TACLOBAN CITY – Red tide toxins remain on the seven bays of the region, raising shellfish ban in some coastal towns to prevent poisoning, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) reported.
For months now, the contamination thrives in Irong-Irong and Cambatutay Bays in Samar; Carigara Bay in Leyte; coastal waters of Leyte, Leyte; Matarinao Bay in Eastern Samar and coastal waters of Naval, Biliran.
Last week, the phenomenon expanded to Calubian, Leyte.
BFAR Regional Director Juan Albaladejo warned that all types of shellfish taken from affected bays are positive of red tide toxins.
Albaladejo said that the red tide toxins found in these seven bays are beyond the regulatory limit of 10 cells per liter in seawater and 49 saxitoxin per gram in shellfish meat.
In affected areas, the density is as high as 600 cells per liter in water and 129 saxitoxin per gram in meat.
“All types of shellfish and Acetes sp. or alamang gathered from these areas are not safe for human consumption,” Albaladejo said.
“Thus, the public is advised to refrain from eating, harvesting, marketing, and buying shellfish and Acetes sp. from Irong-Irong Bay and Cambatutay Bay until such time that the shellfish toxicity level has gone down below the regulatory level,” he added.
Fish, squid, shrimp and crab are safe to eat “provided that they are fresh and washed thoroughly and internal organs such as gills and intestines are removed before cooking”, according to BFAR.
With the recent spate of red tide bloom, the fisheries bureau asked local government units to enforce shellfish ban to ensure public safety.
“We have been issuing local bulletins to inform local officials but I have to admit that some are not really seriously enforcing the ban,” Albaladejo said.
Earlier, BFAR lifted the shellfish ban in Maqueda and Villareal Bays in Samar, and Cancabato Bay in Leyte.
During the peak of red tide bloom this year, local authorities buried at least four tons of shellfish gathered in Samar province.
(SARWELL Q. MENIANO)
Red tide persists in 7 Eastern Visayas bays
Villar leads celebration of International Volunteer Day at LPPCHEA
Sen. Cynthia A. Villar on Thursday (December 1) joined the rest of the world in the observation of the 2016 International Volunteer Day and led hundreds of volunteers in numerous environment-friendly activities to mark the celebration.
Some 500 environmental volunteers from partner government agencies joined Villar in a coastal clean-up of the Las Piñas-Parañaque Critical Habitat and Ecotourism Area (LPPCHEA) to kick-off the event, which carries this year’s theme, ‘Global Applause – Give Volunteers A Hand.’
The group also enjoyed bird watching and had a breath of fresh air while in a Nature Walk at the LPPCHEA grounds, a 175-hectare protected area which is Metro Manila’s last remaining beach and mangrove area.
‘We all love Mother Nature. And there is nothing more that touches my heart than seeing hundreds of volunteers share my passion. This act of volunteerism to protect the environment is one of the most noble, if not the noblest of all, because the task entails so much work, time and effort,’ Villa told the volunteers present during the event.
The observance of the International Volunteer Day, set on December 5, aims to encourage organizations and individual volunteers to work together on projects and campaigns, such as environment protection, that will promote their contributions to economic and social development at local, national and international levels.
This year’s observance celebrates volunteerism in all facets and pays special tribute to the success achieved through volunteerism. The theme, ‘Global Applause- Give Volunteers A Hand’, recognizes volunteers all over the world for making peace and sustainable development a reality.
To give tribute to the achievements of our country’s environment volunteers, Villar partnered with Villar SIPAG, the LPPCHEA Management, theCAVITEX-CARE (Cavitex Advocates for the Restoration of the Environment), the Alliance for Stewardship and Authentic Progress (ASAP), the Save Freedom Island Movement (SFIM), the Ministry of Ecology of the Archdiocese of Manila, the Center for Environmental Concerns, the Ecowaste Coalition, the Greenpeace Southeast Asia, the Mother Earth Foundation, the Oceana Philippines and the Society for the Conservation of Wetlands Philippines.(PR)
30 beneficiaries received ovens from Tacloban city gov’t, DOLE
TACLOBAN CITY-The city government through Mayor Cristina G. Romualdez and Public Employment Service Office (PESO), in partnership with the Department of Labor and Employment, turned over 30 ovens and baking pans on Tuesday (November 29) to beneficiaries of the Integrated Livelihood and Emergency Employment Program (DILEEP).
