Assessing Environmental Damage to Marine Protected Area: A Case of Perhentian Marine Park in Malaysia

The Perhentian Island located in the East coast of Peninsular Malaysia is well-known for its rich coral reef ecosystems. Marine resources of Malaysia have been overexploited due to overfishing and tourism activities. As such no-take marine protected area (MPAs) were established in Malaysia, including Perhentian Island Marine Park to enable overexploited marine resources to recover and to conserve coral reef ecosystems. This paper examines the current level of activities causing damage to coral reef habitats in the Perhentian MPA. This study used paired comparison method to elicit the perception of local stakeholders on activities harmful to the marine habitats. The results of the analysis showed that various respondent groups had similar preference rankings on the harmful activities: littering, discarding fishing equipment, excess fishing and too many divers that cause damage to habitats in the MPA area. The findings suggest that policy makers should take cognizance of the local stakeholders’ concern in planning and designing of marine protected areas in Malaysia.


Introduction
Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) have been suggested as an important tool for fishery management particularly in a situation where fisheries are overexploited (Alban & Boncoeur, 2006).In Malaysia the government has undertaken MPA programmes in offshore islands in the 1980s.Malaysia has 3,600 km 2 of coral reef areas which are mostly protected as marine parks.The primary objective of establishing MPAs is to protect coral reef ecosystems from fishing and other harmful activities to ensure sustainable benefits from fisheries and tourism services.In Malaysia massive tourism development has taken place over the last decades and this sector accounts for the country's second largest source of foreign exchange earnings.Several studies highlight that MPAs allow tourism activities to enhance economic benefits while enabling the recovery of overexploited marine resources (Kelleher & Bleakley, 1995;Lauck et al., 1998;Gue´nette & Pitcher, 1999;Russ & Alcala, 2003;Gaylord et al., 2005).
Perhentian island is one of the coral reef islands in the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia.This island has been gazetted as a Marine Park in 1994.Various infrastructures have been developed in the island to promote tourism.In Perhentian island statistics on tourist arrivals showed an increasing trend from 51,000 in 2004 to 90,000 in 2011 (Department of Marine Park, 2012).Several studies highlight that the coral habitats in Perhentian Island has been damaged due to expansion of tourism activities (Harborne et al., 2000;Tamblyn et al., 2000).Other studies also show that Malaysian coral reefs are under medium to high levels of threat due to human activities (Burke, 2002).In Perhentian Island the live coral cover was the lowest (36.5%) compared to other islands in Peninsular Malaysia (Reef Check Malaysia, 2011).Studies outside Malaysia showed that the increasing tourism activities especially diving and snorkeling in marine parks are the main reasons for deteriorating coral reef health (Ward, 1990;Hawkins & Roberts, 1993;Davis & Tisdell, 1995;Rouphael & Inglis, 2001).In Malaysia the main reasons for coral degradation are due to the large number of tourists visiting this island, construction of land based tourism infrastructures, fishing, and pollution through waste disposal and littering (Reef Check Malaysia, 2011).
The negative consequences of human activities to coral reefs have not been given due consideration in formulating the tourism management policy in Malaysia.Wattage et al. (2011) found that the major threat to coral reef comes from human activity which has not been addressed in the management of MPA.In this paper, we elicit community perceptions to determine the most harmful activities in Perhentian MPA that damage coral reefs using paired comparison method.The results of the study will be useful for policy makers to formulate effective planning and management of MPAs in Malaysia.This paper is organized as follows: Section 2 describes the general characteristics of Perhentian MPA and its current management status.Section 3 presents the method of paired comparison, questionnaire and data sources.Section 4 discusses the demographic characteristics of respondents; Section 5 discusses the results, while Section 6 presents policy formulations for MPA and the final section presents the conclusions.

