BFAR: Fish caught in Guimaras waters safe for humans

Not to worry, all fish caught in the open waters in Guimaras Strait and in Panay Gulf are safe for human consumption, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) said yesterday in a public advisory following the oil spill off Guimaras island.

In the advisory signed by Director Malcolm Sarmiento Jr., BFAR said that "in open water, fish have the ability to swim away from a spill by going deeper in the water or farther out to sea, reducing the likelihood that they will be harmed by even a major oil spill."

Results of analyses conducted by BFAR and the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center’s aquaculture department on various fish species caught by fisherfolk from Guimaras Strait and Panay Gulf showed that all samples were found to be negative for bunker oil, the advisory said. The fish were caught off Buenavista and Jordan towns in Guimaras.

However, BFAR cautioned that aquatic plants and animals that live closer to shore were more vulnerable to the effects of the oil spill from the tanker that sank Aug. 11.

It particularly mentioned those that are covered and exposed by the tides such as young crabs, mussels, oysters, clams, seaweeds, burrowing organisms and nursery stages of fish, which suffocate when exposed to large amounts of oil.

An oil spill due to the sinking of MT Solar I carrying about two million liters of bunker oil reached the coast of the island-province of Guimaras on Aug. 13, raising concern that coastal resources in the area would be affected.

But BFAR clarified, "The severity of the impact of an oil spill depends on a variety of factors, including characteristic of the oil itself. Natural conditions, such as water temperature and weather, also influence the behavior of oil in aquatic environments. Various types of aquatic habitats have different sensitivities to oil spills."

Environmentalists said the oil spill from the tanker that sank in the high seas while delivering fuel to Zamboanga City has created an ecological time bomb authorities would be loath to ignore.