The Reef Ball Project
Thailand’s first Reef Ball was launched on September 18^th by H.E Suwit Khunkitti the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment. In attendance was the foundation’s President and CEO, Todd Barber and Director John Walch who will both remain on the island to initially setup, instruct and supervise the country’s first Reef Ball Program which is a collaboration of The Racha, Racha Seamaster Divers and the Reef Ball Foundation themselves. Over the next 12 months it is intended to install lots of Reef Balls around the island primarily in Ao Batok and Ao Ter.

 A reef ball is a ‘Designed Artificial Reef’ used to both restore ailing coral reefs and to create new ones, which obviously lead to new scuba diving sites. Amongst other uses they protect beaches.
 

The construction of ‘Reef Balls’ is a very simple process; concrete is poured into a fibreglass mould which is cast around an inflatable bladder. Once hardened the bladder is deflated and removed before the Reef Ball continues to the seabed in a diver-assisted controlled ascent. he balls are constructed of a special, marine friendly concrete with a life expectancy of over 500 years, they are designed to mimic natural reef systems allowing them to immediately create valuable marine life habitats or act as a natural alternative to previously damaged structures; an immediate solution to what would otherwise be an extremely long natural restoration process. To date over 500,000 Reef Balls have been deployed in over 3,400 projects worldwide in weights ranging from 3 kilograms to over 2,000.
 

The design of each ball can be unique and therefore more adaptable to its intended surroundings. A multitude of holes in varying sizes allow currents to freely swirl around inside the device without dislodging it from its resting place. No anchorage system is therefore required. Once seated on the seabed the structure begins to transform either naturally in its own time or with a bit of help from nature as they are also specially designed to allow coral specimens to be transplanted onto its surface.
 

The days proceedings also included a number of informative speeches including, amongst others Environmental Practices by Mr. Daniel Lim, Director of the Racha, an introduction to the Reef Conservation Program by Phillip Goh, Director of Racha Seamaster Divers who pledged no less than 2,000,000 Thai Baht to the initial stage and a video presentation on the Reef Ball Project by Mr. Barber.
 

The formalities were rounded off with an informative speech from H.E Suwit Khunkitti the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment who announced that ‘The Racha’ and ‘Racha Seamaster Divers’ had generously donated their facilities for use as a Marine Park base.
For more information about the Reefball Project see www.reefball.org

more impressions about building a Reef Ball...