Pulau Perhentian Marine Protected Area (PPMPA)
The Pulau Perhentian (Perhentian Island) is located in the South China Sea, 21 km off the mainland of Terengganu State in the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia.The island is easily accessible by speedboat from the small fishing port of Kuala Besut on the mainland.The Perhentian Archipelago consists of two main islands, Perhentian Besar (large) and Perhentian Kecil (small), with an approximate land area of 867 and 524 hectares, respectively (Figure 1).There are also several smaller islands located close to the Perhentian Kecil island.With a diverse coral reef ecosystem and inter-tidal habitats, Pulau Perhentian is a breeding, nursing and feeding ground for numerous fish species, sea turtles and other resources.Tamblyn et al. (2005) conducted a study on coral reefs of Malaysia.They have recorded 127 types of fish species available in the marine waters surrounding Pulau Perhentian.
Marine protected area (MPA) of Pulau Perhentian was first initiated by the Department of Fisheries Malaysia (DoFM) in 1983.This island was gazetted as a Marine Park in 1994 and then established as a no-take MPA where fishing was prohibited within two nautical miles from the lowest water level in the shore.In 2004, the responsibility of MPA management was transferred from DoFM to the Marine Parks Department Malaysia (MPDM) under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE).The main reason for this arrangement was to promote sustainable resource management and enhance tourism in the marine parks.However, both DoFM and MPDM belonged to the Federal government jurisdiction, while the land in the island belongs to the State Government, which decides on all land based development activities.Coordination between state and federal governments is important for sustainable resource use in the island.However, there is a dichotomy in jurisdiction between federal and state governments in Malaysia.Gopinath and Puvanesuri (2006) highlighted that the main constraint for successful marine resource management was the lack of coordination.
The government has undertaken legal protection in order to protect coral reefs from fishing in the MPA area.However the legal protection has been less effective in Perhentian island due to some reasons.Firstly, local residents who primarily rely on fishing for their livelihoods are not allowed to fish in the no-take MPA area.Although, tourism activities has provided economic opportunities for the local people, but fishers still depend on fishing in the area for their subsistence.Secondly, the government has limited capacity to control illegal fishing due to lack of enforcement of fishing rules particularly during monsoon seasons (October-February) when majority of the households participate in fishing in the MPA area.
A massive physical infrastructural development has also taken place in Pulau Perhentian over the last decade.These infrastructures consist of three jetties, a primary school, a health clinic, a police station and a post office.A generator was installed in 1994 for electricity supply; and a water treatment plant was established to provide piped water in the village.There are about 45 resorts/chalets, 19 dive shops, 40 souvenir shops, several restaurants and tea stalls employing a good number of local residents in Perhentian besar and Perhentian kecil.For the small area of Perhentian Island, the number of infrastructures was relatively high compared to other marine parks in the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia.
There is a small village called Kampung Pasir Hantu of approximately 10 ha situated in Perhentian kecil (small island).A total of 1,500 residents live in this village, and all of them are Malays.Most of the local residents were fishers prior to the establishment of Perhentian MPA.The villagers have adopted various tourism activities for better income.The main tourism activities include SCUBA diving, snorkeling, swimming and recreational fishing.These activities are carried out from March to September.During the northeast monsoon season (October to February), majority of local people participate to fish in Perhentian.All kinds of tourism activities are closed during this period.Fishers use artisanal fishing gear, namely hook and lines, traps, gill and drift nets.Trawls with relatively smaller boats operate at short distances from the coast.Fishers from other neighboring areas are also engaged in fishing in this area during this season. www.ccsen

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The The study investigated the severity of harmful activities in damaging coral reefs in Perhentian.In the first set (Set A, Table 1), respondents were asked to select only one resource damage activity from each pair that they considered more "severe" in terms of the coral damage in the MPA.In the second set (Set B, Table 1), respondents were asked to choose one community programme that was likely to benefit the community and provide incentives to promote conservation.).Quota sampling was used to select a minimum of 30 respondents from each of the sub groups.A total of 128 respondents were selected for interviews from the five sub groups.The selected respondents were informed in advance about the interview with the assistance of the village leader and local enumerators.Interviews were mostly conducted in late afternoon as most of them were available during this time.The survey booklet was completed through face to face interview.A map of the island, a set of pictures and fact sheets describing the status of coral reefs and fisheries resource conditions in Perhentian were provided to each respondent during the survey.Each survey took around 45 minutes to complete.

