Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu (photo on video screen) addresses more than 200 leaders of barangays within the Manila Bay Region during their meeting and dialogue on Monday in Manila. Cimatu said he is counting on them to help in the rehabilitation of Manila Bay since it is their duty to enforce environmental laws. The DENR will lead the simultaneous clean upof esteros and rivers around the bay on March 31. ###
Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu (5th from left) joins heads and representatives of the Manila Bay Task Force (MBTF) member agencies in a photo opportunity following their first organizational meeting held Wednesday (March 13, 2019) in Quezon City. The MBTF was created by virtue of Administrative Order No. 16, Expediting the Rehabilitation and Restoration of the Coastal and Marine Ecosystem of the Manila Bay and Creating the Manila Bay Task Force, issued by President Rodrigo RoaDuterte. Cimatu is MBTF chair while DENR Undersecretary Atty. Ernesto D. Adobo, Jr. (3rd from left), is the MBTF Secretariat chair. Others in photo are (1st row, from left): DENR Undersecretaries Benny Antiporda and Sherwin Rigor; Interior and Local Government Undersecretary EpimacoDensing III; Tourism Undersecretary Arturo Boncato, Jr.; Human Settlements and Urban Development Director Mylene Rivera; Health Director Napoleon Arevalo, M.D.; Local Water Utilities Administration Division Manager Engr. VirgilioBombeta, and DENR Assistant Secretary Corazon Davis. Also in photo are representatives of the Department of Agriculture, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission, Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System, Philippine National Police Maritime Group, Philippine Coast Guard, Philippine Ports Authority, Manila Water Company, Inc. and Maynilad Water Services, Inc. ###
Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu(2nd from right) presides over the meeting of the Manila Bay Task Force (MBTF) in Quezon City on Wednesday,(March 13, 2019). Cimatu, who chairs the task force, said the rehabilitation of Manila Bay was not just an environmental issue, but also a social and economic issue. He said the rehabilitation efforts are on the right track with the signing of Administrative Order No. 16 by President Rodrigo RoaDuterte on February 19. Others in photo are (from right): DENR Undersecretary Atty. Ernesto Adobo, Jr., Tourism Undersecretary Arturo Boncato, DENR Policy and Planning Service Director Ma. Lourdes Ferrer, and representatives of the MBTF member agencies. ###
Sustainable Landscapes Specialist Randy Vinluan of USAID Philippines joins five graduate students granted thesis and dissertation funding support during the celebration of World Wildlife Day at the Ninoy Aquino Parks and Wildlife Center in Quezon City. The grantees are (from left to right): Yñigo Luis Del Prado (University of Santo Tomas), Adrian U. Luczon (University of the Philippines – Diliman), Amelita Luna (University of the Philippines – Los Baños), Jayson Caranza(University of the Philippines – Los Baños), and Adriane Tobias (University of the Philippines – Los Baños). The USAID Philippines also implements its Protect Wildlife Project with the Biodiversity Management Bureau. ###
A diver gets lucky to get so close to a whale shark (Rhincodontypus) or butanding (local name) in the waters of Sarangani Bay in General Santos City. On Saturday, March 9, 2019, some 14 individuals were sighted surface feeding by Task Force Butanding Gensan, bringing to 16 the total number of whale sharks documented in the area. The first two were sighted by DENR-Region 12 in 2014. DENR-Region 12 Executive Director NiloTamoria said the recent documentation highlights the global significance of the Philippines in the conservation of this gentle giant. The documentation was forwarded to Large Marine Vertebrates (LAMAVE) Research Institute for individual identification. (Photo courtesy of BretchGarcinez.) ###