Senator Cynthia A. Villar wants to place the Philippine Rise Marine Resource Reserve (PMRR) under the government’s National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS).
Villar said under the measure, the PMRR will be institutionalized and provided with funds for its management. The measure will strengthen Philippine sovereignty over its waters and resources.
Villar filed Senate Bill 519 or An Act Declaring a portion of Philippine Rise within the exclusive economic Zone (EEZ) of the Philippine Sea as a protected area with the category of Marine Resource Reserve under NIPAS.
Villar, the chairperson of the Senate Environment Committee, said this would be “referred to as PMRR.”
The bill also seeks to establish a mechanism that would ensure measures towards this objective are enforced and implemented.
The majority of the Philippine Rise including the Benham Bank Seamount, has always been within the Philippines EEZ.
The United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (UN-CLCS) adopted the recommendation of the Philippines on the limits of the country’s continental shelf.
“Following the discoveries in the Benham Rise, four more research expeditions were conducted in 2016, 2018, 2019, and 2022 to further assess its biodiversity and extent of habitats,” Villar said.
She noted that the data and information obtained from the past expeditions supported the recognition of the Philippine Rise as an Ecologically and Biologically Significant Marine Area (EBSMA) under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity.
This also refers to the declaration of a portion of the Philippine Rise, namely Benham Bank, and its surrounding waters as a marine resource reserve under NIPAS in 2018 by virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 489.
The proclamation of the portion of the Philippine Rise as a marine protected area (MPA) in 2018 was just an initial step toward fulfilling the requirements for a full-fledged protected area to be finally declared as part of ENIPAS in 2018.
Since the PMRR is the first MPA in the Philippine EEZ wherein fisheries operations are regular, Villar said the state of habitats and biodiversity in the Behnam Bank must be closely monitored.
She said this would ensure the sustainability of the resources found in the area.
Also, she said that regular expeditions in the area must be conducted in order to establish long-term trends in the ecological integrity and biodiversity of the Behnam bank.
The bill also provides that the BFAR, AFP Philippine Coast Guard, and PNP Maritime Group are involved in maritime patrolling, maritime safety for Filipino fishers, and enforcement of fisheries and conservation laws.