Demographic Characteristics
The study interviewed a total of 128 respondents of which 107 were males, while 21 were females.Among the five subgroups, tourism workers and traders were relatively younger (average age below 40 years) compared to fishers (48 years), experts (45 years) and others (48 years).The average household size was 6, ranged from 3 to 9 people.Majority of the tourism workers and traders had attained secondary education, while about half of the fishers had attained primary education.Note: number of respondents is shown in parentheses; the expert group is not included here.
About half of the respondents informed that the condition of coral reefs and fish biomass has severely deteriorated in Perhentian Island MPA (Table 2).However, the deterioration is less severe in sandy beaches.The evidence suggests that the declining of coral reefs was due to the increasing number of tourist activities in this island.The study shows that the majority of respondents (81%) had access to information regarding MPA management from the local marine park office.About 44% of respondents reported that they obtained information from their friends and relatives.The results indicate that there is a lack of communication support from fisheries agencies in the marine park.*Denotes significant correlation at p = 0.05.

Paired Comparison Analysis Results: Community Judgment about MPA
Individual respondents' preference scores were obtained through paired comparison survey.These scores were aggregated for each sub-group (fishers, tourism workers, traders, experts, and others) and ranks were assigned to In the community programmes, it was found that fishers mostly preferred the activities that might increase fish productivity (scale value of 77) for example, increase fish biomass through artificial reef establishment, while other groups (women and traders) preferred micro credit programme (Table 5).Local people can use micro credit to invest in various self employment activities to increase their income.Thus, dependency on marine resources for livelihoods may be reduced.
The study found that both the resource dependent group and expert group had similar concerns about harmful activities to coral reefs.The respondent groups preferred similar community programmes in the Perhentian MPA.Therefore, it was possible to aggregate the scores of all respondents into one scale for damaging activities and another scale for community programmes (Table 6).Among the activities, littering was found to be the most damaging activity (scale value of 85), followed by discarded fishing equipments (scale value of 74).Fishing using hooks and line 16(7) Reducing the restricted area of MPA 28 (7)

Policy Implications for MPA Management
The results of the study showed that all the sub groups of respondents (fishers, tourism workers, traders, experts and others) were concerned about littering and fishing activities damaging coral reefs in Perhentian MPA.The respondents had suggested the most damaging activities and the least damaging activities to coral reefs.Based on the community judgment it is possible to develop predetermined damage schedule that can be used as a guide to adjust the MPA management policy.Policy makers can impose sanctions as well as incentives for the activities in the MPA for sustainable use of coral reef ecosystems in Perhentian island.
The existing policy on tourism management does not effectively protect the coral reefs in Perhentian Island.The increasing number of tourists visiting this marine park poses pressure on the island.The beach and coral reefs are excessively used by the visitors undertaking various tourism activities.The current use of coral reefs should be reduced and the number of tourists should be regulated based on the carrying capacity of the coral reef habitat.
The increasing number of chalets and jetties negatively affects coral reef ecosystems.Development agencies should assess the environmental impact of infrastructures on the environment of the MPA.Studies have highlighted that small island destinations are the most vulnerable to environmental impacts from tourism activities (Gossling, 2003).Salmond (2010) found that land based development activities had created significant damage to the coral reef habitats in Perhentian Island.The environmental consequences of tourism in the marine parks should be addressed in the design and implementation of marine policies in Malaysia.There is a need to conduct Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) to assess the possible risk and threats from these activities on the resources in the MPA.
Although fishing is totally prohibited in the MPA area in Perhentian, there is clear evidence that the majority of the local fishers are involved in fishing particularly in the monsoon season.Fishing nets are entangled with coral reefs which hinder diving activities as well as pollute the coral reef habitats.Prior to imposing no take MPA, local fishers were not adequately consulted.Participation of local fishers in the MPA management is essential since the government has limited capacity to enforce management regulations.Effective coordination between the important agencies such as the Department of Fisheries and Department of Maine Parks is required to ensure fishers cooperation and support to protect coral reefs in the MPA.
In Malaysia the state government has authority for all land management in the marine park islands, while the Marine Park Department Malaysia (MPDM) is responsible for the management of MPAs water area up to two nautical miles surrounding the island.These overlapping jurisdictions of legislation between state and federal governments are the major constraint for preserving coral reef resources in Perhentian MPA.The top down management system in Malaysia generally excludes local people's participation in the management of coastal marine resources.There is also lack of coordination between the federal and state governments.
The government should restrict land development activities, particularly in the land scarce small island such as Perhentian.Both state and federal agencies should give priority to involve the community which is a key factor in ensuring the success of a marine protected area (White, 1986;Kaza, 1988;Kenchington, 1988;Cinner, 2005).Sumaila et al. (2000) highlighted that successful implementation of MPA management is difficult without consultation with the local people.
The results of the study revealed that local people are aware of the damaging activities in the Perhentian island.
The government should provide public awareness and education programs to the community.These programmes help the community to understand the importance of protecting coral reef ecosystems in the marine parks.Besides the community, marine park staff, tour operators, dive operators should also be adequately trained to reduce harmful activities and ensure sustainable management of MPAs in Malaysia.