The livelihood package worth P12,000 each was distributed to beneficiaries who have undergone baking classes offered by the Cristina’s Learn and Earn Program (CLEP) and the City Cooperative Office.
Mayor Romualdez was joined by DOLE 8 chief of North Leyte Office Bernardita Navarra during the turn over ceremony held at the City Hall lobby, witnessed by PESO chief Emilia Cruz.
The second batch of beneficiaries will receive their ovens on December 9, coinciding with the grand barangayan that will be held at the City Hall grounds.
On that day, 30 pedicab drivers will also receive their units availed through the Kabuhayan Restoration Program of DILEEP. The beneficiaries who came from Yolanda-stricken communities was validated and screened by PESO. (HENRY JAMES G. ROCA, CIO)
Army official affirms their loyalty to Pres. Duterte
STA.RITA, Samar – Soldiers in the region remains to be loyal to their Commander-in-Chief, President Rodrigo Duterte.
This was assured by the deputy commanding officer of the 8th Infantry Division, Colonel Cesar Idio, who said that they don’t find it imperative to conduct any loyalty check among its forces.
“Our soldiers in the region remain faithful to the chain of command and the Constitution,” Idio said.
On August 8, Mr. Duterte became the first President to visit the 8th ID headquarters in Catbalogan City wherein he assured the soldiers of the region of his unequivocal support to them.
Col. Idio said that they have not received any information that soldiers in the region are restive on the administration of the President who was overwhelmingly voted to office on his pledge to stamp out the illegal drug trade in the country.
His administration also initiated another fresh round of peace talks with the Communist Party of the Philippines-National Democratic Front(CPP-NDF) with the hope to end the more than four decades of insurgency problem in the country.
The Army recognizes that loyalty is the thread that binds their actions together and defines their commitment to each other, to their units, country and the Constitution, Idio said. (JAZMIN BONIFACIO)
280 `Yolanda’ families settled to their new homes
As directed by Pres. Duterte
TACLOBAN CITY-When this city was pummeled by supertyphoon “Yolanda” on November 8, 2013, Elena Bituon did not only lose her two young children but all their material possessions.
Bituon, 29, said that while the lives of her children, Argel, 7 and Shaun Rinzel, 10 months old, could not be recovered, at least Yolanda gave them something to cheer about: a new and concrete house.
Bituon, whose husband Arjun,32 works as a fish vendor, was among the 280 families from Barangay 88 in San Jose district, worst hit area due to the onslaught of Yolanda, who were resettled at their new permanent houses located at North Hill Arbours in Barangay Santo Niño, 13 kms away from the city center, on Monday (Nov.28).
“This is now our new home and beginning today, we will start to build our dreams and our future,” Bituon said.
The couple has still two children, Jirah Faith, 8, and Jade Ivan, 1 year old.
“I could say now that Yolanda turned out to be a blessing. We may have lost our two children, whose bodies were not recovered until now, but we have now a new house which is big and better compared to our shanty in San Jose,” the housewife said.
The military trucks as well as vehicles from the city government helped the families during their transfer to their new homes which were provided with electricity with water still to be rationed by the city government for their daily uses.
Secretary Michael Lloyd Dino, presidential assistantfor the Visayas, said that the resettlement of the 280 families to their new permanent houses was a result of the directive of President Rodrigo Duterte to relocate families still living in danger zones and temporary shelters to the permanent houses.
The transfer of the families, the initial group out of the 12,000 families that need to be relocated, came 18 days after Mr. Duterte issued the directive to Dino during his Nov.8 visit, coinciding the third year commemoration of Yolanda’s onslaught to Tacloban, considered the ground zero of the world’s strongest typhoon to hit inland.
