Introduction
One year has past since the start of enforcement at
the Mangal Marine Protected Area (MMPA).
This annual evaluation report is intended to provide concrete, constructive and
actionable feedback to the relevant government agencies and officials (in
particular, LGU of Mansalay, Barangay Don Pedro and BFAR MIMAROPA) in an effort
to continually improve the enforcement at the MMPA and thus ensure its
long-term sustainability and success by way of increasing the fish catch of
local fisherfolks and restoring an attractive marine environment for tourists.
I.
Marine Buoys
At the outset of
enforcement, a total of 40 marine buoys were purchased by the LGU to delineate
the boundaries of the MMPA and to establish several permanent anchors for
Bantay Dagat bangkas. To date, marine buoys were used as follows:
Use
|
# of Buoys
|
Lost/Stolen; Damaged
|
Remaining
|
GPS coordinates of MMPA
|
6
|
5 lost/stolen; 1 damaged
|
0
|
In-between GPS coordinates
|
3
|
1 lost/stolen; 0 damaged
|
2
|
Permanent Anchor
|
1
|
0 lost/stolen; 0 damaged
|
1
|
Replacement of buoy
|
2
|
2 lost/stolen; 0 damaged
|
0
|
Total buoys deployed
|
12
|
8 total lost/stolen; 1 total damaged
|
3
|
In summary, a total
of 12 marine buoys were deployed to date. A total of 9 buoys were lost, stolen
or damaged and a total of 3 buoys currently remain deployed at the MMPA. The
LGU still has 28 marine buoys in storage for future deployment.
Recommendation #1
Clearly, the high
rate of loss of marine buoys and the corresponding loss of nylon ropes (which
sink to the bottom of the sea when the said buoys are lost, stolen or damaged) are
not sustainable. The solution to this problem is a combination of:
- "paskil" system or posting a wanted sign with a monetary reward for the return of the stolen buoy and the conviction of the individual or individuals who stole the buoy;
- using less
expensive buoys (e.g., small bamboo raft with flag) that can be replaced
inexpensively on a regular basis (say once a year before the typhoon season)
using smaller diameter (less expensive) nylon ropes;
- periodic (say
once a quarter) cleaning of the said nylon ropes to remove mollusks like
oysters and the like that adhere and grow on the portion of the nylon rope attached
to the buoy and closest to the surface of the water;
- daily inspection
of buoys with the aid of binoculars and
- more diligent Bantay
Dagat enforcement to minimize theft of buoys.
The above should be
integrated into the routine of the Bantay Dagat team to minimize the loss,
theft and/or damage to buoys and nylon ropes which are essential tools of the
MMPA.
Depending on the
depth of jackstones (anchor of marine buoys) deployed at the GPS coordinates of
the MMPA, Mangal Estate personnel shall attempt to recover and/or reinstall
nylon ropes (by way of scuba diving) to reactivate lost marine buoys.
II.
Bantay Dagat Staffing and Guard Posts
At the outset of
enforcement, the LGU committed to 6 LGU Bantay Dagat personnel (alongside 2
Mangal Bantay Dagat personnel) and corresponding guard posts at appropriate
locations along the coast of the MMPA as follows:
PLAN
Guard Post
Location
|
Day Shift (6 am to
6 pm)
|
Night Shift (6 pm
to 6 am)
|
Sukbong Kugon
|
1 LGU Bantay Dagat
|
2 LGU Bantay Dagat
|
Lalawigan
|
1 LGU Bantay Dagat
|
2 LGU Bantay Dagat
|
Casabangan
|
1 Mangal Bantay
Dagat
|
1 Mangal Bantay
Dagat
|
Total Staffing
|
2 LGU; 1 Mangal
|
4 LGU; 1 Mangal
|
To date, there is
still no guard post in Lalawigan. Hence, the actual placement of Bantay Dagat
personnel today is as follows, which is NOT according to PLAN and results in a
“blind area” in Lalawigan:
ACTUAL
Guard Post
Location
|
Day Shift (6 am to
6 pm)
|
Night Shift (6 pm
to 6 am)
|
Sukbong Kugon
|
2 LGU Bantay Dagat
|
2 LGU Bantay Dagat
|
Lalawigan
|
0 LGU Bantay Dagat
|
0 LGU Bantay Dagat
|
Casabangan
|
1 LGU; 1 Mangal
|
1 LGU; 1 Mangal
|
Total Staffing
|
3 LGU; 1 Mangal
|
3 LGU; 1 Mangal
|
The absence of a
guard post in Lalawigan and the corresponding absence of LGU Bantay Dagat
personnel in Lalawigan have resulted in the lack of Bantay Dagat coverage and
enforcement in the Lalawigan area of the MMPA, which is a favorite area of
poachers, particularly spear fishermen at night and basnigs that insist on
fishing near the boundaries of the MMPA. This also explains the frequent
passage of motorized bangkas close to the shore fronting the Lalawigan area,
which is not permitted under the MMPA Ordinance. In other words, many small
motorized bangkas pass through the MMPA very close to the shoreline as if the
MMPA Ordinance did not exist.