Conclusion
The results of the study provide scales of various damaging activities which can be used to construct a damage schedule to be used as a policy guide for protecting coral reefs in Perhentian MPA.This schedule is based on the community agreement on how coral reef ecosystems are negatively affected.The schedule can impose more strict sanctions on the severe harmful activities and impose less strict sanctions on the less harmful activities.The study reveals that the severe damaging activities are due to the overwhelming pressure from tourism activities on the small island.The current tourism policy does not effectively protect the coral reef ecosystems.The government can reduce the use of coral based recreational activities such as diving and snorkelling in Perhentian MPA.
Sustainability of tourism in this island depends directly on the health of coral reefs.Excess fishing is also harmful to the coral reefs; however, fishers primarily depend on fishing for their livelihoods.It was expected that fishers would shift to tourism activities to compensate their loss of income from fishing which has been restricted in the MPA area.The fisher respondents had suggested implementing artificial reefs surrounding the MPA area where they can fish.Such incentives may foster conservation of coral reef habitats and achieve long term benefits from MPA.Credit support can also promote local people who can invest in other non fishing income opportunities.The community development programmes suggested by the local people is important for policy makers to formulate conservation based planning and management of the marine parks in order to reduce exploitation of fisheries and coral reefs.
Community awareness towards protecting coral reefs is vital in Perhentian as this resource is the dominant contributor to the livelihoods of local residents.Various community awareness programmes should be conducted at the local level to inform the users about the importance of protecting and conserving coral reefs for their sustainable benefits.These awareness programmes will help to improve knowledge among the users.The most important concerns about coral reef damage need to be discussed between the users and the government authority.Thus a consensus can be made through such discussions and help formulate sustainable management of the coral reef resources in the MPA in Perhentian island.

Table 1 .
Coral damage activities and community programmes Prior to the survey, a complete household census was conducted in Perhentian.Respondents were divided into four subgroups, according to their main occupation, i.e., (1) fishers; (2) tourism workers such as boat operators, tourist guide, (3) traders/ shop owners; (4) other local residents such as government employees, housewives, retired persons.A separate respondent group or "Expert group" with experience in marine resources in this area was identified thorough discussions with various agencies in Terengganu.The respondents of this group comprised of staff from government departments, universities, and non government organizations (NGO

Table 2 .
Respondents perception on resource condition in MPA (%)

Table 3 .
Source of information exchange in Perhentian island

Table 4 .
Kendal Tau rank-order correlation coefficients

Table 6 .
Aggregated performance scores