“This is what we call the Duterte Express. This happenned just 18 days after his visit (here in Tacloban),” Dino said.
According to Dino, when the President learned that there are still 12,000 families still to be relocated three years after Yolanda’s onslaught, he made right away the decision to relocate all of them by December.
“We cannot promise that we can relocate them all but we will do our very best to do that,” Dino said, referring to the presidential December deadline.
As part of the package, six buses owned by the Ceres Bus Liners were “loaned” to the government which will serve as service vehicle for the residents for the next six months, he added.
“Lumalabas ang malasakit ni Presidente. Nakita natin ang tapang niya kontra sa droga; nakita naman natin dito ang malasakit ni Presidente sa mga pamilya,” Dino said.
Dorcas Secreto, estate specialist management of the National Housing Authority (NHA-8), said that out of the 14,433 houses to be constructed in the 11 resettlement sites, 4,346 are ready for occupancy while the rest of the houses are still in “various stages of construction.”
She also said that based on their records, 2,101 families have been resettled at RidgeView 1 and 2 in Barangay Cabalawan; 172 families at Villa Sofia in Brgy.Tagpuro; 322 families at Villa Diana in Brgy. New Kawayan and 720 families at the Tacloban North Village in Brgy.Cabalawan.
Mayor Cristina Romualdez said that she is happy for the speedy assistance of the President to help the affected families relocated to their new permanent shelters.
“We will really do our best that all the remaining families will be relocated to their new permanent shelters,” she said.
The city government, with the assistance of other government agencies, is to provide livelihood assistance to the beneficiaries, Romualdez added.(with report LIZBETH ANN A.ABELLA)
Gov’t rushes transfer of families to relocation sites
TACLOBAN CITY – The government has moved 280 families from danger zones to permanent relocation sites on Monday (November 28) in an effort to beat the timeline for mass transfer of Yolanda-hit families within the year.
Government trucks and buses moved hundreds of families from coastal San Jose District near the city’s airport to North Hill Arbours housing site in Barangay Sto. Niño.
“We will try our best to fast track the transfer before the end of December. President Rodrigo Duterte felt so bad that after three years many families are still living in shanties,” said Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Dino.
During his visit to this city on Nov. 8, Mr. Duterte has expressed dissatisfaction over slow housing development project for super typhoon Yolanda survivors, prompting him to order concerned agencies to make significant improvement within a month.
He vowed to return this December to check if the families have been relocated to their permanent shelters.
On Sunday night, the Leyte II Electric Cooperative initially completed the power supply project to the new relocation site with 1,100 units built by the National Housing Authority.
As a “stop gap” measure for the water needs, Dino asked the Department of Public Works and Highways, Leyte Metropolitan Water District, and Bureau of Fire Protection to deliver water and set up tanks at relocation sites.
The Local Water Utilities Authority said it will complete the long term water supply project late next year.
Vallacar Transit, Inc., the largest public land transportation company in Negros Island has lent their six Ceres Liner buses to the government for the use of relocated families.
“The buses will stay for six months to ensure that the students can go to school and occupants whose job is in the city, can go to work,” Dino said.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has asked distributors to deliver stocks to store owners in the new resettlement sites.
“Those who own stores in their old community can continue doing business here before the establishment of big retail shops and better transport system,” said Ma. Delia Corsiga, chief of the DTI regional business development division.
This is on top of the upcoming livelihood support program of P5,000 each for 1,102 identified families in the city.
City Mayor Cristina Gonzales Romualdez said the city government target to transfer at least 200 families every week to their respective relocation sites starting Nov. 28 until January next year.
The National Housing Authority (NHA) reported that out of the 14,631 houses targeted for construction in this city alone, 7,148 have been completed so far, but only 2,101 units have been occupied as of last week.
Out of the 14,631 targeted units, 13,062 are NHA projects and 1,569 units by eight non-government organizations. (SARWELL Q.MENIANO)