By Alma L. Tingcang
IPIL, Zamboanga Sibugay - “For the first
time, Zamboanga Sibugay has experienced red tide occurrence.”
This was the statement of
Provincial Fishery Officer Estrella C. Macapobre, who said the Bureau of
Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) has issued a Red Tide advisory, warning
the public to refrain from eating, gathering or harvesting, and marketing
shellfish from Sibuguey Bay.
The BFAR issued the
Shellfish ban advisory on Jan. 13, 2014 after a series of tests on shellfishes
from the island municipality of Mabuhay where the agency first received a
report of sea water discoloration in Dec. 2013.
Macapobre said the advisory might take several months
or even years to be in effect until such time that shellfish toxicity level
shall have gone down below the regulatory limit.
To this end, BFAR will
launch an orientation on red tide occurrence come Feb. 11-13, leading to the
creation of a Task Force for the 16
municipalities of Zamboanga Sibugay province.
The three-day orientation,
which will be attended by Ipil Provincial Fisheries Officers (PFO), local
government units (LGUs) technicians and personnel will have actual field work and establishment
of sampling points in Sibuguey Bay, as well as the signing of MOA by the municipal mayors.
Macapobre said that this
initiative of the BFAR is part of their continuing Information, Education and
Communication campaign (IEC), adding that “updating the public is vital especially
in cases like red tide because it involves human life.”
“If there would be large
quantity intake of shellfish which is positive for paralytic poison, it might
cause death depending on the person’s body resistance,” Ms. Macapobre
explained.
In addition, she said that
fish, squids, shrimps and crabs are safe for human consumption provided that
they are fresh and washed thoroughly, and internal organs such as gills and
intestines are removed before cooking.
The shellfish advisory
also includes Dumanguillas Bay in Zamboanga del Sur and Bataan coastal waters
of Mariveles, Limay, Orion, Pilar, Balanga, Orani, Abucay and Samal which
tested positive for paralytic shellfish poison beyond the regulatory limit.
(PIA9)