by Klaus Doring
I have been and I’ll remain an intolerable, merciless, and unrestrained environmentalist. Ecodooms and the pollution as well as contamination of our environment go on without limits. This latest news infuriated and distressed me again!
Large “Imelda” fish went belly up in the Pasig River, while the surface of Bicol’s Lake Buhi was nearly covered with dead “tilapia.” Good heavens! Although I am just back from Lake Sebu in South Cotabato (after several “tilapia-enjoyments”), I am really sad to know that in Southern Metro Manila, large milk fish or “bangus” are being sold for as low as 10 pesos per kilo as cases of fish kill were reported across Luzon in the wake of typhoon “Basyang”.
Fish kill has been occurring with increasing frequency all over the Philippines in recent years, and not just during the typhoon season. The phenomenon, which can leave tons of fish decimated, has become a regular reminder of the need to clean up the Philippines’ waters. Fish kill has been occurring more often as toxic waste is dumped into the waters around the archipelago. Of course, pollution is also killing spawning grounds of marine life, resulting in a steadily dwindling fish catch.
What are our local governments doing to protect the environment and avoid the horrific damage its perdition does to the nation’s food security?
I feel horrible reading such news from Australia, that scientists have discovered bizarre prehistoric sea life hundreds of meters below the Great Barrier Reef, in an unprecedented mission to document species under threat of ocean warming? Can you imagine? Ancient sharks, swarms of crustaceans and a primitive shell-dwelling squid species were among the astonishing life ?
Let’s keep in mind: scientists have already warned that the attraction is in serious jeopardy, as global warming and chemical run off threaten to kill marine species and cause disease outbreaks.
Quo vadis, Mother Earth?
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German business leaders commented their operations in China aren’t getting a fair share. At a joint forum in Xian, part of German chancellor Angela Merkel’s diplomatic visit, both sides aired grievances on bilateral trade. Eating on expenses – and nothing else? It seems so distressing!
The IMF (International Monetary Fund) and the European Union have suspended a review of Hungary’s existing credit line, saying Budapest needs to do more to slash its deficit and improve fiscal conditions. I agree, because “one Greece or Spain” is really enough!
Quotes of the week: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it!” (George Santayana). From my idol John F. Kennedy: “Change is the law of life. And those who only look to the past or present are certain to miss the future!”
Email me: doringklaus@gmail.com or visit one of my websites www.germanexpatinthephilippines.blogspot.com or follow me in Facebook.
