Dugong safeguards to impose boat and fishing controls at three Phuket areas
Rassada and Bang Rong piers will be subject to boat-speed controls, while Pa Khlok–Tang Khen is designated for fishing-gear changes under a six-month Andaman conservation programme.
Thailand’s Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) plans to introduce boat-speed controls at Rassada Pier and Bang Rong Pier in Phuket, while Pa Khlok–Tang Khen will be subject to measures aimed at reducing dugong entanglements in fishing gear.
The Phuket locations are among 12 high-risk areas across five Andaman provinces covered by the DMCR’s “Save Our Dugong” programme. Six areas have been identified as vulnerable to boat strikes and six as risks from fishing equipment. The department expects the measures to be implemented within six months.
Buoys or other markers will be used to define navigation routes and boundaries. The framework sets maximum speeds of 5 knots within 1 kilometre of the shore, 10 knots within 2 kilometres and 20 knots within 3 kilometres. The limit will be 5 knots in seagrass habitats and 3 knots in seagrass areas within national parks.
The fishing-gear measures in Pa Khlok–Tang Khen and five other Andaman areas will prohibit single crab traps, with one trap connected to one buoy, in seagrass habitats. Their buoy lines will be replaced with 5mm-diameter rope, while weak links will be added at connection points to give entangled dugongs a better chance of breaking free.
Excess rope will be shortened, particularly near the surface and along dugong routes. For systems linking 15 to 20 crab traps to one buoy, stones or lead weights will be used to keep the rope straight and reduce the risk of loose lines catching marine animals.
Bottom-set crab nets will also be prohibited in seagrass areas. Where their use is permitted, fishers will be required to monitor the nets after deployment. Large-fish floating gillnets, including those used for seabass, must be kept out of seagrass habitats and at least 1 kilometre from their edge.
DMCR Director-General Pinsak Suraswadi said on 17 August 2026 that the programme was being advanced under the policy of Natural Resources and Environment Minister Suchart Chomklin. Pinsak said the measures were intended to organise marine use rather than restrict fishing or navigation, allowing both coastal livelihoods and dugong conservation to continue.
The department said it would work with boat operators, fishers and other stakeholders to explain the measures and support the transition to less harmful equipment.
DMCR recorded 209 dugong strandings during the 10 fiscal years from 2017 to 2026. Of 131 cases with known causes, 34 were attributed to human activity: 17 marine accidents, 16 incidents involving fishing gear and one involving marine debris.
The department warned that Thailand’s dugong population could fall below 100 by 2030 and below 50 by 2035 if the current rate of loss continues. Anyone who finds a dugong trapped in fishing gear, injured or in immediate danger is urged to call the 1362 hotline.
