by Bloggie Robillo
Meaningful change occurs, and has lasting effect, when it ensues from the ground up. When there is a groundswell of support from the very grassroots of society, effective change takes place. The problems facing the waters of Davao Gulf need this kind of change to take place soon.
The major industry of the Island Garden City of Samal is tourism, what with all the white-sand beaches, diverse dive spots, even hiking trails and caves. The city’s coastlines are now dotted with beach resorts, from the high-end ones to the for-backpackers type of weekend getaway. More properties are expected to be put up in the coming years.
Supply < Demand
In contrast, sizable communities of fisherfolk make their living on Samal. The more enterprising ones sell their daily catch to Samal and Davao merchants, but I believe the majority of them are subsistence fishermen. Samal fishermen and their families rely on the sea’s bounty to survive. The sea, however, is no longer a limitless supply of sustenance, owing to high population growth and the alarming rate of destruction of coral reefs in many parts of the country.
How does one go about telling the gulf’s fishermen to conserve marine resources when they’re practically hungry?
And yet, they are very much part of the difficulties in realizing sustainable marine conservation. Let’s take, for example, the case of the crown-of-thorns starfish infestation in Samal some years back. The unrestrained propagation of this destructive starfish (a group of which can consume an entire coral colony in just hours) was attributed to the overfishing of its natural predator, the Triton snail. Tritons are a delicacy, and fishermen who hawk such a prized catch to beach-goers will certainly earn enough to get by and then some. Today, Triton sightings are rare in Samal.
Destructive Practices
Most conceivably due to their lack of knowledge regarding marine life, fishermen are wont to dispose of their old fishing nets into the sea. These are called “ghost nets” and they tend to blanket entire coral colonies. Aside from being a gruesome eyesore in the otherwise remarkable seascape, ghost nets seriously harm coral. And, it can cause dolphins, sea turtles and sharks to get ensnared and thus cause them to drown.
Another potentially destructive practice among fisherfolk is the use of makeshift baskets that have one-way openings, used for catching fish and crab. Locally called “bobo”, these underwater traps are heaved onto the sea floor and then retrieved later on. While this isn’t exactly an undesirable means of fishing, fishermen indiscriminately throw these cages into the sea without regard for potential damage to coral underneath.
When being anchored is a bad thing
Diving recently at the Coral Gardens dive site, located off the coast of Talikud Island, I was saddened by the sight of scarred coral heads in this underwater haven. I also saw an overturned brain coral, uprooted clean to the core — nothing else could have caused this atrocity but a boat’s anchor.
Most banca operators throw anchor when they go to dive sites or beaches. It’s a destructive practice that some conscientious Dabawenyos try to remedy by installing buoys around Talikud Island. Sadly, most of the buoys have long been stolen, presumably by locals.
A hundred meters or so into deeper sea from the Coral Gardens, there remains one buoy that’s meant for banca to latch on to. They don’t use it, however, because “it’s too far,” according to a boatman I talked to one day.
That same day, I witnessed an atrocity I couldn’t stomach when I went diving with a group of three Koreans. On our first dive, I saw them poking at different kinds of coral with a stick. Why they were doing that escapes me. I let them be, as I was trying to take in the awe-inspiring underwater sights. But on our second dive, at the Dapia Wall (also near Talikud Island), what one of the Korean divers did drove me to action.
I noticed two of them had brought down food containers, and I caught one of them trying to catch tropical fish. Again, why? What fish they catch would, in all probability, only die sometime after surfacing. There’s more. A current was coursing through the reef, so this Korean diver anchored himself by stepping on a table coral. And his other fin, he jammed into a crevice formed by the wall and a sea fan. Fearing for the delicate coral (growth rate: less than 5cm per year), I approached him and wagged my finger in front of his mask, and when he backed off I pointed to the coral he’d almost ruined.
He wasn’t all too happy with me. Truth be told, I’d be happier if he and his companions never returned to Davao. Their behavior was utterly disrespectful of nature and of our country’s resources.
I told the dive master about the incident, but only to let him know, not to urge him to act. Not yet. I have this sinking feeling that dive operators in Davao City might hesitate to enforce environmental protection measures for fear of losing business. Very short-term thinking, I know. This observation is based on the fact that no dive shop in the city displays any information regarding marine conservation in their premises.
Sanitary napkins and diapers
Earlier, Edge Davao also ran a story about discarded sanitary napkins and diapers litter the ocean bed and coastal areas of Davao Gulf and are causing the widespread bleaching of coral vital to the life of marine life. This is particularly true in areas near the Island Garden City of Samal, according to Dr. Fred Medina, head of the Davao coral divers group.
Medina’s group participates in the scubasurero’s coastal cleanup drive regularly conducted by thousands of residents and government employees in the waters and communities around the Davao Gulf.
Medina, a physician, said divers and other organizers of the cleanup have never been able to trace the source of the bags of napkins and diapers.
“Ang mga diapers and sanitary napkins nakita namin ay sako-sako,” he said, adding “I will not say na women ang nagtatapon nito. Kasi organized na pagtatapon eh, binalot sa sako, kasi up to the neck of the sack. We don’t know kung galing ito sa isang resort, galing sa isang barko, o galing ano…you know, but it’s there. We found them. Tingnan muna naming sa loob, baka sasabog ang laman. Ang baho naman talaga nito. Hindi mo maamoy pero makita mo yung lumalabas.
“So we don’t know where it’s coming from. But, oh yah, we don’t know kung tinapon ito sa barko, maliit na boat, sa isang resort, o sa isang bahay. So, but meron kaming nakita na maraming diapers nakakalat anywhere. Sometimes more often than not, ang iba, doon naming nakikita sa magaganda nating mga corals. Nakabara ng ganun. So, we have to get that out. Sometimes, naka entangle na. In the process, if you are not too careful, sometimes ang coral napupunit.
Media practitioners, who heard Dr. Medina in a media forum, speculated that the garbage must have come from either hospitals or inter-island passenger ships.
Next Steps
When we now have less than 5% of Philippine coral reefs intact, a concerted effort to conserve what we have left must be initiated and sustained.
Fisherfolk need to be educated and made aware of their responsibility to the sea; dive masters and guides need to be deputized somehow; tourists diving the waters of the gulf need to be clearly and firmly informed of conservation policies; the local governments serving in the gulf need to learn from other areas where marine conservation programs are succeeding, and implement a holistic approach for the protection of Davao Gulf.
It must be a community endeavor, with everyone doing his part, not because he was told to do so but because he appreciates exactly why it must be done.
