Thailand’s National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department has decided to close down 18 dive sites to give the areas a chance to recover.
While Authorities at other major diving destinations around the world twiddle their thumbs and hope the problem goes away, Thailand’s authorities have taken bold measures to insure that their delicate reef systems will survive. It is believed over 80% of the coral at each of the affected sites has been damaged. As well as diver related damage, the reef systems are also suffering from bleaching, believed to be the worst in 20 years, due to rising temperatures with increases of 2 to 4 degrees celcius in some areas.
Some of the dive sites closed include, East of Eden in the Similans, Ao Pakkad, Ao Suthep, Ao Mai Ngam, Koh Stork, Hin Kong in the Surin Islands and Hin Klang near Koh Phi Phi.


 Conservation chief Sunan Arunnoparat said he was unsure how long they would keep the dive sites closed but that it would be at least until the end of the monsoon season in October.
Most dive companies support the closures and go as far as to suggest some other sites that should be temporarily closed such as Beacon Reef and Breakfast Bend in the Similans.

Diving around Phuket

Phuket has many great scuba diving attractions. For beginners it is an ideal location for a diving course such as the PADI Open Water. For casual divers there are plenty of day trips to great dive sites. And for the serious diver there are enough dives to fill an entire holiday.
The warm waters of the Andaman Sea are teeming with sea life. You will see colourful tropical fish, sharks, rays, eels and turtles. If you are lucky, you may even see the awe-inspiring sight of a whale shark. Water visibility is usually excellent, sometimes exceeding 30 meters. The best time to dive is from November to May. During the monsoon season from June to October visibility is reduced and some dive sights, such as the Similans, are closed or out of reach due to the choppy sea.