[insert
picture of Benazir’s carcass]
Because of this
disregard for the MMPA Ordinance, Kapitan Fabila recently (April 30, 2018) buried
a carcass of a mature green sea turtle (an endangered species) recovered in the
Lalawigan area, about 1 meter long and weighing 120 kilograms. According to
Kapitan Fabila, the fatality appears to have been caused by propeller strikes
at the neck of the sea turtle, which could have been prevented if the “no entry
and no passage of motorized bangkas in the MMPA” rule is being enforced by the
Bantay Dagat team.
Recommendation #2
Complete the guard
post in Lalawigan and adhere to the planned and committed placement of LGU
Bantay Dagat personnel at Sukbong Kugon and Lalawigan. In this regard, Mangal
has offered to provide the materials (i.e., bamboo, cogon, nylon string, nails)
for Bantay Dagat personnel to install the guard post in Lalawigan, which was
the same arrangement for the guard post already installed in Sukbong Kugon.
In the meantime, motorized
bangkas passing through the MMPA should be actively apprehended (at this time—even
when the sea is particularly calm—at least 5 apprehensions per 24 hours are
very likely) until such time that local fisherfolks spread the word that the
Bantay Dagat team is serious about enforcing this provision in the MMPA
Ordinance.
Notwithstanding the
temporary absence of a guard post in Lalawigan, the LGU Bantay Dagat personnel
posted in Sukbong Kugon is the next line of enforcement with respect to
motorized bangkas passing through the MMPA and should actively apprehend said
violators. There is no excuse for slacking off in Sukbong Kugon.
Mangal has also
instructed its Bantay Dagat personnel to alternate their posts between
Casabangan and Lalawigan, even in the temporary absence of a guard post in
Lalawigan.
Finally, a flyer
illustrating the boundaries and perimeter of the MMPA (which may also be
explained simply as 500 meters away from the shoreline) should be given to the
owner/operator of the apprehended motorized bangka, so that even in the
temporary absence of marine buoys (which were lost, stolen or damaged, and will
be reactivated in the future), repeat violators cannot feign ignorance of the
law—even though the ignorance of the law is no excuse for violating the law.
III.
High Turnover of LGU Bantay Dagat Personnel
There was a high
turnover of LGU Bantay Dagat personnel during the first year of enforcement at
the MMPA due mainly to the delay in payment of their salaries. Although the LGU
has given repeated assurances that this problem will be resolved starting this
year (2018), the delay in payment of LGU Bantay Dagat personnel salaries
persists to this day.
As of this writing,
the following illustrates the delay in payment of salaries of LGU Bantay Dagat
personnel:
LGU Bantay Dagat
Personnel
|
Payment as of May 10,
2018
|
Delay in Payment
|
Bong Bong Mijares
|
Paid up to Dec 31,
2017; no payment to date
|
4 months
|
Pedring Faidalan
|
Paid up to Dec 31,
2017; no payment to date
|
4 months
|
Antonino Galicia
|
Paid up to Dec 31,
2017; no payment to date
|
4 months
|
Pepito Ledesma
|
Started Feb 2018;
no payment to date
|
3 months
|
Brian Dela Cruz
|
Started Mar 2018;
no payment to date
|
2 months
|
Angelito Demora
|
Worked Jan to Mar
2018; no payment to date
|
4 months
|
Recommendation #3
The persistence of
this problem of delayed payment of salaries to LGU Bantay Dagat personnel,
which deprives these individuals and their families their daily means of
sustenance, is the singlemost factor in ensuring the failure of enforcement at
the MMPA (e.g., slacking off at work due to low morale due to delayed payment
of salary, working elsewhere while falsely reporting work days/nights at the
MMPA, catching instead of protecting the fish in the MMPA, etc.) and must be
definitively resolved by the LGU soonest.
