THE livelihood program of Mayor Belen Fernandez for small fishermen suffered a major snag when unidentified persons cut a buoy attached to a payao, a submerged fish aggregating device, installed some three kilometers off Barangay Pugaro in Dagupan used to mark the location.

With the bouy gone, the payao could no longer be located and is believed to have already settled at the bottom of the Lingayen Gulf. .

The incident was reported to the police in the early evening of June 11 by Barangay Pugaro Chairman Ador Bancod after fishernmen from his village saw the buoy floating in the water near the town of neighboring Lingayen.

The payao, donated to the city by the regional office of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) and under the supervision of the City Agriculture Office (CAO), was installed in March this year to provide livelihood to small fishermen and affected caretakers of illegal fish pens which have been demolished under the program to clear Dagupan’s rivers.

The payao is an  artificial coral reef intended to attract small fish, which will eventually attract bigger fish that can be caught by fishermen using the line method of fishing.

Fernandez has ordered the local police as well as the Maritime Police and the  the Philippine Coast Guard stationed in Dagupan to investigate the incident and arrest those responsible.

Two weeks before the incident, Fernandez led a team from CAO that inspected the payao with the aid of divers led by Councilors Karlos Reyna and Jose Netu Tamayo and Lingayen Councilor Maan Verzosa.

The divers attested that the underwater payao is now teeming with assorted fish that can provide livelihood.

After the visit, the mayor asked the National Integrated Fisheries Technology and Development Center (NIFTDC) to help the city fabricate nine more payaos using locally available materials to be installed in Dagupan’s waters.–LVM

Back to Homepage

Share your Comments or Reactions

comments

Powered by Facebook Comments