PHI PHI ISLANDS – Yutthaphong Damsrisuk, head of the Nopparat Thara Beach-Phi Phi Islands National Park in Krabi Province, revealed that park representatives filed a complaint with the Phi Phi Island Police Station regarding a group of tourists from the Quel Voyage George Town boat diving who removed a shell from the seabed around Koh Bida in the Phi Phi Islands that violated the law of the National Park Act.
The police are now investigating to seek the group of tourists to take legal action.
In this case, park officials received a complaint from a Facebook user who posted images of foreign tourists diving at Bida Island and went down to pick up one shell. Then, a group of authorities from Hat Nopparat Thara-Phi Phi Islands National Park studied photographs of the scenery’s distinctive features. Then they identified the name of the boat that entered the region on the specified date and time.
Yutthaphong stated that he would like to request that tourists visiting the National Park adhere to the following park tourism regulations:
1. Do not collect, remove, or do anything that harms corals, aquatic animals, and wildlife, including natural resources that affect the ecology and biodiversity.
2. Do not leave sewage, waste, or anything that could harm the environment.
3. Do not hunt animals, catch aquatic animals, or engage in any other activities that endanger all species in the national park.
Previously, in June 2023, two Chinese tourists were accused of taking photos while holding a starfish and stepping on coral reefs during their diving trip off Koh Racha in Phuket province.
Their actions violated a law prohibiting harm to the coastal environment which carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison and a 200,000 baht fine.
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