The Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Biodiversity Management Bureau (DENR-BMB) has developed a potential impact map based on the last known location of motor tanker (MT) Princess Empress, which is within the vicinity of the Verde Island Passage, a globally recognized area of the center of marine shorefish biodiversity.

DENR Secretary Antonia Loyzaga led on Friday, March 3, the aerial surveillance  and assessment of the oil spill site in Oriental Mindoro with Undersecretary for Integrated Environmental Science Carlos Primo David, Dr. Fernando Siringan of the University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute (UP-MSI), and members of the DENR Oil Spill Task Force.

"Initial findings estimate the length of the oil slick to be 25 km trending NE-SW [northeast-southwest] and most of the oil is confined in a narrow band of approximately 300-500 meters. The potential for the oil to reach northern Palawan was also discussed," the DENR said in a statement.

On February 28, the Philippine Coast Guard reported an oil spill from MT Princess Empress which capsized off the coast of Naujan, Oriental Mindoro earlier that day and was reportedly carrying 800,000 liters of industrial fuel oil as cargo.

"Findings showed that within the 40-kilometer radius, approximately 591 hectares of  coral reefs, 1,626 hectares of mangroves and 362 hectares of seagrass/seaweeds can be potentially affected. There are also 21 locally managed marine protected area located in the city of Calapan (4), towns of Naujan (3), Pola (7),  Pinamalayan (4), and Gloria (2)  in Oriental Mindoro Province and the town of Gasan (1) in Marinduque Province. The coastal areas of the municipality of Pola are observed as the most affected as of today," the DENR disclosed.

The DENR is also performing disaster forensics in collaboration with UP-MSI to assess what immediate actions need to be taken. The environment department noted that the MT Princess Empress must be immediately located to project future flow of oil and potentially impacted areas.

"The National Mapping and Resource Information Authority, an attached agency under the DENR, will deploy two ships—BRP Hydrographer Ventura and BRP Hydrographer Presbitero—for multibeam survey in order to locate the sunken vessel," the DENR stated.

"Since the incident, the DENR has been actively engaging different sectors to aid in the response efforts. It committed to work with coastal communities to prevent the landing of oil through the deployment of available absorbent materials," it added.

The agency recommended, as well, the close coordination with the Department of Health to deploy health workers to monitor and address possible health impacts on the community and proposed for affected LGUs to consider instituting a cash-for-work program for the coastal cleanup, as a short-term intervention to provide temporary employment.

Loyzaga reiterated the importance of locating the vessel and modelling the potential flow of oil in order to implement the most effective mitigation strategies "so that disruption to livelihood can be minimized and the affected ecosystems can be regenerated."