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| MASDEC Malacca Straits Services Publication MASDEC members Organization Chart UPM-JICA Faculty
of Science & Environmental Studies Other Related Links |
Map of the Straits of Malacca
Introduction to the Straits of MalaccaMalacca Straits is a golden heritage of the littoral states such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore. It is not only rich in marine resources but is one of the oldest and busiest shipping lanes in the world. Malacca Straits serves as a primary conduit for the movement of cargo and human traffics between Indo-European region and the rest of Asia and Australia. It is the shortest East-West sea route compared to the Indonesia’s Macassar and Lombok Straits. Every year about RM3.8 trillion worth of goods and services pass through the region formed by the Straits of Malacca and other associated shipping routes. By using the Malacca Straits, the Japanese petroleum Industry saves up to RM1.3 billion annually. This Straits supplies myriads of marine resources and supports the economy of the littoral states. More than 380,000 tonnes of fish (more than 60% of the total fish caught per year) costing RM1.2 billion per year is landed from the Straits of Malacca. In Indonesia, The Straits of Malacca contributes the second highest fish production after the Java Sea. High quality and safe fish harvest is extremely important to ensure sustainable socio-economic development and health of the people. Other economic activities such as mariculture, tourism, recreation and maritime industry are dependent on the viability and pristine conditions of the Straits. The Straits is also an important site for archaeological resources. Today, the increase of shipping activities along the 1,000 km shipping lane and the rapid development in the coastal areas threaten the environment of the Straits. To ensure navigational safety in the narrow and shallow Straits, the Malaysian Government invested RM52 million to install 256 navigational aids in addition to RM100 million for putting up a vessel traffic management system. From 1978 until 1994, a total of 476 accidents including oil spills occurred in the Straits with an average of 30 accidents per year. About 274 vessels of all types passes through Straits each year and 36% of them are oil tankers and this will increase the discharges in the sea including oil, ballast water, sewage and other solid wastes. By the year 2,000, it is estimated that 888,000 tonnes of waste will be generated by the vessels plying the Straits comprising of 150,000 tonnes of oily bilgewater, 18 tonnes of solid wastes and 720,000 tonnes of sewage. While international community enjoys the benefits of the waterway, the littoral states are left with the burden of financing navigational safety measures and bear the consequences of oil spill and other shipping based pollution. From the shore, different types of pollutants from industries, agriculture, land-used activities and domestic wastes are discharged into the Straits. Along the coast, sand mining activities, development in mangroves swamps and land reclamation have degraded the habitat for marine life. Due to the critical role of the Malacca Straits in the socio-economic development of the country, the issues on the sustainable management of the Straits have to be taken seriously by the relevant authorities. With the increase of economic activities in the East Asian region and the Pacific, the traffic in the Malacca Straits becomes busier. Rapid development without consideration towards environment, and the resulting pollution along the Straits would result in negative impact not only to marine life, but to the people of the littoral states either of economy, social or health. Currently, the Straits has never been managed on a holistic basis. Transboundary management agreements have tended to focus so far on navigational regimes and have yet to adopt a broad based approach to managing both living and non-living resources of the waterway The sustainable management of the Straits requires international cooperation among the littoral States and the user States. The Littoral states should coordinate and enhance regulation and reduction of pollution inputs, coordinate the establishment and enforcement of uniform standards for pollutants and environmental impact assessments, establish effective international marine pollution monitoring mechanism, develop a Straits Action Plan and jointly prepare a dynamic atlas for policy making. Management of land and sea-based activities need to be addressed in integrated fashion to optimize the use of limited resources and mitigate or avoid land based sources of marine pollution and destruction of coastal resources. The formation of MASDEC, UPM does not only aim at carrying out multidisciplinary research, but would serve as a platform for exchanging ideas and information between scientists, policy-makers and stakeholders on the sustainable development and management of the Straits of Malacca. |
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Malacca Straits Research and Development Centre