IV.
Pending Commitments of LGU
Around August 2017,
during a meeting with the MMPA Bantay Dagat team, including Pastor Jemale
Fajutnao (LGU MA), Cocoy Generoso (LGU PIO), Don Pedro Barangay Captain Allan
Fabila, Don Pedro Barangay Kagawad Porek Tolentino and Manuel Gallego, the
Bantay Dagat personnel, who had then been enforcing the MMPA Ordinance for
several months, requested some essential support/tools from the LGU to be able
to perform their basic functions as enforcers. To wit:
- A monthly
gasoline budget of P500 for bangka fuel
- Rechargeable
flashlights (relatively lower life-cycle cost compared to regularly replacing
non-rechargeable batteries)
- An additional
motorized bangka
On behalf of the
LGU, Pastor Fajutnao acceded to the above requests. However, the LGU has only
partially fulfilled the monthly gasoline budget (Item 1 above) and has yet to provide
flashlights (Item 2 above) and the additional motorized bangka (Item 3 above).
Recommendation
#4
Kindly fulfill LGU
commitments to the MMPA Bantay Dagat team.
V.
Daily Accomplishment Report Form
Mangal developed a Daily
Accomplishment Report Form specifically for Bantay Dagat personnel to serve two
purposes (and minimize the duplication of paperwork and red-tape):
- as the Daily
Accomplishment Report Form submitted together with the Daily Time Record or DTR
to the LGU Accounting Department for payroll purposes and
- as a log to be
kept on file for historical reference and performance tracking / trending / evaluation
of MMPA enforcement.
Mangal is
particularly interested (and the LGU should likewise be interested) in the 2nd
above purpose for tracking, trending and evaluating the performance of MMPA
enforcement over the course of time. For example, a Daily Accomplishment Report
Form, properly filled by each Bantay Dagat personnel over the course of several
years, can show an increase or decline of a particular violation in the MMPA
over the period. It can also show spikes of a particular violation over the
course of time. These trends can then be reviewed periodically by the Bantay
Dagat team, particularly if the trend is headed in the wrong direction, to
determine if enforcement methods need to be altered or improved.
Partly due to the high
turnover of LGU Bantay Dagat personnel and possibly lack of training/briefing,
the weekly submission of a completed Daily Accomplishment Report Form by each LGU
Bantay Dagat personnel to the Barangay Office of Don Pedro (care of Kagawad
Porek Tolentino), which is supposed to be the same submission to the LGU
Accounting Department (hence there should be no duplication of paperwork other
than a photocopy), is not being followed.
Recommendation #5
Each LGU Bantay
Dagat personnel should submit a copy of their Daily Accomplishment Report Form
to Porek Tolentino every week.
VI.
Basnigs in Blatant Violation of Fisheries Code
Although beyond the enforcement
capacity of the MMPA Bantay Dagat team (with very limited resources to barely
patrol the area of the MMPA), there are still the occasional basnigs that
insist on fishing very close to shore. For example, on the night of May 7, 2018,
just beyond the 500 meter boundary of the MMPA fronting Lalawigan was a basnig in
full operations—probably depleting the meager gains of fish biomass resulting
from the Bantay Dagat enforcement of the MMPA Ordinance. On the same night (May
7, 2018), Kapitan Fabila called the PNP to inform them of this violation and he
was informed by the PNP that they are taking note of this violation on
satellite. Based on subsequent informal reports to Kapitan Fabila and Mayor
Maliwanag, on the following day (May 8, 2018), two violating basnigs, including
the basnig just beyond the 500 meter boundary of the MMPA fronting Lalawigan on
the night of May 7, 2018, were apprehended and fined a total of P250,000.
The above scenario is
a good example of coordination among the MMPA Bantay Dagat team, Barangay Don
Pedro and the PNP of Mansalay that resulted in the apprehension and fining of
commercial fishing vessels fishing within Municipal Waters.
Recommendation #6
The above scenario
should be repeated as often as necessary but only when there is a basnig that is
clearly fishing within Municipal Waters—and only then should it be reported to
the PNP of Mansalay. No false alarms allowed.
