Reports are coming in that Ahe Dive Resort, Cenderawasih Bay, Indonesia has been forced to close by the West Papua provincial government. Ahe was owned and operated by the local West Papuan community and it intended “to create a sustainable economic alternative to replace practices such as over-fishing, shark finning and other less sustainable exploitation of their environment”. The resort was known for giving tourists access to the interactions between local fishermen and whale sharks and the area has been described as the “Galapagos of Indonesia”.

Perhaps most worrying is that it seems the reason that the Dive Resort is being closed down to make way for a base for Migas Pertamina, an Indonesian oil drilling company. (Photo from Shutterstock)