Red tide ban up in 2 Bicol provinces

LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines — After more than five years, gathering, selling and transporting of shellfish from Sorsogon Bay and the municipal waters of Mandaon and Milagros, both in Masbate, have been prohibited by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR).

The resurgence of the red tide-causing planktons could have been triggered by typhoons that hit Bicol in the past few weeks, according to Nonie Enolva, spokesperson for the BFAR-Bicol region.

Enolva said the huge waves and flshfloods spawned by the typhoons disturbed and mobilized the sea bed as well as produced a mixture of waste and other contaminants.

“The water current and the waves could have released and reactivated the red tide-causing algae that has been buried under the sea bed,” Enolva told The STAR.

“Although we are still waiting for the confirmatory result today or tomorrow, we already issued a local red tide ban as last week’s samples from Sorsogon Bay tested positive for red tide-causing organism,” she added.

The previous red tide cases in Bicol were caused by trawl fishing, which disturbed the sea bed and reactivated organisms that produced the red tide toxin, Enolva said.