Oil spill keeps punishing mangroves

April 21st, 2009

By Nestor P. Burgos Jr.

ILOILO CITY – Mangroves in Guimaras continue to suffer from the effects of one of the worst oil spills in the country, three years after the disaster.

Scientists have discovered more abnormalities in mangroves that were contaminated by the oil spill, which pointed to the continued effects of the disaster.

Dr. Resurreccion Sadaba, program manager of the University of the Philippines in the Visayas (UPV) Oil Spill Response Program, said recent samplings on mangroves showed “albinism” among trees.

This is characterized by the pale color of mangrove saplings instead of its normal green appearance.

“This can be attributed to the effects of the oil contamination,” Sadaba said in a briefing on Wednesday attended by Sen. Pia Cayetano.

Cayetano chaired the Senate committee on environment when the oil spill occurred on Aug. 11, 2006 after the MT Solar 1, chartered by Petron Corp., sank in stormy seas southeast of Guimaras and spilled more than 2.1 million liters of bunker fuel oil, which it was transporting from Bataan to Zamboanga. Read the rest of this entry »

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Firm pays back town ruined by ‘06 oil spill

April 17th, 2009

ILOILO CITY – Guimaras fishermen will benefit from some P2.4 million in grants that the US government was giving to those who had lost their livelihood as a result of an oil spill in 2006.

Citi Foundation and Petron Foundation will finance the second phase of a mariculture livelihood program for people in Nueva Valencia in Guimaras. The town was the worst hit among the island’s five municipalities when oil spilled from the sunken MT Solar I southeast of the island on Aug. 11, 2006.

The cargo ship, chartered by Petron Corp., sank while transporting bunker fuel oil from Bataan to Zamboanga, losing more than 2.1 million liters.

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Posted in Compensation, Economy, Rehabilitation | No Comments »

DOT 6 identifies eco-tourism projects for Iloilo, Guimaras

March 3rd, 2009

Iloilo (1 March) — The Department of Tourism (DOT) has accepted for validation four eco-tourism project proposals in Iloilo and Guimaras under its Grants for Entrepreneurial and Eco-Tourism (GREET) Program for 2009.

Tourism Regional Director Edwin Trompeta said the proposals from Iloilo include that of Expansion and Development of Adventure Tour Services and Packages for Iloilo/Guimaras and the Bulabog Puti-an National Park Tour and Cave Guiding, Catering, Accommodation and Transport Services, in Dingle, Iloilo.

The former, which is proposed by the Panay Adventure Tours and Transport Service, is envisioned to promote local destinations around Iloilo and Guimaras for eco-tourism, through adventure tour packages, like trekking, mountain biking, caving, diving, kayaking, and horseback riding, including interfacing with tribal groups.

The latter, according to DOT, will focus on the promotion of the National Park Tourists Services such as Tour and cave guiding, as the town of Dingle has numerous, unexplored caves. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Livelihood, Tourism | No Comments »

Call for Proposals: Dialogue on Governance: Strategic Projects Facility (SPF 2)

February 6th, 2009

Call for Proposals: Dialogue on Governance: Strategic Projects Facility (SPF 2)

Reference: DCI-ASIE/126814/L/ACT/P

Dialogue on Governance: Strategic Projects Facility (SPF 2)

Call for Proposals

Reference: DCI-ASIE/126814/L/ACT/PH

The European Commission is seeking proposals for projects in the Philippines which might receive grant assistance from the EC-funded “Dialogue on Governance: Strategic Projects Facility” (SPF 2).

The overall objective of the SPF2 is to contribute to improving governance as underlying condition for reaching the MDGs. The project purpose is to catalyze actions of stakeholders to improve the quality of local governance.

Objective of this call for proposals

The SPF2 will support projects that showcase innovative models for partnerships that will build on complementary capacities of different stakeholders in local governance, in order to increase efficiency and effectiveness, and reinforce accountability of local government units, for them to provide public goods that respond to the needs of all sections of the community, including the poor. Applications can come from LGUs, NGOs, and other stakeholders in local governance. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Economy, Environment, Governance, Livelihood, Social Impact, Special Report | No Comments »

Oil spill keeps punishing mangroves

February 6th, 2009

Mangroves in Guimaras continue to suffer from the effects of one of the worst oil spills in the country, three years after the disaster.

Scientists have discovered more abnormalities in mangroves that were contaminated by the oil spill, which pointed to the continued effects of the disaster.

Dr. Resurreccion Sadaba, program manager of the University of the Philippines in the Visayas (UPV) Oil Spill Response Program, said recent samplings on mangroves showed “albinism” among trees.

Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Environment, Rehabilitation | 1 Comment »

2 int’l funding agencies pick Guimaras for new projects

January 8th, 2009

The province of Guimaras was chosen as pilot area by two international funding agencies for their new projects this year.

Gov. Felipe Hilan Nava said the province is a recipient of a grant under the Australia-Philippines Assistance Strategy 2007-Southern Philippines Road Maintenance Program, and the Local Economic Development (LED) program of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).

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Posted in Opinion | 2 Comments »