FIVE TYPES of marine mammals, numbering over 200, were spotted in Sarangani Bay during the recent quarterly monitoring activity led by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Region 12 (DENR-12), but “patches of garbage” were also seen in the protected area. In a news release, DENR-12 said the team counted the following during their 3rd Quarter Monitoring last August 13-16: two Dwarf/Pygmy Sperm Whales in Malapatan, 40-60 Spinner Dolphins in Glan and Malapatan, 150-200 Fraser’s Dolphins in General Santos City and Glan, 4 Pygmy Killer Whales in Malapatan, and six Risso’s Dolphins in Glan. Joy C. Ologuin, Protected Area Superintendent of the Sarangani Bay Protected Seascape (SBPS), recommended during a meeting of the Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) last Aug. 22 that local government units in the coastal areas strengthen the implementation of proper waste disposal to keep trash from entering into the bay. Ms. Ologuin also called for more regular patrolling to monitor the SBPS. The monitoring team said the trash they saw at the bay included PET bottles, cellophane bags, plastic wrappers, and other non-biodegradable materials.

MONTHLY MONITORING
“All stakeholders must work together to conserve and protect the Sarangani Bay. DENR alone cannot protect the water body. We have to synergize our work and activities to help and preserve the bay,” DENR-12 Regional Executive Director Sabdullah C. Abubacar, who also sits as chair of the PAMB-SBPS, said during the meeting. Sarangani Governor Steve C. Solon, the PAMB vice-chair, committed to provide additional provincial funds for the conduct of monthly monitoring at the bay. “The implementation of the rules should be strict so that everyone will follow. We can have the economic development and preservation of the protected seascape at the same time,” Mr. Solon said.

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