DENR opposes comm’l fishing in Tañon Strait

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has opposed a  proposal that seeks to allow commercial fishing within the municipal waters of the Tañon Strait, the country’s biggest marine protected area.

The  Biodiversity Management Bureau, an attached agency of the DA,  has expressed concern over the proposed moratorium on commercial fishing ban in the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape (TSPS) as recommended by some local government unit officials in Cebu.

If approved, it will allow commercial fishing within municipal waters beginning at 10.1 kilometers away from the coast that would likely result to overfishing in the area.

“Our positions and decisions will always consider sustainable management of the area, wherein the overall health of the vulnerable marine resources should not be jeopardized and the community benefits will be ensured,” DENR-BMB director Mundita Lim said.

Municipal waters include biologically important near-shore areas where mangroves and coral reefs thrive, and serve as the nesting and breeding ground for fish and other marine organisms.

Non-government organization Oceana Philippines insisted that commercial fishing should not be allowed citing the National Integrated Protected Area System Act in the amended Fisheries Code.

“Allowing the commercial fishing activity is not only unlawful, it also violates and is in fact an abdication of the mandates of the various agencies, including local government units, of the shared responsibility to maintain a healthful and balanced ecology,” Oceana Philippines vice president Gloria Ramos said.

The DENR-BMB also emphasized the need to give preferential access to municipal fisherfolks, who are allowed to use passive or non-destructive fishing gears within municipal waters.

“The marginalized fishermen should be given preferential access to their traditional fishing grounds and should not be limited by the technological capacities of the commercial fishers,” Lim said.

Tañon Strait is a critical marine habitat and important migratory path for 14 of the 27 species of whales and dolphins in the Philippines.

It is a rich fishing ground, providing livelihood to thousands of fisherfolk and their families in the 42 coastal cities and municipalities in Cebu and Negros Islands.