Malaysia loses coral cover equal to 47,250 football fields
Malaysia has lost coral cover equivalent to 47,250 football fields over the past three years, as the health of the nation’s reefs continues to decline
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (MNTV) — Malaysia has lost coral cover equivalent to 47,250 football fields over the past three years, as the health of the nation’s reefs continues to decline, according to Reef Check Malaysia’s 2025 Annual Survey Report, as reported by Malay Mail.
The report, based on surveys at 297 locations nationwide using the globally standardized Reef Check methodology, found that average live coral cover stood at 39.94% in 2025 — a drop from 44.65% the year before.
“National average live coral cover reduced from about 44.65% in 2024 to 39.94% in 2025. That’s a loss of five percentage points, or about 10% of coral cover in just one year,” Reef Check Malaysia chief executive officer Julian Hyde said.
Hyde said live coral cover was around 50% in 2022, meaning Malaysia has lost about 10 percentage points — or roughly 20% — of its coral cover since then. “We lost the equivalent of 47,250 football fields’ worth of coral cover in the last three years,” he said.
Reef Check Malaysia attributed the continued decline to several factors, including unsustainable tourism, pollution, coastal development and destructive fishing practices.
Signs of disturbance were recorded at high levels across many reef sites, with 82.5% affected by trash, 80% by discarded fishing gear and nets, and 57.5% by boat or anchor damage. Coral bleaching was documented at 67.5% of the locations surveyed.
In Sabah, a third of the surveyed sites recorded damage linked to dynamite fishing.
“These findings matter because coral reefs are critical to jobs and food security for coastal communities,” Hyde said, noting that reefs, together with mangroves and seagrass meadows, form nursery systems that support fish stocks relied on by small-scale fishers.
He added that an estimated 140,000 small-scale fishers operate in Malaysia, with tens of thousands of households depending on coastal fisheries for food and income — livelihoods that rely directly on healthy marine ecosystems.
In response to the findings, Reef Check Malaysia is calling for improved reef protection, with a focus on reducing local stressors and strengthening the role of local communities.
The organization urged the government to adopt a joint management approach that formally integrates local communities into the management of Malaysia’s marine protected areas, while also building both ecological and economic resilience.
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