Diver Shoots Underwater Video Of The Ocean Pollution In Bali

What do you think when Bali is mentioned in a conversation? White sandy beaches and clear, blue waters, right? It is what the media wants us to believe, the clean sides of the wonderful island resort. But the truth is far more horrendous. It is a devastating sight to see, but not at all uncommon.Show more

Richard Horner, a 45-year-old diver from Britain, took his GoPro camera to the waters of Bali to show just how dirty the ocean is. He went to explore a site called Manta Point near the island of Nusa Penida, which is the largest of three off the southeastern coast of Bali. There he was treated with a ‘soup’ of jellyfish, foliage, and trash.

Bali may have become a top destination for tourists in the past years, but the truth is it is also infamous for the trash the builds up on the beaches and in the water. The former mechanical design engineer From East Sussex, UK, says he has never seen this much ocean pollution before.

“I’ve been living and diving in Bali for five years. What we saw in Manta Point was much worse than anything I’ve seen before. We’ve seen mantas actively avoiding the plastic entering their mouths and sometimes spitting it out. I posted the video because it was much, much worse than usual,” he says.

Plastic passes regularly in the ocean around Bali, as the water is dominated by throughflow from Indonesia. Locals use the rivers as a dumping ground, which is where the most of the plastic comes from. According to Richard, the impact the pollution has on manta rays is yet unknown. But as the plastic breaks up into microplastics, it will be eaten by the sea life.