If the basnig is
close enough to the boundaries of the MMPA, Bantay Dagat personnel (assuming
Bantay Dagat bangka has fuel) should attempt to go directly to the violating
basnig and inform the kapitan of the violation, while taking note of the
details of the basnig (such as the name of the owner, the name of the kapitan,
the name of the basnig and the like). This information will help the
authorities (PNP and BFAR) follow-through on the apprehension of the violating
commercial fishing vessel.
VII.
Less Blatant Violation of the Fisheries Code
At this time of
year, at least 15 to 20 basnigs can be easily seen at a distance along the
shoreline fronting Sukbong Kugon and Lalawigan every night. Admittedly, this is
an improvement from the past, where basnigs are typically much closer to shore.
That said, these basnigs today still appear to be within 10 kilometers from the
shoreline of Mansalay, which is still a violation of the Fisheries Code.
Recommendation #7
Based on the
scenario in Section VI above, the Regional BFAR (MIMAROPA) appears to have a
satellite tracking system for registered commercial fishing vessels to
determine on a daily basis if any such vessels are fishing within Municipal Waters.
If so, this is a powerful enforcement tool that must be exploited by the LGU
and the MMPA Bantay Dagat team to the fullest extent.
Mangal will attempt
to coordinate with the Regional BFAR to secure the daily GPS coordinates of all
commercial fishing vessels operating off the coast of Mansalay, and determine
how best to use this information to more effectively enforce the Fisheries Code
provision that prohibits fishing of commercial fishing vessels within Municipal
Waters.
VIII.
Turtle Boil in Del Mundo
Pastor Ladrera
recently reported the hatching and release of approximately 30 LEATHERBACK sea turtle
hatchlings in Barangay Del Mundo. This is a big deal regardless of the sea turtle
species—most of which are endangered species. It’s an even bigger deal given
the LEATHERBACK species, which is sighted less often in Philippine waters.
This recent success
was due to Pastor Ladrera relocating the buried eggs to a secure location,
allowing them to mature into hatchlings instead of being eaten by dogs or people.
Kudos to Pastor Ladrera!
Recommendation #8
Going forward, every
sea turtle egg nest discovered in Mansalay (particularly within the MMPA)
should immediately be transferred to a location beyond the reach of water and
secured to prevent any form of predation from animals or human beings. Based on
Pastor Ladrera’s experience, the depth of the new relocated nest should
approximate the depth of the original nest and the sand used to fill the new
relocated nest should be the sand from the original nest. The idea is to
include whatever biological fluids the mother turtle left on the sand of the
original nest. Hopefully, this will increase the chances of survival of the
eggs and the hatchlings.
Jun Generoso (LGU
Tourism Officer) also suggested that the LGU fund a one or two day field trip
of a few designated LGU personnel to the Bataan Pawikan Conservation Center in
Morong, Bataan to learn the techniques of increasing the survival rate of
hatchlings.
On a Positive Note
The foregoing
observations and recommendations may appear overly-critical but in fact signify
the tremendous progress that the LGU, Barangay Don Pedro and the MMPA Bantay
Dagat team (past and present personnel) have made in terms of enforcing the
MMPA Ordinance; otherwise, the preparation of this annual evaluation report
would not even be worth the trouble.
It is clear that the
groundwork has been established and enforcement at the MMPA is in earnest.
There is a general consensus among the stakeholders that the local community is
complying with the MMPA Ordinance, with the exception of some “pasaway.” For
example, the owners/operators of motorized bangkas that persist in passing
through the MMPA, who need to be apprehended and fined as many times as
necessary to compel them to comply with the law.
The above
recommendations themselves are not particularly cumbersome or difficult. They
are actionable and well within the capacity of the stakeholders, requiring only
diligence, dogged persistence and some funding. The challenge over the next
year is to bring the enforcement of the MMPA to the next level, so that our
local fisherfolks will have more fish to eat and our marine environment will recover
its lustre to attract tourism investments and create more jobs and livelihood
in Mansalay.
This Annual
Evaluation Report of the Mangal Marine Protected Area was prepared by Manuel
Gallego and submitted to the following: Office of the Mayor, Municipal
Government of Mansalay; Office of the Barangay Captain, Barangay Don Pedro; Office
of the Regional Director, BFAR MIMAROPA.
This is a link to a short video showing highlights of four (4) recent dives in Casabangan (May 2018). Compared to my previous dives in the same areas of Casabangan, the recovery of fish biomass and benthic cover is barely palpable as a result of the first year of enforcement at the MMPA. At the very least, conditions do not appear to be any worse than before.
