Arakan State’s Nanthar Island designated as marine national park

By DMG 02 Mar 2022

DMG Newsroom
2 March 2022, Rathedaung

Nanthar Island, located between Sittwe and Rathedaung townships in Arakan State, has been designated as a marine national park, according to the Rakhine Biodiversity and Nature Conservation Association (RBANCA).

Ko Yan Naung Soe, chairman of RBANCA, told DMG that the order designating Nanthar Island as a marine national park was sent by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation on February 21 and received on March 1.

“We have been working with the Department of Forestry since 2018 to make this happen. In the meantime, the delay was due to Covid-19 and political changes,” he said.

The total area of the Nanthar Island national marine park is just over 3,150 acres and the total territorial area is about 19,848 acres, for a total area of 22,979 acres, he said.

“Nanthar Island has been designated as a marine national park, which will restore environments. As biodiversity returns and recovers, people will have more food sufficiency,” said Dr. Maung Maung Kyi, chairman of RBANCA.

Nanthar Island is a popular destination for migratory birds including rare species such as the spoon-billed sandpiper, with Dr. Maung Maung Kyi welcoming the announcement of its designation as a marine national park.

Nanthar Island and Arakan State’s Mayyu Estuary were designated as a Ramsar wetland site on May 22, 2021, coinciding with International Day for Biological Diversity.

Lampi Island in Bokpyin Township, Tanintharyi Region, was designated as Myanmar’s first marine national park, with Nanthar Island becoming the country’s second.

Lampi Island covers an area of 205 square kilometres and is home to more than 50 endangered marine species, according to conservationists.