Now that 2014 has drawn to a close, we reflect on our year as Ocean Action Project winners sponsored by Project AWARE.

The toughest challenge definitely was winning enough votes from the general public. So thank you to each & every one of you who voted for us a year ago. As a direct result of your vote we were selected as 1 of only 5 marine conservation projects worldwide to become an official Ocean Action Project in 2014.

As 2014 started we continued our 2nd year of research recording sightings of sharks, rays & fishing boats on every dive & snorkel session conducted. Conducting the research is the most enjoyable & easiest part of our project, especially when blessed with the best whale shark season ever in the Andaman Sea: 17 whale shark sightings between January-April.

A low point in the year was the death of a turtle on our local reef due to entanglement in a fishing net. Thankfully positive action was inspired by this incident being reported to the Department of Marine Coastal Resources and huge concrete blocks were dropped along the coastline of Koh Phra Thong to deter fishing boats from trawling in this area and to minimise the amount of fishing net debris washing onto our local reefs.

Our 2nd year of research concluded in April and during the monsoon low season all the data was analysed compared to the 1st year’s findings and results, conclusions & recommendations documented. Our report was shared with key influential people in the local community & national/international conservation agencies. We recognise that it is essential to work collaboratively with Thai nationals and that to drive successful enduring positive action, we must engender the support of key people including politicians, Heads of Surin National Park and owners of Thai snorkelling operations, all of whom have a personal vested interest in maintaining the marine eco-diversity around Surin National Park & Koh Phra Thong.  Discussions are ongoing but heading in the right direction ….

Our 3rd year of research commenced in November delivering amazing results already: whale sharks, black tip reef sharks, blue-spotted stingrays, eagle rays, hawksbill turtles, green turtles, seahorse & even a fin whale. Doesn't get much better than that! So far it’s proving to be an absolutely awesome season. We are also making good progress building mooring systems for local & offshore sites, so we can increase our research efforts in these locations without creating any anchor damage.

Our year as Project AWARE Ocean Action Project winners came to a great end with sightings of eagle rays & turtles on both dives at the beautiful Koh Tachai on New Year’s Eve. Koh Tachai is the most northernly island in Simlans National Park, due west from Koh Phra Thong. So good to end the year with such exciting sightings to contribute to our Ocean Action Project and to share with Shark Guardian & Sea Turtle Organisation.

A big thank you to Project AWARE staff for all their support throughout 2014.

Happy New Year from the Blue Guru team on Koh Phra Thong!