Public-private partnership brings new life to coral reefs in Albay Gulf By Alfredo L. Vargas

LEGAZPI CITY, Feb. 07 (PNA) -– If not for vigilant private individuals, locals and foreign nationals, the long-awaited coral reef assessment and monitoring and restoration along Albay Gulf, the conversion of the area into what is now a growing tourist destination will never come to reality. A local environmentalist, Bem Redito, remembers telling himself, “para sa bayan ito (this is for the country),” when he assumed the full cost and preparatory works of the first unit of metal platform for growing second generation corals he planned to install nearby one of the dive sites fronting the city late last year. The platform is installed with concrete discs that acted as substrates where coral fragments will be attached to and let grow. “We’ve been meeting with government officials concerned regarding the project but it seemed to me then that no plan would be arrived at. I know somebody should start it in order for them to see how doable and low cost the project is. I never told anyone of my plans to avoid possible opposition and delay,” Redito said. When installation was nearing, Jin Masuda, a Japanese dive master from whom Redito asked assistance in launching the coral garden, the former outright asked for the resetting of the schedule because he too would share another coral platform. Masuda is the vice president of Pacific Blue Dive Center (PBDC) based in Anilao, Batangas, that has established a branch office in this city in 2010. It was Masuda’s love for diving and getting awed by the calmness of the dive sites in Albay Gulf that for three straight years he has never left this city and frequented invitations to divers from Japan to visit the underwater beauty of Albay Gulf. However, when the duo’s planned launch was again nearing, City Councilor Chito Ante asked for another resetting because he would also personally provide another unit of platform. Ante is the current chair of the city council’s committee on marine and aquatic resources. It was in the afternoon of Dec. 31 last year, taking advantage of the cold temperature, that the group, along with PBDC officers, installed the first-ever coral garden in the gulf, composed of three metal platforms. A female Peace Corp volunteer, Allyson Hoffman, has been preparing for replication of the coral garden project at the waters of the adjacent Santo Domingo town on the northern side of the gulf. Hoffman is a graduate of environmental management at the Pennsylvania University and chose Santo Domingo as her area of volunteer work and community immersion required in his higher education degree. Also, a group of Filipino overseas workers, tied up with a local online magazine, the Sorsogon Examiner, pledged to Redito and Masuda to shoulder the costs of production of more metal platforms for the coral garden project. It was Masuda and the other PBDC diver-environmentalists who carried out the research and assessment of the reefs in Albay Gulf at no cost on the part of the government. For this city alone, at least 16 dive sites have been identified and were monitored weekly to assess reef-invasive fishing practices in the area. These dive sites along with those in Santo Domingo and Bacacay, Albay have been subjects of massive promotion by Masuda and a fellow Japanese dive master, George Nakano, in other famous dive sites in the country, Japan, China and Australia. Nakano is set to bring in about 30 clients of PBDC in Beijing, China for the open water dive training in Albay Gulf this month. Australian diver Lee Michael, who owns a radio station in Sydney, was encouraged to visit this city’s dive sites in September last year, and since then has launched massive free broadcast promotion of Albay Gulf reefs. This month, Michael is set to bring in 22 fellow Australian dive enthusiasts. PBDC clients who were used to diving in Anilao, Batangas were encouraged to come to this city and discover for themselves the fish species here that are not frequenting other dive sites such as the whale sharks, locally known as “butanding,” that frequent Albay Gulf. A PBDC official from Anilao who joined late last week’s corral assessment dive at Barao Reef, admitted having experienced for the first time seeing whale sharks, two of them, in a feeding frenzy nearby the reef. On that same dive event, Masuda, Redito and Ante were also with a marine biologist, Dr. Stephen Alba, retired personnel of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) who volunteered to assess the feasibility of direct natural rehabilitation of damaged areas and the putting up of coral nurseries in the gulf. Now, the local governments of this city and Albay province are both actively pursuing various maritime development programs, taking advantage of the inertia of tourism and coastal resource management activities gained from the previous voluntary activities of private citizens and organizations. The city government unveiled Monday its marine development program while, on the same day, Albay Gov. Joey Salceda ordered his personnel involved in the poverty alleviation project on the four islands around the gulf to meet with PBDC, DENR and other stakeholders to formulate development plans for the area. The recent visit of Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala was taken advantage by Salceda to discuss the province’s proposed programs for Albay Gulf on poverty alleviation and tourism development which the former outright expressed support to, and asked for a formal project proposal. (PNA)