ANOTHER GRACE PERIOD?

THE expanded Task Force Bantay Ilog is unable to operationalize its plan to fast track the demolition of some 300 illegal fish pens that include oversized fish cages and fish traps scattered along navigational lanes because there are still no funds to support it.

According to City Agriculturist Emma Molina, her office still has to submit a budget but when asked to how much she intends to request to support the rental of trawlers and hiring of emergency workers, she could not give a categorical response but simply detailed the resources needed.

She pointed out that between the processing of the requested budget and the actual demolition of the fish pens, the whole process will take at least 60 days from February 15.

Molina told newsmen that to complete the task, additional manpower is needed to constitute at least four teams, each team composed of at least 10 men. To date, the task force has only two teams, each which is composed of five or more men.

Without additional personnel to be hired, the task force cannot accomplish more than one illegal fish pen a day, she added.

Molina said they need additional motorboats too with one assigned to a team. At present, they have two motorboats but only one is being harnessed for fish pen dismantling.

Each boat will be manned by representatives from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) as observers, and a security detail from the PNP and Maritime Police.

“To speed up dismantling, we need at least three trawlers not necessarily to ram the fish pen enclosures but to pull out bamboo poles driven down the river bed by more than one meter,” said Molina, adding that there are trawlers in Dagupan that can be rented.

At the same time, Molina clarified that in their operation against illegal fish pens, they are actually implementing two ordinances passed by the Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP)–the old ordinance and the new ordinance which amended the former.

The 300 fish pens listed in the logbook are not all illegal fish pens but also oversized fish cages and fish traps that simply need to be re-sized to five meters by five meters or 25 square meters and must also be relocated so that these do not obstruct the navigational lane.

Dismantled last week was the 10 by 20 meter fish pen of Anthony Ang-angco in Salapingao and the 10 by 34 meter fish pen in Lucao operated by Ramil Jose.

 

One Dondon Regutana of Pugaro set up two new fish pens measuring 11 by 11 meters each along the Dawel River in Bonuan Gueset and was warned before he can stock these with milkfish fingerlings.

At the same time, Molina announced that the review by City Administrator Farah Decano on the draft of proposed Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) on the ordinance banning fish pens in Dagupan has already been completed with the draft to be forwarded to the office of Mayor Belen Fernandez shortly. (Leonardo Micua)

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