Damage to the environment resulting from the Oriental Mindoro oil spill is estimated at P7 billion, according to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
Environment Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo Loyzaga said the oil spill has exposed coral reefs, seagrasses, mangroves and fish to risks that could take generations to recuperate.
“The possible exposure area for us is P7 billion,” said Loyzaga, in a broadcast interview on Thursday.
She acknowledged the agency still has to actually go in and verify once it is safe to dive in the waters severely impacted by the oil spill.
“We’re not allowed to fish in the area. We’re also not allowed to dive yet, but we want to do that immediately because we want to observe what the physical impacts are,” Loyzaga said.
Earlier this week, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) recommended the continued fishing ban in municipalities affected by the oil spill, saying the analysis of food safety for produce caught in the area remain inconclusive.
The agency said fish samples collected and analyzed from select sites in Oriental Mindoro on 10 April showed significant increases in the amount of oil and grease although still within the standard of less than three milligrams per liter of the DENR water classification and use.
The BFAR said low-level polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were detected in all fish samples from Oriental Mindoro collected on 3 April while PAH accumulation was observed in samples collected from the municipalities of Bongabong and San Teodoro.
The agency said further tests will be implemented to confirm if PAH accumulation is taking place in marine organisms collected from the province.
BFAR said PAHs are considered harmful to humans and other living organisms and may accumulate in the flesh of marine organisms over time while seaweeds and other sessile organisms have greater chances of accumulating PAHs due to their immobility.
BFAR also recommended that fishing activities be allowed in select sites in Caluya, Antique, particularly in Sitio Sabang, Barangay Tinogboc, Sitio Sigayan, Sitio Toong, Barangay Semirara, Sitio Liwagao, Barangay Sibolo and adjacent deeper waters.
But the bureau wants shellfish gathering and seaweed harvesting disallowed in affected areas since these organisms may have greater exposure to oil spill contaminants.
Water samples collected from Caluya, Antique on 28 March passed the DENR standard for oil and grease while fish samples collected from the province on 11 April showed no signs of oil tainting through organoleptic analyses.
Nevertheless, signs of oil tainting were observed on shellfish and seaweed samples previously subjected to laboratory analysis. BFAR said it has allocated P4.4 million worth of livelihood assistance in the form of post-harvest technology packages that will benefit 10 fisherfolk associations and cooperatives or 689 families.
Some P1.5 million was also earmarked for the provision of food assistance to 5,000 affected fisherfolk in Mimaropa while P580,500 was spent to help displaced fishing groups in Western Visayas.
BFAR has also deployed monitoring, control and surveillance vessels, as well as personal protective equipment sets and other materials for clean-up activities, apart from interventions based on rehabilitation proposals from oil spill-hit areas.
