DAGUPAN Mayor-elect Belen Fernandez has ordered the City Agriculture Office to commence the demolition of illegal fish pens along various rivers after City Agriculture Officer Emma Molina reported that some 60 illegal fish pens are already empty and abandoned.

The mayor issued the order during a regular meeting with department heads last Monday, reiterating her commitment that no fish pen will be left standing in all the rivers and waterways of Dagupan after August 31.

Owners of more than 200 illegal fish pens, about 95 per cent of which were hastily built during the campaign period for the May 13 election, were given an August 31 deadline by Fernandez to harvest their fish stock and remove the illegal structures.

Fernandez gave owners the grace period to allow them to harvest their fish stock on condition that they remove the structures themselves at no costs to the city government.

The owners of the 60 fish pens, however, did not remove the structures after they completed their harvest.

While the mayor did not say what legal action will be taken against those who reneged on their commitment even after violating the city’s ordinance, she warned other owners that have not completed their harvest to keep their part of the compromise.

BANGUS PRICE

At the same time, Molina reported a drop in the price of bangus in the Dagupan fish market to P75 per kilo as a result of panic harvesting by fish farmers in western Pangasinan who fear a possible fish kill due to the daily balmy weather.

Dagupan, she said, is luckier because no fish kill is forthcoming yet but is worried about the continuous discoloration of water in the Lucao area where there is big concentration of illegal fish pens.

Fernandez has yet to replace Manuel Gutierrez, previously in charge of monitoring the presence illegal fish pens but resigned last June 3.

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