the formation of calcium carbonate on the cathode which the corals accrete to.
Impressively, corals attach to these substrates five times faster than normal thereby restoring precious marine life. Biorock Indonesia was co-founded by Prawita Tasya Karissa who herself studied under Hilbertz and Goreau and have now initiated 16 project sites across 8 provinces of Indonesia.
There are various ways in which you can support Biorock Indonesia. Check out their Instagram to stay updated on their current projects. You can also get involved in their education programs helping to teach youth and local communities on the importance of coral reefs. They have some exciting ventures coming soon including a shop where your purchase can directly contribute to fund the expense of the project. You can of course also donate directly on their webpage by following this link. Please note, I am in no way affiliated with Biorock, I am simply a huge admirer and supporter of their work and want to share as much as possible with you, dear reader.
As tourism in Bali shows no sign of stopping, we, as lovers and devotees of this beautiful island are called to play a responsible part in protecting this archipelago for the millions of people that reside here as well as the vast diversity of marine and plant life. It is reported that two thirds of coral life has been destroyed impacting the lives of 33 million people who are struggling to live. Even small changes like wearing a reef-friendly sunscreen and being mindful of your actions whilst swimming with friendly giants can go a long way. There’s so much life in the ocean, it is said that the ocean was our first home, in its amniotic fluids we were birthed and nourished. It’s our sacred duty to protect our home, is it not?
