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Oil tanker sank in Manila Bay throughout a storm

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Significant oil spill caused fishing bans in impacted towns

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Countless fishers demand for settlement

By Mariejo Ramos

LIMAY, Philippines, Sept 12 (Thomson Reuters Foundation). - E fren Dominico has actually been a fisherman in the Bay of Manila in. the Philippines for 43 years and survived many storms, but. absolutely nothing prepared him for the day when an oil tanker sank off the. coast in July and cut him off from his livelihood.

The motor tanker Terranova capsized and sank off the tow of. Limay, on the western side of Manila Bay, bring 1.4 million. litres of oil, the largest oil spill in the country given that 2006.

Days later, two more fuel tankers sank off the coast of a. neighbouring town, more contaminating the bay, a major fishing. ground serving the capital and crucial spawning premises for small. fish like sardines, mackerel, slipmouth and anchovies.

The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR). right away released a caution against the consumption of seafood. from the affected locations, while local governments on either side. of the bay banned fishing.

That all however cut people working in the fishing market off. from their income source.

Because July, fishermen in Limay have been having a hard time to. survive, Dominico, 53, informed the Thomson Reuters Structure.

We check out the pledges of financial support from. politicians' Facebook pages, however ... we have yet to get. financial aid aside from some canned items, he said.

The Department of Interior and City government formed a. task force to clean up the oil spill and the Department of. Justice stated it was examining whether the sunken ships were. associated with oil smuggling.

PHILIPPINES THE MAJORITY OF AT THREAT OF DISASTERS

By early September, the government had actually siphoned the majority of the. staying oil from the Terranova.

But by then, the fishing bans and diminishing demand for. seafood had plunged individuals working in the sector deeper into. debt and appetite.

Greenpeace Philippines campaigner Khevin Yu said the twin. disasters of the oil spill and the storm in which the ship sank. showed the Philippines was at the cutting edge of the climate. crisis.

The Philippines topped the World Threat Index of nations. most at risk of disasters for the 3rd straight year in 2024.

The oil market is one of the primary factors we are. experiencing these devastating extreme weather condition disruptions ... and fossil fuel operations were likewise impacted by the problems. that they have actually created. These ultimately affected the anglers. and Manila Bay, Yu stated.

BFAR lifted its warning in late August, however the fishing restrictions. lasted for more than a month in some areas.

The department estimated total month-to-month losses for thousands. of people in the fishing sector of 84 million pesos ($ 1.5. million) in Bataan province on the west of Manila Bay and more. than 70 million pesos in Bulacan and Pampanga provinces to the. north.

Oil spills are the costliest human-induced catastrophe in the. country, accounting for 4.93 billion pesos in damages in 2023,. according to the Philippine Data Authority.

' NO STRATEGY'

But despite the fishing bans and the risk of being caught,. fishermen stated they needed to go to sea to try to make a living.

The federal government must have made certain initially that fishermen. had alternative sources of income or adequate aid before they. banned fishing, stated Dominico.

Fishers said the Terranova had destroyed their fishing. grounds for squid and some big wheel.

Hundreds of fishmongers like Veronica Samson Roque, 29, likewise. suffered big income losses after the disaster.

Roque stated she now needed to offer 1 kg of fish for half the. normal price with customers fearing fish could taste like oil.

My weekly revenues are now decreased to around 1,000 pesos,. and it's insufficient to feed my household of four and send my. children to school, she said.

Fishers in Limay believe it will take a few months more to. revive their fishing premises and seafood security worries, as. occurred when an oil spill hit their town in the 1990s.

According to the worldwide ocean conservation advocacy. organisation Oceana, oil spills could damage the environments of. mangroves, coral reefs and seagrass beds, and could leave a. trail of damage lasting decades.

Even after the oil contamination is tidied up ... the people. of the Philippines will be dealing with the effects of this. devastation long after the headlines fade, Gloria Estenzo. Ramos, Oceana Philippines vice president, stated in a declaration.

Yu stated previous oil spills had long-term results on marine. life, however the environmental effect of the Terranova sinking was. not yet understood.

That implies for the fisherfolk, there's no guarantee that. the fish that they will catch in the succeeding weeks and months. will be free from contamination, he stated.

Fishermen like Dominico, who become part of the Pagkakaisa ng. mga Samahan ng Mangingisda (Pangisda), an association of. small-scale, local and subsistence fishers, are requiring. settlement from the ship-owner and the state for their income. loss due to the oil spill.

Pangisda stated the federal government's knee-jerk restriction on fishing. did not include a plan to offer alternative income for small. fishers.

Pangisda likewise required an examination into authorities. who enabled the Terranova to sail during a storm, causing. irretrievable losses to fishing communities like Limay.

However Dominico, like numerous others, was not optimistic.

Perhaps the sunken ship will float before aid reaches us,. stated Dominico. We have actually currently compromised a lot..

(source: Reuters)