BALANGA City – The provincial agriculture office in Bataan announced on Thursday that the shellfish ban in the whole province raised on October 7, 2014 is still in effect.
“Meron pa ring shellfish ban, nakataas pa sapagka’t mataas pa ang toxicity level ng sulib at paros sa bayan ng Samal at Balanga City,” Provincial Agriculturist Imelda Inieto said.She said that gathering, selling, transporting and eating of all kinds of shellfish from the towns of Hermosa, Orani, Samal, Abucay, Pilar, Orion, Limay and Mariveles and the City of Balanga are still prohibited.
“Ang ibang lamang-dagat tulad ng alimasag, alimango, hipon, pusit, isda at iba pa ay ligtas kainin basta sariwa at nalinis mabuti,” Inieto said. Fishermen from Abucay town, however, claimed the shellfish ban caused by the red tide has no more effect on their lives but worry more on the damage brought by Glenda last July.
“Ang tahong (mussels) sa Abucay ay ubos na dahil winasak ni Glenda ang mga tahungan (mussels pen). May mangilan-ngilang nagtayo uli sapagka’t ang malalaking kapitalista ay nag-atrasan na. Kung sakali, mag-aani ng tahong dito makalipas ang isang taon pa,” Emar Guanzon said.
Rudy Malang said he has just begun setting-up a new tahungan out of borrowed money after Glenda washed out his old one together with almost all tahungan in the area.“Wala namang red tide dito sa Abucay. Nadadamay lamang kami sa ibang bayan sa Manila Bay,” he said.
“Tulungan sana kami ng pamahalaan para makabangon sa epekto ni Glenda,” Malang said. “Hindi na masyadong pinoproblema ng mga mangingisda ang red tide dahil mas concern sila sa nagibang tahungan, bahay at nasirang bangka at lambat dahil kay Glenda,” Abucay Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Council Chairman Guillermo del Rosario said.
He asked that government help the fishermen rebuild their tahong pens and replace damaged fishing nets and bancas. Crispin Abadejos, 66-yearold fisherman leader, estimated that there used to be 75 tahong pens in Abucay alone but Glenda has dropped the number to about 15. “Lahat na-wash-out pero halos 15 lamang ang nakapagtayong muli,” he said.
“Kahit alisin ang shellfish ban, wala na ring epekto naman dahil wala nang tahungan dito,” he said.
