THE Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in the Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan) Region will look into the reported black water discharge into the Bacuit Bay in El Nido, Palawan, on October 22.
Drake Matias, Mimaropa EMB Regional Director, said in statement that further investigation is needed to determine if sewage water from nearby establishments is causing the black water discharge. However, Brgy. Masagana Chairman Edilberto Templado said that the discharged water was due to his directive to clear the outfall so that rainwater would drain into the sea and prevent flooding in the village.
The outfall drains the water coming from the nearby mountains and those that pass through the national highway, Tabanca Road and some portions of Baranggay Maligaya. During high tide, however, sands build up and block the outfall, causing water to settle and eventually, flood the village especially during typhoons, Matias explained.
To prevent the town from being inundated by the other night’s rainfall, he said he decided to order to remove the debris in the outfall. Hence, the channel opened and eventually flushed out the stagnant, black water seen in Bacuit Bay on October 22.
He maintained that what flowed from the outfall was not sewage water as most establishments in the area are still not operational.
The DENR-EMB, however, wants to make sure that the said waterway does not release dirty water into the bay.
The Bacuit Bay is under strict monitoring by the DENR following upon the instruction of DENR Secretary Roy Cimatu. In August last year, the DENR has shut down a total of ten establishments for allegedly causing water pollution in beaches in Coron and El Nido.
“We have taken water samples for testing and we will also conduct tracing to determine if there are commercial establishments that drain their wastewater into that outfall,” Matias said.
The water samples are tested for fecal coliform, total suspended solids, dissolved oxygen, nitrate, phosphate, pH, color and temperature. As of press time, the DENR and EMB are still waiting for the results of the tests.
Besides these initiatives, Matias said the subject outfall shall, likewise, be included in stations regularly monitored, such as Cabugao, El Nido Estero, Masagana and Corong-corong.
These outfalls from four priority barangays, namely Buena Suerte, Maligaya, Masagana and Corong-corong are under strict monitoring as part of the government’s efforts to rehabilitate El Nido’s Bacuit Bay, portions of which were found polluted due to the discharge of untreated wastewater by several commercial establishments.
“We cannot afford to have another outfall that would degrade the water quality of Bacuit Bay, especially now that El Nido is slowly re-opening for tourism,” DENR Mimaropa Regional Executive Director Maria Lourdes G. Ferrer said for her part.
“Just like before, we bank on our partnership with the LGU [local government unit], the business sector and the community, to prevent any form of destruction in our environment and completely restore the beautiful island of El Nido,” the director concluded.