Coral reef, the forest of the ocean, is an ecosystem with high biological productivity and high biodiversity. Coral reef can conserve great sources of genes of many maritime species, regulate the climate and control the environment. Besides, it creates extremely beautiful underwater scenery with a great potential for tourism.

In the coastal area of Quang Nam province, coral reefs flourish in two different areas: Cu Lao Cham archipelago and the area of An Hoa ( Thuan An hamlet , Tam Hai commune , Nui Thanh district ).

Nui Thanh is a district in the south of Quang Nam province where Truong Giang river and Tam Ky river flow through .Nui Thanh district has a coastal line of 37 km long and a quite large salt marsh area where aquaculture, sand, pebble, mud flat, tide swamp, lagoon, estuary, salt marsh and coral community are all included.

In the area of An Hoa beach (Thuan An commune, An Hai district), two main kinds of coral reef can be found: fringing reef (on an island) and platform reef (on the sandbar). Here coral reef is high in biodiversity and rich in aquatic products.

However, under the pressure of economical development, also due to the increase in the population and the harder life of local people during the last years, the coral reef in Mui Ne is on the verge of severe devastation. Among the causes of this are unmanaged and excessive exploitation, even using devastating means of exploitation such as: dynamite, electricity and poison. Even immature fish and creatures are being caught and killed. Besides, there are many other negative economic activities such as harbor, infrastructure building, and rivulet dredging, together with natural disaster such as typhoon Xangsane in 2006, coastal erosion and severe floods. These factors are the main reasons causing coral death and decline in coverage of coral which is very sensitive to sunshine and sediment accumulation.
Quantity of coral reef is lessened. Biodiversity and environment are deformed, the amount of aquatic product exhausted, local life is affected.

General goal

Maintaining conservation and sustainable use of coral reef ecosystems, contributing to improving the environment and developing eco tourism by means of community access in Thuan An hamlet, Tam Hai commune, Nui Thanh district , Quang Nam province


Specific objectives:

- Promoting the initiative of public in conservation and sustainable use of coral reef ecosystem in Thuan An hamlet.

- Increasing awareness, knowledge, technical capacity together with building up model of conservation and sustainable use of coral reef ecosystem in Thuan An.

- learning from experience, compiling materials on this model to apply in other localities with similar conditions.

Main activities

- Establishing a mission team, carrying on planning and creating zones with protecting, conserving and exploiting functions.
- Planning and managing regulations which are ratified and enforced by jurisdictional organization.
- Setting up training program for officials, staff and community in Thuan An.
- Setting up a coral ecosystem management board in Tam Hai and three community teams responsible for 1/ Protecting coral ecosystems 2/ Managing exploitation of coral 3/ Developing eco tourism
- Introducing regulations on board ?s function and supplying equipments for the activities.
- Providing training course for management board and main teams, community involving in this project.
- Building up model of conservation and sustainable use of coral reef ecosystems and developing a model of ecotourism.
Suggestions:
Tam hai
Considering the potential ecotourism of Tam Hai, it is necessary to strengthen the capacity building for community in management and marine biodiversity preservation to protect local resources and the environment and to obtain benefits from ecotourism to improve the community livelihoods.

GEF SGP proposes some solutions to protect the coral reefs in Thuan An and Tam Hai commune such as help community to maintain livelihood through steady fish catching, develop ecotourism, strengthen community?s capacity in management, protection, reasonable and permanent use of natural resources, environment and biodiversity.