The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has ordered the immediate assessment of abandoned, undeveloped and underutilized (AUU) fishpond areas in Bicol, Western Visayas and the Zamboanga Peninsula and to repurpose them as mangroves as defense against flooding and extreme weather events and in boosting climate action.
DENR Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo Loyzaga signed Memorandum Order 2024-01 mandating data-sharing between DENR offices and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR). The order covers fishpond areas released by the DENR to the BFAR in the 1970s in accordance with Presidential Directive 2023-296 on the review of areas with fishpond lease agreements (FLA) that are AUU.
The order also looks to transfer administrative control of fishpond areas from the BFAR to the DENR and restore damaged mangrove forests and fishponds back to mangrove state through methods such as replanting, enrichment planting and assisted regeneration.
The order says the recommendations will come from the national technical working group for submission to the DENR Secretary and for the DENR regional offices of the selected regions to implement the order.
