Red tide-infected oysters seized in Dagupan
FISH wardens from the Dagupan City Agriculture Office (CAO) confiscated on Monday a small cargo of oysters harvested from red tide toxin- infected areas of Anda and Bolinao unloaded at the Magsaysay Fish Market.
Seized from 12 dealers were 11 sacks of shelled oysters, six plastic bags of unshelled oysters, and half a sack of lukan.
City Agriculturist Emma Molina said the confiscation was effected after the latest advisory released by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) identified shellfish from the two towns to be positive for Paralytic Shellfish Poison (PSP).
“Because of the advisory, our office conducted an ocular inspection of oyster stalls in barangays Tambac and Lucao, sitio Dawel in Pantal and Magsaysay Market,” she said.
“We are continuing a 24-hour monitoring to screen merchants from supplying PSP-infected shellfish to vendors here,” she added.
Molina added that aside from monitoring the auxiliary invoice that states the origin of the shellfish, representatives from her office conducted inspected on site to determine if the bivalves being sold were from Lucao, which are free from the red tide contamination.
She pointed out that Lucao-bred oysters are smaller and brownish in color because they adapt to the brackish water and substrate where they are propagated while the Anda-Bolinao raised bivalves are larger and appear greenish as they are grown in the seashores.
The CAO is also coordinating with the Waste Management Division (WMD) for the proper disposal of the confiscated shellfish to ensure that these do not infect the waters of Dagupan. (CIO)
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