Marine turtle hatchings released into the China Sea

SAN FERNANDO CITY, Pampanga – Environment officials here and community volunteers recently released 106 hatchlings of the endangered olive ridley marine turtles into the China Sea in Zambales. More than 30 people watched the tiny turtles scramble to the shore and finally back to the sea.

The release of the captive-bred hatchlings is part of a turtle conservation effort by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the US-based Environment Protection of Asia (EPA) in Sitio Pundaquit in San Antonio town.

According to Regidor De Leon, executive director of DENR Central Luzon, the project helped transform the community fisherfolk from poachers to protectors as they now guard the turtle nesting and breeding grounds, usually protecting the eggs until they are hatched.

"This is a triumph and celebration of life and nature," De Leon said during a simple program before the turtles’ release into the sea.

The EPA involved the fishing residents in the turtle rescue effort by paying them P6 a piece for every egg collected and brought to the hatchery in nearby barangay Carusipan. The eggs then undergo a 47-day incubation period under the sand, EPA chairman Bruce Oliver said.

About 1,000 sea turtles have been released to the sea through the effort of EPA and DENR since the start of the conservation project a year ago. The first batch of hatchlings was released into the China Sea in October 2003.

Brenda Bondoc, coastal management officer of EPA, said they encountered some difficulties in convincing and organizing the residents to participate in this project. But through the technical assistance of the DENR, coupled by an intensive information and education campaign in the area, the residents finally came to realize the need to protect and conserve the marine turtles.

She said the local communities have been actively supporting the project, and have even taken the initiative to patrol and monitor the beaches of San Antonio.