Cebu-Leyte-Bohol-S. Leyte LGUs sign pact Body formed to save Danajon Bank

TAGBILARAN CITY, Philippines    — Top officials of the provinces of Cebu, Bohol, Leyte and Southern Leyte on Friday (May 18) signed a memorandum of agreement creating the Danajon Double Barrier Reef Management Council (DDBRMC) to save and protect one of the few double barrier reefs in the world, located in the Visayas.

The MOA spells out the stakeholders’ duties and funds in running the management body to carry out activities and programs for the protection of the double barrier reef, which is also known as the Danajon Bank.

One of the official acts of the Council was the passage of Resolution No. 3, requesting the Regional Development Councils of Region 7 (Bohol, Cebu, Negros Oriental and Siquijor provinces) and Region 8 (Leyte, Southern Leyte and three Samar provinces) to recognize and support the DDBRMC.

Bohol Gov. Edgar Chatto led the signing of the MOA with Leyte Vice Governor Memieta Bagulaya, representatives of other governors, town mayors and technical representatives from Cebu, Bohol, Leyte, Lapu-Lapu City and Southern Leyte.

Chatto, who was also unanimously elected DDBRMC chairman, said in his acceptance speech that responsibility in protecting the Danajon Bank does not only rest on one province but to all. “Let’s work together,” he said, pointing out that the reef provides food security and tourism attraction as well as livelihood for the people residing the coastal areas covered by it.

The Danajon Bank, situated along northern Bohol and southernmost part of Camotes Sea, has a total area of 214,268 hectares, spreading out to cover a total of 695 coastal kilometers along the towns in Bohol (Bien-Unido, Buenavista, Calape, Clarin, Inabanga, Getafe, Pres. Carlos P. Garcia, Talibon, Trinidad, Tubigon and Ubay), in Leyte (Matalom, Bato, Hilongos and Hindang), and the cities of Baybay Leyte, Maasin in Southern Leyte and Lapu-lapu City in Cebu.

It consists of three large reefs: the Cabul-an–Caubyan with 14,300 hectares, Dawajon in the northern outer region with five smaller reefs of 11 to 23 kms each, and Calituban, in the inner part, which is the biggest with a total area of over 46,000 hectares.

The Danajon Bank’s resources are: 40 islands/islets; over 5,000 hectares of mangroves; more than 500 hectares of seagrass (six of 16 species of which are found here); 1,786 hectares of man-made mangrove forest, 211 hard coral species (205 of these are coral-reef building species); and four of seven species of seahorse thriving in the country.

Chatto said the former Cebu-Leyte-Bohol-Southern Leyte, or CELEBOSOLE, catch-phrase, referred to political subdivisions earlier crafted, was changed to DDBRMC to emphasize the nature-based preservation efforts.

Earlier, the Bohol provincial government and the Coastal Conservation for Environment Foundation (CCEF) have worked together in presenting the proposed MOA to the provinces and briefing their respective officials about the DDBRMC.

With Chatto, other DDBRMC co-chairpersons (composing the governing body) are Governors Jericho Petilla of Leyte, Gwendolyn Garcia of Cebu, Damian Mercado of Southern Leyte and Mayor Paz Radaza of Lapu-lapu City.

Petilla, who was unable to attend the event, was represented in the MOA signing by Bagulaya, who was in turn elected council vice chairperson, while Garcia, Mercado and Radaza were each represented by their respective officials. Mayor Roberto Cajes of Trinidad town was elected treasurer; CCEF’s lawyer Rose Liza Osorio was secretary and public relations officer for each province.

Others in the MOA signing were Mayors Jono Jumamoy of Inabanga; Restituto Auxtero of Talibon; William Jao of Tubigon; Nathaniel Gertos of Bato, Leyte; Elpidio Cabal of Hindang, Leyte; Ruth Cruz of NEDA-7; Nestor Canda of DENR; and Leonilo Lafuente of BEMO; among others.   - THE FREEMAN