Concerted efforts

While Filipinos across the country continue to rage about the VIP treatment given to pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Napoles, elsewhere in Cebu massive efforts are being done by volunteers and local government units to stem the spread of an oil spill that has made its way to Mactan island and Talisay City, and may threaten Cebu City’s waters.

Cebu City officials were not caught napping. The “hair boom” option was a blunder made out of good intentions and Internet research on the fly.

One can’t be too hard on Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella for leading the call to collect humar hair and pantyhose to make oil spill booms. He meant well and it was fun to see a civic spirit prod jail inmates, salons and ordinary folk rush to cut off their hair to make a donation.

The Coast Guard and university scientists set them right in advising the use of coconut husks and jute bags to contain the oil sheen creeping its way to the coasts of Cordova town and southward into the South Road Properties (SRP).

It was timely advice from the University of the Philippines (UP) team who joined the inspection of the oil spill that hit Guimaras province in 2006 that made it possible to revise the strategy.

Though the oil spill has been mostly contained, it was sad to see mangrove plantations of Cordova town ruined by the oil spill.

In a way, the mangroves were “sacrificed” and acted as a barrier to prevent the oil from spreading full force into the Hilutungan Channel where Mactan’s beach resorts are concentrated.

The tarred, oily remains of the marine trees remain mute testimony to their value as protection for coastal communities aside from their role as nurseries for fish and marine life.

Marine experts say the best way to restore the mangroves is to just leave them be. The more manual cleaning, picking, and washing is done of the plants and their surroundings would just disturb them more. Left alone, they would heal better over time.

We hope the local governments of Lapu-Lapu, Cordova, Talisay and Cebu remain vigilant in advising their residents against swimming in waters where the oil sheen is still noticeable and telling the truth about the impact of the oil spill on marine life that end up in the food chain.

Local authorities can obviously do more than pose in front of the TV cameras and ride jetskis. Seafood vendors will have to bear the brunt of advisories warning the public to be careful about buying fish and crustaceans from the areas affected by the oil spill.

The burden falls heaviest on 2GO management, which to its credit, has employed experts and fielded equipment and personnel for the cleanup, including technical divers to plug the leaks of their sunken vessel MV St. Thomas Aquinas.

For now, we could only hope that the best efforts of everyone are enough to contain the damage and that the national government, despite being stretched thin after typhoon Maring, will also spend resources to help the affected communities.