Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte together with several private schools and universities in Davao City joined in the Davao Light and Power Company’s (Davao Light’s) releasing of 152 “pawikan” hatchlings at the Aboitiz Cleanergy Park in Punta Dumalag, Davao City on Tuesday afternoon.
The hatchlings were from the third pawikan nest found at the said park in 2023.
“We are honored that VP Sara joined the event and showed support to pawikan conservation efforts,” said Fermin Edillon, head of reputation department of Davao Light.
The activity was also participated by government and non-government organizations.
Edillon said, currently, there are seven rescued pawikans under the care of Aboitiz Cleanergy Park.
It can be recalled that in 2019, former mayor Sara Duterte signed a joint Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources 11 (DENR 11) and Davao Light to further strengthen the protection and conservation of marine life, particularly the endangered hawksbill turtles.
Aboitiz Cleanergy Park was established in 2014 as a Pawikan Rescue Center in the Davao Region.
More than 7,650 hatchlings were already released from the park since 2014 but only a few of these creatures survived into adulthood.
Managed by Davao Light and Aboitiz Foundation, the park is a nesting ground for the critically endangered hawksbill sea turtles.
Davao Light’s pawikan conservation efforts aim to ensure that these endangered creatures will continue to thrive in the sea.
