Coral cover found in Manila Bay
Published Apr 29, 2019 01:12 pm
By Ellalyn de Vera Ruiz
Experts and researchers of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) have discovered live coral cover in the Manila Bay, buoying hopes that the heavily-polluted body of water could still be restored to its pristine condition.
(MANILA BULLETIN FILE)
DENR’s research arm Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau (ERDB) has conducted an inventory of the coral ecosystems within Manila Bay, and found out that many of them are thriving despite environmental and human pressures.
ERDB supervising science research specialist Jose Isidro Michael Padin said a majority of the coral cover was found in Corregidor and Caballo Islands in Cavite province.
“Nearly 72 percent of the estimated reef area is found in Cavite. The reef sites in Maragondon and few stations in Corregidor and Caballo Islands had fair to good live coral cover,” Padin said.
He, however, said these reefs were continually being threatened by sedimentation, nutrient contamination, reduced water clarity, and high fishing pressure due to increased vulnerability harboring the bay.
According to Padin, runoff sediments and nutrients have been documented to cause coral mortality, but the reef areas remaining at the historic bay were located proximately “at its mouth.”
Based on the coastal resource map prepared by the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority or NAMRIA, Manila Bay’s coral cover spans 293.68 hectares, but this data does not yet include that of Mariveles in Bataan.
ERDB Director Sofio Quintana said that the bureau was conducting “ridge-to-reef” research on Manila Bay.
“We are seeking for a definite connection among risk factors. Right now, we are trying to gather more data on informal settler families, air and water quality, and habitat to make scientific studies relevant for future projects,” he said.
Quintana added that the ERDB was trying to come up with a unified framework for such projects which, when consolidated properly, could make an inference on the status of the Manila Bay area.
“We also want to provide reference in the decision process of the policymaking bodies with the data backed-up by research. If there are existing policies, maybe we could harmonize and align researches to these policies,” he said.
DENR Secretary Roy Cimatu, who heads the inter-agency Manila Bay Task Force, said that the findings that coral reefs were still thriving in many parts of the bay gas given the government more reason to proceed with the rehabilitation.
“With the vibrant underwater life still teeming in several areas in Manila Bay, there is hope that we can still revive it to what it used to be,” he said.
(MANILA BULLETIN FILE)
DENR’s research arm Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau (ERDB) has conducted an inventory of the coral ecosystems within Manila Bay, and found out that many of them are thriving despite environmental and human pressures.
ERDB supervising science research specialist Jose Isidro Michael Padin said a majority of the coral cover was found in Corregidor and Caballo Islands in Cavite province.
“Nearly 72 percent of the estimated reef area is found in Cavite. The reef sites in Maragondon and few stations in Corregidor and Caballo Islands had fair to good live coral cover,” Padin said.
He, however, said these reefs were continually being threatened by sedimentation, nutrient contamination, reduced water clarity, and high fishing pressure due to increased vulnerability harboring the bay.
According to Padin, runoff sediments and nutrients have been documented to cause coral mortality, but the reef areas remaining at the historic bay were located proximately “at its mouth.”
Based on the coastal resource map prepared by the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority or NAMRIA, Manila Bay’s coral cover spans 293.68 hectares, but this data does not yet include that of Mariveles in Bataan.
ERDB Director Sofio Quintana said that the bureau was conducting “ridge-to-reef” research on Manila Bay.
“We are seeking for a definite connection among risk factors. Right now, we are trying to gather more data on informal settler families, air and water quality, and habitat to make scientific studies relevant for future projects,” he said.
Quintana added that the ERDB was trying to come up with a unified framework for such projects which, when consolidated properly, could make an inference on the status of the Manila Bay area.
“We also want to provide reference in the decision process of the policymaking bodies with the data backed-up by research. If there are existing policies, maybe we could harmonize and align researches to these policies,” he said.
DENR Secretary Roy Cimatu, who heads the inter-agency Manila Bay Task Force, said that the findings that coral reefs were still thriving in many parts of the bay gas given the government more reason to proceed with the rehabilitation.
“With the vibrant underwater life still teeming in several areas in Manila Bay, there is hope that we can still revive it to what it used to be,” he said.