It has been a long time coming but our first Marine Resource Management Course (MRM) was recently completed on Koh Tao and was a huge success.

Instructors Debbie Gottdenker, Simon Dowling & Jenny Dowling joined divemaster Jennifer Matthews for this exceptional program.

The MRM is a PADI distinctive specialty course focusing on the detailed ecology of reef environments, where most people visit and dive, and the problems they face in maintaining a pristine environment.

In addition to the theoretical nature of this course we endeavoured to provide potential Resource Managers with practical experience in some of the key tools available for managing restoration efforts – Data collection, reef restoration techniques, developing education and awareness campaigns.

As part of the practical application participants engaged in some Biorock surveying, the development of coral nurseries as well as some detailed observatory dives. One of the first steps in any scientific understanding is observation so to this end we conducted some specific observation dives. These were some of the best dives we did during the week. Students were also given a thorough introduction to Project Aware’s Coralwatch coral health chart and undertook a few such surveys which can be uploaded directly onto Coralwatch’s website.

On an island like Koh Tao with the increasing pressure that it suffers from it is important to have well informed dive leaders and managers to help preserve the environment. The two things this course provides is a through understanding of the problems facing a location and some tools to develop informed solutions for their preservation 

It was a thoroughly enjoyable experience and hopefully the start of many more to come in the future.