MANILA – The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) calculated the initial damage to the environment due to the oil spill caused by the sunken MT Princess Empress in Oriental Mindoro at PHP7 billion.
In a television interview on Thursday, DENR Secretary Antonia Yulo Loyzaga said the amount was based on “what could be exposed by way of coral reefs, seagrasses, mangroves, and fisheries.”
She added that the DENR would need to “actually go underneath and verify” once it is safe to dive into waters severely affected by the oil spill.
Loyzaga pointed out that currently, fishing and diving are not yet allowed in the area.
However, she noted the importance of actually going under to be able to observe the actual physical impacts of the oil spill on the country’s maritime resources in the area.
“What we have to do now is verify on the ground how much of these reefs have actually been touched, how many of the mangroves have actually been destroyed, and how many of the seagrasses have actually been affected,” she said.
Loyzaga emphasized that the DENR’s actual role in the whole-of-government effort in the oil spill incident is on the offshore and nearshore contamination as well as on the impacts.
She explained that the general operation of the oil spill disaster response legally falls under the direction of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).
“So they are onsite right where the source is happening. We are left to actually work on the forensics, what is happening, where the hazards (is) going, what will be affected, and our area is nearshore and offshore,” she said.
Moreover, Loyzaga said the DENR was first on the scene as soon as the news about the oil spill broke out.
Since Day One, she said she was already meeting with Oriental Mindoro Governor Bonz Dolor and had a technical meeting with PCG and other agencies involved in the oil spill response.
The following day, the DENR teams were already on the ground testing the water and air in oil spill-hit areas.
“Day Three, we deployed the mapping ship of NAMRIA. Why? Nobody could say where the ship had sunk and we didn’t have a remotely operated vessel, so we sent the mapping ship we used to map the Philippine Rise to actually identify where the ship was underneath the water,” Loyzaga said.
Since then, the DENR had been busy coordinating with the University of the Philippines-Marine Science Institute, the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the Department of Labor and Employment, the Department of Tourism, as well as the private sector.
Loyzaga also noted that she made sure that President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. is properly informed of the details of DENR’s effort and action on the oil spill incident.
On Monday, international environmental group Greenpeace said that they are targeting to come out with fresh satellite images of the surrounding seas where MT Princess Empress sank by the end of April.
The group said that the satellite imagery will help confirm the extent of the oil spill in terms of how far it has traveled.
Greenpeace campaigner Jefferson Chua said they are treating the incident as a top priority due to the potential environmental catastrophe that can result from the incident. (PNA)
