GMA bans fishing in Visayan waters affected by oil spill

LONDON — President Arroyo has ordered a ban on fishing in Visayan waters affected by the oil spill from the sunken Solar I as part of efforts to revive the damaged marine ecosystems in the area, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said here yesterday.

Mrs. Arroyo issued the order after meeting separately with the Duke of Gloucester Prince Albert and executives of Coral Cay Conservation, a British nongovernment environmental group, on Thursday in her suite at the Mandarin Hotel.

Prince Albert is also involved in the work of Coral Cay to restore damaged coral reefs and forests, Bunye said.

During the meeting, Coral Cay officials led by Peter Raines also requested the President to enforce Philippine fishing laws in the oil spill-affected provinces "to ease the pressure on the fish resources."

"According to the Coral Cay group, the best way to rehabilitate the environment is to let nature take its course by decreasing pressure (on the marine life), by not allowing fishing that lessens fish, and they (damaged corals and the sea) will regenerate," Bunye told reporters.

He said the suggestion was prompted by the government’s plan to restock the waters of marine life by releasing fingerlings in the contaminated areas in Guimaras, Negros Occidental and Iloilo, but environmentalists said the best way is to allow "nature to recover by itself."

"The President agreed. Obviously, they have quite a lot of experience in this particular type of work and the President sort of deferred to their recommendation," Bunye said.

Meanwhile, the Department of Health (DOH) reported that two villages in Guimaras yielded high levels of toxins in the air.

The DOH said an air monitoring survey conducted in Barangay Nauway in Sibunang and Sitio Butconaway in Nueva Valencia town from Sept. 4 to 7 showed high levels of benzene, ethybenzene, toluene, hydrogen sulfide and other chemicals in the atmosphere.

The high toxin level was attributed to the stockpile of oil sludge that has not yet been collected in the affected coastal areas.

Bunye said Mrs. Arroyo also instructed the concerned local government units to coordinate with the Philippine Reef and Rainforest Conservation Foundation Inc. (PRRCFI), Coral Cay’s local counterpart, to work together on how to implement her directive.

It was not clear how the President’s order would affect the thousands of families depending on fishing for livelihood in the affected villages.

Bunye said no period was mentioned by Mrs. Arroyo as to how long the fishing ban will be enforced as "discussions touched only general principles."

He said the environmental group praised the fact that local communities were actively involved in addressing the environmental disaster. Coral Cay officials reiterated their commitment to assist the country in the cleanup.

Mrs. Arroyo also invited the Duke, whom Bunye described as "very environmentally oriented," to visit the Philippines to see for himself the progress of efforts to clean up the oil spill.

Created in 1986, Coral Cay sends volunteers to survey and help rehabilitate some of the world’s most endangered coral reefs and tropical forests by working closely with local communities who depend on their surroundings for food and livelihood.

The agency provides technical and financial support for developing countries to produce conservation management plans for threatened reefs and forests.

It also trains international volunteers and host-country partners to gather, interpret and monitor the data that are crucial for effective conservation.

Coral Cay has been working with the PRRCFI since 1995 on various projects in the Philippines such as the Southern Leyte Coral Reef Conservation Project, Southern Negros Coastal Development Program and Negros Rainforest Conservation Project.

Experts said conditions in Barangays Kabalaghan and La Paz also in Nueva Valencia have improved after the oil sludge was removed by Petron Corp. workers.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the department had purchased P2-million worth of Vitamin B complex using the P2-million donation from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office. The vitamins will protect the nervous system from the effects of hydrogen sulfide.

Duque said they also purchased 1,000 respiratory masks worth P1,200 each, and distributed these to workers involved in the cleanup operations.

He said 600 more masks were ordered. The agency will reimburse the cost of the masks with Petron.

We’ll face charges

Meanwhile, Petron spokesman Carlos Tan said the company will face the criminal charges filed by Guimaras officials against the company over the oil spill.

"We will not run away. Petron is 40 percent owned by the Philippines. It is not a multinational company that would just fold up and run away. We will not do that," Tan said.

Nueva Valencia Mayor Diosdado Gonzaga filed charges of violation of the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act against Petron executives and the Sunshine Maritime Development Corp., owner of the ill-fated Solar I.

House Deputy Minority Leader Rolex Suplico called for a complete revamp of officials of the the Coast Guard and the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) for failing to enforce rules against the overloading of ships.

Suplico said the findings of the Special Board of Marine Inquiry showed that the overloading of Solar I is partly to blame for the mishap, aside from the bad weather. — With Sheila Crisostomo, Ronilo Pamonag, Delon Porcalla