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DFI'S
ENVIRONMENTAL
AGENDA
MISSION / VISION
TO PROTECT AND PRESERVE GOD'S CREATIONS BY GIVING FOCAL ATTENTION TO DANAJON REEF'S PATHETIC STATE OF ENVIRONMENTAL DISREPAIR BY FACILITATING THE DEVELOPMENT OF STRATEGIES AND METHODOLOGIES WHICH WILL:
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Foster inter-action with and strengthen
spiritual and moral values of intended beneficiaries by intensifying the
holding of the Center's Socio-Economic and Environmental Awareness Seminars
(SEAS) starting from the lowest level of local governance and up. |
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Renew and protect reef environment for
more sustainable economic endeavors through resource-base R&D
incorporating the culture and processing of marine products of commercial
importance and by attracting local and foreign scientists to do
collaborative reef-based investigative programs in line with the world's
efficiently-managed conservation and farming/fishing regimen. |
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Pursue a vigorous local and national
legislative advocacy in order to create a policy atmosphere that would
reflect the government's deep commitment to the orderly and successful
implementation of the environmental agenda. |
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Nurture beneficiary perception of the OFRE
Center as being an ally, instead of an adversary, serving as their forum for
discussion of and applying solutions to problems and as a learning center
from which fisherfolks could derive new information and knowledge relative
to improving their socio-economic well-being.
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BACKGROUND
Impatient with the longstanding failure to curb further despoliation of the once fertile spawning and fishing grounds of Danajon Reef, some twenty five
concerned private and public representatives from the Provinces of Leyte, Bohol, So. Leyte and Cebu and the Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas converged at MCPI Corporation's mid-sea ocean farming facility on December 12, 1993 with one compelling purpose: To breathe life back into the moribund reef area and make it once again a sustainable and renewable source of food and income to sustenance fisher folks. They signed a Joint Declaration of Intent advocating for a more
proactive involvement in putting an end to fishing malpractices that will eventually desertify the reef.
Emerging from the gathering was a
consensus to establish the CE'LE'BOH'SOLE Growth Corridor (Cebu, Leyte, Bohol, So. Leyte), a private sector-led initiative designed to effect a rational and holistic development of the three provinces' marine, agricultural and human resources and positioning it to assume a food-basket role in producing staples which are affordable to neighboring urban and metropolitan salaried employees and laborers. Highlighting the extent of the massive destruction of our coral reefs, Time in its Oceans feature, writes: "Troubled reefs: Years of pollution, sewage, soil erosion,
over-fishing, blast fishing, and more recently, deadly cyanide fishing, have nearly wiped out the archipelago's 34,000 sq. kms. of reef." Stretching its length from the
southeastern tip of Cebu's Mactan Island to Matalom, Leyte and occupying almost the width of Bohol, Danajon Reef in some distant past, harbored a treasure-trove of flora and fauna the world highly valued. The role of
Danajon Reef as a spawning ground is crucial to the Visayan Seas' re-stocking capacity and its unabated degradation certainly threatens to jeopardize the country's food security program. Today, the reef harbors nothing but emptiness, a testament to man's insatiable greed and self-destructive instincts.
PROGRESSION OF ACTIVITIES
Two years after the signing of the collaborative document,
CE'LE'BOH'SOLE's project architects went back to their drawing tables to plot their moves. They all agreed to seek assistance from an NGO with staff capability to verbalize its
mission/vision to and influence acceptance by active development players in the growth corridor. Datingbayan Foundation, Inc. (DFI), an environmentally-centered Cebu-based organization, seeing a parallel development course, volunteered to handle
CE'LE'BOH'SOLE's anchor project: Ocean farming as a livelihood alternative to destructive fishing. In the final quarter of 1995, DFI went out to sell the "stuff" to the provincial executives and development officers. All of them bought, but later on, only few seemed able to pay. Going down to municipal and
barangay executives who are now clothed with so much decision-making powers made possible the
much encouraged "counter-parting".
THE ROLE OF
OFRE CENTER
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Built to the tune of P5 million and located almost at the middle of Danajon Reef and central to the Provinces of Cebu, Leyte, Bohol and Southern Leyte, the
thirteen-year old three-story edifice had withstood the onslaught of the country's visiting typhoons of cyclonic speeds. Poachers and blast/cyanide fishers have breached its 100-hectare research and farm perimeters in defiance of a program organized for their own benefit. Run-down and deteriorating training facilities, the
fisherfolks' own callousness and bureaucratic pussy-footing form a seemingly formidable backdrop DFI will have to work against. |
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Lately engineers from the Department of Public Works and Highways and volunteers from the Cebu City's architectural community made an on-site assessment of the costs of reparation and upgrading of the center's structures and training facilities.
STRATEGIES
MARINE PARK
MCPI, DFI, DA, DOST, DENR, DILG, PCCI, DOT and DTI constituting a multi-sectoral representation from government, NGO and private sectors will spark a move to seek legal recognition of the entire Danajon Reef as a Marine Park area with a development body of bottomline-oriented composition to formulate ways and measures relative to its regeneration, conservation, exploitation and over-all management.
Such a demonstration of decisiveness expectedly would gain for the country a high degree of respectability from and will place the Philippines in step with nations which pay high premiums on marine conservation programs, thus, making the Marine Park an icon for our people and visitors from international scientific and academic circles.
RESEARCH/TRAINING
CENTER
Marine Park shall commission a feasibility study to peek into present fishing practices and efficiencies with parameters of highlighting data base inter-related analysis on:
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Present levels of marine exploiation/stock regeneration, prevailing socio-economic environment, expectations and training needs of coastal communities, demographic/hydrographic surveys, existing educational facilities and identification of the causes/sources of reef pollution. |
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Current and projected export/ domestic demand for each marine product category incorporating selling price structures, delivery/ selling costs, levels of investment required and over-all net gains per participating community. |
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Product development for processed commodities, onward research on genetic/cultural practice improvements of high-velocity ocean-farmed products, determination of hectarage/stock expansions based on current and projected market situations and modalities on technology transfers. |
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Upgrading of training syllabus, research equipment and instructional facilities.
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CONFERENCE/RETREAT
VENUE
Volunteer architects/engineers from Cebu City have redesigned the center's building plans with provisions for improving and refurbishing facilities for the holding of seminars, conferences, religious retreats, small gatherings/ conventions and to people who simply want to ruminate in the tranquility and beauty of the center's marine surroundings and seascapes. Its crystal-clear waters just under the shadows of the structure permit unhampered viewing of the abalone, squid, giant clam and seaweed demo farms. Convenience and ambiance for research groups, scientific observers/savants and a small gallery for oceanographic art, dining facilities, water sports and communication system have likewise been integrated into the renovation plan.
MARINE ECO-TOURISM
Danajon Reef contains a cluster of more than two dozen islands and islets. The bigger ones which serve as operations base of illegal fishers are found to be over populated. As a consequence, they contribute to general reef pollution. A major component of the 'Save Danajon Reef" campaign is to have residents clean these islands to be able to qualify as satellite Eco-Tour destinations. Eco-Tourism is Marine Park's "star feature" to respond to tourists' preference of inter-acting with indigenous population: to learn about their ethnicity, religiosity, folklore and industry at lesser costs. The continuous inflow of tourist traffic will translate to increases in family incomes and will discourage illegal fishers from plying their trade for fear that foreign visitors who most often than not are biased towards environment protection may tell the world and place the Philippines in more embarrassing situations.
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