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Friday, January 20, 2017
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TODAY is the day for the national cleanup dubbed “Bayan Ko, Linis Ko” that aims to clean coastal and inland waterways, esteros, creeks, public places, parks, schools, churches, public and private establishments.
It’s good that the government has included our coasts in the cleanup. The degradation of our ecosystem has always been a gut issue as it pushes poverty deeper most especially in coastal communities through loss of livelihood, vulnerability to natural hazards, hunger and even health problems.
But let’s move the cleanup campaign farther to our seas, particularly our endangered corals. Perhaps we can rehabilitate them? We are alarmed by reports of significant decline in marine fish catch by 2050. According to a 2013 study by the World Bank, warmer sea temperatures and ocean acidification will decrease marine fish capture by about 50 percent in the southern Philippines by the year 2050.
We have one of the world’s richest ecosystems, but several factors, including unsustainable fishing practices, urbanization and climate change, have been posing serious threats to our seas. Oceans have acidified, having absorbed about a third of the carbon dioxide emitted which has resulted in coral bleaching. For an archipelagic country, this unraveling scenario is a nightmare because it will ultimately affect our food security.
Coral reefs are the food basket for the fish. A square kilometer of healthy coral reef may yield about 30 tons of seafood every year. But 94 percent of our corals are in fair or poor condition, they will not be able to produce fish enough for our needs. The destruction of coral reefs would mean less fish population, which would translate to lower fish catch and lower protein for the people. It is estimated that 80 percent of the animal protein requirement of Filipinos come from our seas.
According to the Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the latest data they have is as of 2010, which show that less than one percent of the country’s 2.7 million hectares of coral reefs remain in excellent condition and five percent in good condition. According to BMB, these excellent coral reefs are found in Apo Reef, Tubbataha Reef, in the Verde Island Passage, and in Apo Island.
We must all work together to bring back our coral reefs and the whole marine ecosystem to excellent condition so that our seas can benefit us in a sustainable manner.
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