2010 was a great year, with many positive improvements in the community of Koh Rong Samloem Island. The marine conservation efforts have again gone from strength to strength due to the hard work and commitment of the community, Mcc's partners, staff and all the Marine Conservation Cambodia volunteers that have put in so much time and energy.


We have made some amazing discoveries this year both on the Island and in the ocean including:

The discovery of Hippocampus Mohnikei while scuba diving in Kampot's extensive seagrass beds, this was the first ever recorded sighting of this species of Seahorse in Cambodia.

The addition of over 90 marine fish species our marine research team and diving volunteers helped to collect information and photographic evidence around the Islands of Koh Rong Samloem and Koh Rong that led to an increase of over 90 species of marine fish recorded in Cambodian waters this was then given to worldfish/fishbase's to be included in their database of marine fish species for Cambodia.

The Discovery of a new species of Orchid on the Island of Koh Rong Samloem previously unknown in Cambodia.

Marine Research

Our Marine monitoring and marine research diving programs are now well underway: 
With the signing of an official marine research and conservation collaboration agreement between Marine Conservation Cambodia and the Fisheries Administration Conservation Department. We are assisting the Fisheries Administration with data from our research dives to assist in the creation of Fisheries Management areas, (Cambodia's equivalent to MPA's } by undertaking marine research surveys around Koh Rong Samloem and Koh Rong we can monitor both the coral reefs and the seahorse populations and identify the main areas of high biodiversity.

We recently returned from the island of Koh Tang one of the further and more isolated Islands in Cambodia were we set up the first base line marine surveys for a continued monitoring and research program of marine life around the island.

We have almost completed the full training of a community based marine research scuba diving team from the Community of Koh Rong Samloem this will allow the community to directly monitor its own marine resources by means of scuba diving and marine research surveys.

Marine Conservation Cambodia's work in collaboration with Mai Pei Bei Community (Village 23)


Community Pride

The community of Mai Pei Bei (Village 23) on the Island of Koh Rong Samloem where we are based has become much more settled since it received confirmation that it would not be evicted from its location on the Island, it will now be allocated a development exclusion zone for future growth of the village. There is now a real feeling of community pride and a confidence in the future that has resulted in people creating small gardens and renovating their homes.

Community Patrols and Conservation

The community of Koh Rong Samloem has kept up regular patrols throughout the year and managed to protect the area directly surrounding the village and the Island of Koh Koun, the community has seen a visible increase in fish catches, and we have seen a visible improvement in the health of the surrounding coral reefs whilst scuba diving. Because of the increase in the size of catches the community has now decided to create 3 new marine conservation areas within its community fishing area.

Waste Management

During the year we have helped to deal with the problem of human waste by managing to find the finances to install three proper toilets with home made septic tanks within the village.. We also raised enough money to be able to employ two families as full time cleaners within the village and this has led to a remarkable improvement in the beauty of the community area as well as helping to eliminate many health problems and has also helped prevent rubbish from reaching the sea and the surrounding reefs.
We hope that in 2011 we will be able to address the problem of waste removal/disposal from the island with the plan of raising funding for proper to deal with the waste produced by the community.




Health Care

Our first aid clinic and health care program are providing a service which before was previously unavailable, making a real difference in dealing with all kinds of accidents and illnesses. Providing an alternative to some of the original remedies like putting old engine oil on severe cuts and. We have also continued to train community members in in water rescue and basic CPR.

Sustainable Fishing

During 2010 the community has totally removed all destructive fishing gears and is now operating its fishing activities using only non destructive fishing techniques, such as lines and traps. We have also managed to set up a program where by selective fishing is undertaken by some community members, where by the fishers return the smaller fish and non commercial fish back to the ocean and only retain specific sizes and species.




English School

The English school has been running all year and has had great success with all ages participating in both English lessons and environmental lessons. 
We hope to complete the new English school building early this year and then set up a more comprehensive syllabus to cover many different subjects. 




Collaboration with the Royal Government of Cambodia's Fisheries Administration and The UN FAO:


During 2010 we helped to create a collaboration with the UN FAO that has lead to the community being included in the Regional Fisheries Livelihood Program. This will assist with the patrols and protection of the area and more alternative livelihood opportunities for the community. Our collaboration with the community and conservation departments of the FiA has grown leading to the creation of an MoA between Marine Conservation Cambodia and the fisheries conservation department, this in turn has led to us being requested to carry out marine survey's at more than 40 points around Koh Rong Samloem to assist in the governmental creation of marine fisheries management areas, Cambodia's equivalent to marine protected areas. This year also proved that mcc is now respected and credited as a leader in conservation and community work in Cambodia, in December Mcc was given an LoA by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation to conduct a 4 day training course on Safety at Sea, Marine Ecology, Marine Biology and Monitoring, Control and Surveillance. The event was a great success and one major outcome was highlighting the importance of the inshore areas around Cambodia's coast (from shoreline to 20m depth) These areas have now been identified for improved protection and monitoring against illegal trawling, this in turn will help to protect Cambodia's endangered species such as turtles and seahorses and will also help to increase livelihoods by protecting the areas were many commercial species breed and shelter. Full details of the training course are available here.

Marine Conservation Cambodia would like to thank all those involved in making 2010 an amazing and productive year, thank you to all of the Marine Conservation Cambodia volunteers who have put their hearts into helping the community on Koh Rong Samloem. Thank you to the Fisheries Administration who have helped the community and the conservation efforts. Thank you to all of the UN FAO who have joined in the cause to protect and help the community, Projects Abroad and to all the Mcc staff who have worked so hard to make all this possible.

We will continue to put our hearts and energy into the protection of the island environment, marine environment and the community of Koh Rong Samloem. Lets see what we can achieve in 2011 !!! 

An Interesting Article on Our Work