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Bachok Marine Research Station

The IOES Bachok Marine Research Station at Kelantan was completed and handed over to IOES on 27 June 2012. Facing the South China Sea, the Bachok Station will serve as the University of Malaya’s gateway to the South China Sea and will provide opportunities for coastal and offshore oceanographic activities. The Bachok Station will also serve as a testing ground for technologies developed for coastal protection, novel aquaculture, and a training ground for aspiring local and foreign marine scientists.

The Atmospheric Sciences Center at the Bachok Marine Research Station is awarded a Global Atmospheric Watch (GAW) centre by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) on 13 June 2016. This atmospheric observation tower is funded by the National Environmental Research Centre (NERC), UK, through our collaboration with Cambridge University, the University of East Anglia, and the Malaysian Meteorological Department. An observation tower was constructed for the placement of atmospheric and climate monitoring at the station. A micro-Dirac, a gas chromatograph fabricated by Cambridge University, is currently set up in the tower to monitor halocarbon compounds in the atmosphere. This research which started as part of the PMI2-funded collaboration between IOES and Cambridge University expanded into the EU-SHIVA programme which brought together scientists from more than 17 universities and research institutions to participate in a field campaign to measure halogenated gases in the atmosphere and to understand their impact on global ozone within the upper troposphere and global stratosphere, with implications on climate change. A joint Center of Marine Science and Technology (JCMST) between the University of Malaya (UM) and the First Institute of Oceanography (FIO), Ministry of Natural Resources, China was established at the Bachok station in Dec 2017. The establishing FIO-UM JCMST has strengthened the cooperation between Malaysia and China in marine science and technology and contributed to human capacity-building development.

More About Bachok Marine Research Station

Role of the Bachok Marine Research Station

  • Support advanced and applied research with a focus on utilisation of marine resources, marine biotechnology, eco-engineering technology, met-ocean research and socioeconomic studies
  • Provide the infrastructure and facilities for the development and pilot-scale testing of new coastal engineering technologies for shoreline protection against erosion, sea-level rise and tsunamis.
  • Serve as the Center ffor transfer of technologies for proverty eradication in the coastal communities, with a focus on the ECER populations.
  • Serve as the centre for outreach and training of IOES

LOCATION: The Bachok Marine Research Station, Institute of Ocean and Earth Sciences, is established in 2012. It is located at Bachok, Pasir Puteh, Kelantan, which is 30 kilometres from Kota Bharu. Built on a land area of 3 hectares, the station fronts the open sea (South China Sea) and is partially bounded by the narrow Rekang River. It is also an hour away from Perhentian Island, which is ideal for coral reef studies. 

FACILITIES: Biological, Chemical and Physical Oceanography Laboratories, molecular laboratories, seminar room, conference room, dormitory (max 40 pax), a met-ocean observation tower, hatchery facilities, nursery set up, boathouse with 1 unit of 7-ft rigid- inflatable boat (RIB) and 1 unit of a fibreglass boat, full communication and internet facilities. 

EQUIPMENT:
Laboratory and field equipment including UV-Vis spectrophotometer, growth chamber, freeze-dryer,-80°C freezer, thermal cyclers, real-time PCR system, Epi- fluorescent microscope, Flow cytometer,
TOC-TN analyzer, research-grade microscopes, sonic anemometer, multiparameter sondes,sediment grabs, water samplers, plankton nets, current meters, depth sounders and SCUBA diving gears. 

RESEARCH PROJECTS

  • Atmospheric Watch Centre- Air-Ocean-Land Interactions
  • Harmful Algal Blooms Studies
  • Environmental Monitoring
  • Population Genetic of Giant Clam
  • Grand Challenge Seaweeds Cultivation Project
  • Algae & Seaweed Cultivation for Biofuel
  • Coral-bactera assemblages
  • Bacteria-mediated Carbon Flux in Tropical Coastal Waters
  • Coastal Bioshield for Coastline Protection
  • Marine Biodiversity & Ecology
  • Mangrove Ecosystem Studies
  • Maritime Culture & History
  • Marine Spatial Planning for Coastal & Ocean Planning 


Station Coordinator
Dr Hii Kieng Soon
Tel: 609-778 5007
hiiks@um.edu.my

Bachok Marine Research Station
Institute of Ocean and Earth Sciences,
University of Malaya
16310 Bachok, Kelantan, Malaysia

Tel: 609-7785001/609-7785002/609-7785003
Fax: 609-7785006

 

Research Activities Linked to Marine Research Station

  1. Marine Sources Of Short-Lived Halocarbons And Their Atmospheric Effects;
    Halocarbon Production by Marine Algae
  2. Effects and control of biofouling on mangrove seedlings
  3. Investigating bacteria mediated carbon fluxes in tropical coastal waters
  4. Enhancing the forecast of severe weather in Malaysia and its neighbouring seas during the northeast monsoon
  5. Mangrove and coastal vegetation establishment for protection and economic enhancement.
  6. Coastal Bio-Shield Via Bio-Engineering Technique for Protection and Economic Enhancement
  7. Seaweed Mass Production for Pulp Paper
  8. Diversity and ecology of jellyfish, marine invertebrates; snapper grouper
  9. Distribution, Ecology and Conservation of cetaceans around the Langkawi Archipelago, with special reference to Indo-Pacific Humpback dolphins, Sousa Chinensis
  10. Marine Fungi in Malaysia.
  11. The macroevolution of Marine microeukaryotes
  12. Systematic studies on Malaysian marine algae and seaweeds
  13. Biology and Distribution of Marine and Intertidal Rove beetles
  14. Pelancongan Kebudayaan Maritim
  15. Law of the Sea
  16. Development of an ecological model of a phytoplankton bloom in a tropical estuary
  17. Investigating coral-associated bacterial assemblages
  18. Diversity and biological studies of moray eels and allied groups in Malaysia
  19. Stratospheric ozone: Halogen Impacts in a Varying Atmosphere (SHIVA: EU Grant # 226224)

Last Update: 28/08/2022