The Department of Environment and Natural Resources is performing disaster forensics in the areas threatened by the oil spill from the sunken MT Princess Empress as it finalizes arrangements for a cash-for-work scheme for cleanup teams in the local communities.
Environment chief Antonia Loyzaga said the University of the Philippines-Marine Science Institute (UP-MSI) is helping assess immediate actions to protect mangroves, seagrass, and over 36,000 hectares of coral reefs in Bulalacao, Oriental Mindoro and Caluya, Antique that can be potentially affected by the oil slick.
The ship BRP Hydrographer Ventura of the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority, an attached agency of DENR, has also been dispatched to use a multibeam survey to locate the sunken vessel carrying 800,000 liters of industrial fuel.
The local DENR Environmental Management Bureau is continuing its cleanup operations using locally available oil-absorbent materials andis installing provisional spill booms made of cogon and sawali as precautionary measures to prevent the oil spill from reaching the beach and mangrove areas of Pola, Oriental Mindoro.
The Environment department is likewise coordinating with SemiraraMining and Power Corporation to help and assist in the cleanup operations in Caluya, Antique.
Loyzaga said she is also in talks with her counterparts in theDepartment of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Interior and Local Government and Department of Labor and Employment for the cash-for-work setup.
Meanwhile, AGRI Party-list Rep. Wilbert Lee demanded that the owners of the tankers be held accountable for damaging the country’s vital resources.
“The owners of MT Princess Empress must answer for this. Very crucialprotected areas are now under threat because of the oil spill, so the government should do everything to hold them accountable for the containment, cleanup, and rehabilitation of the affected areas,” Lee said.
The oil spill, which already spans several kilometers, is feared to affect 21 marine protected areas.
Concerns have also been raised that the oil spill could threaten the important and already fragile Verde Island Passage, which scientists consider as the center of marine biodiversity in the world.
The lawmaker also appealed to the government to provide aid and temporary employment to fisherfolk who would be forced to cease work by the oil spill.
Albay Rep. Joey Salceda, for his part, expressed confidence that hisfellow lawmakers will support a supplemental budget for immediate action and recovery efforts for the sunken tanker.
“We are prepared to propose and enact a supplemental budget if itcomes to that. If the President requests it, we will grant it. This is an event that could have devastating consequences to fish supply and tourism, and it will definitely affect hundreds of thousands of families if it gets out of hand,” he said.
“I don’t think it will face significant resistance in either chamber,” Salceda added.
