Protecting and Conserving Our Municipal Waters

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THERE are about a million municipal fisherfolk engaged in various fishing-related work. They have over three million dependents and they are among the poorest of the poor. Ours is an archipelagic country with one of the richest biodiversity. Consider this. We have a total coastline of more than 18,000 kilometers, 26.6 million hectares of coastal waters, and 193.4 million hectares of oceanic waters, and more than 5,000 species of marine plants and animals, a good number of which has commercial value. On the other hand, our total land area is 299,764 sq. kilometers. However, if we compare existing policies on agriculture with those of marine and fisheries resources, we can conclude right away that we have more of the former. We have more schools of agriculture than fisheries and marine sciences. We have a Department of Agriculture but only a bureau of fisheries.

There is now a growing recognition of the need for a more …