Dolomite contains high amount of heavy metals that contribute to pollution and acidity of Manila Bay, said a fisherfolk group that has looked into the impact of the dumping of white sand along the Manila Baywalk.

The Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) warned of even more drastic consequences that the people will face due to the sand that came from crushed dolomite boulders in Cebu.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has started to cover the 500-meter stretch of baywalk on Roxas Boulevard with white sand as part of its rehabilitation efforts in the area.

“One of the objectives of Manila Bay rehabilitation is to decrease the amount of its heavy metal. Then why is the DENR, which leads the rehabilitation campaign, filling dolomite boulders that would increase and further the harmful chemical element?” Pamalakaya chair Fernando Hicap asked.

The group said dolomite contains high amount of heavy metals such as aluminum, lead, and mercury, which put human health at risk.

Pamalakaya also cited toxic heavy metals, which were found in Manila Bay’s sediment samples in the past, are “detrimental to the environment.”

“These synthetic materials can easily contaminate Manila Bay when a heavy rainfall washes them away from the shore, tainting the already polluted water and endangering the fishery resources,” Hicap said.

Human exposure to the heavy metals has chronic and acute health effects, he added.