By Xinhua
Jakarta : Twenty-four Indonesian islets have disappeared in the past two years as a result of environmental degradation and more are threatened, said an official.
Alex S.W. Retradubun, director of small islands development wing of the Fishery and Marine Resources Ministry, was quoted by national Antara news agency Friday, as saying that the islets were already identified.
"The 24 islets were known to have vanished during a survey done with the aim of naming the islets since 2005," he said.
Most of the small islands spread all over Indonesia vanished as results of abrasion and mining activity, Retradubun said.
He said the islets were only around one meter high above the sea and they were vulnerable to abrasion.
"Ecological damage to the islands have become a cause of major concern. The islets are completely below the sea level," he said.
Alex expressed fear that these islands, which are already threatened by the sea, have become all the more vulnerable as a result of the global warming.
According to the official, the 2004 tsunami that devastated Aceh had destroyed three small islands in the region, while 13 others were submerged because of abrasion.
Besides Indonesia, 42 other countries, grouped as the Small Islands Developing States, would also face the threat in course of time, Retradubun predicted.