(Mark Balmores / MANILA BULLETIN)

Three weeks following the oil spill off the coast of Limay, Bataan, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) told a House of Representatives panel that fish from the affected areas are now safe for human consumption.

BFAR Assistant Secretary Angel Encarnacion said that the agency’s latest sensory evaluation, dated Aug. 16, found that fish and shellfish from the National Capital Region (NCR) Region 3, and 4A were “already safe”.

This developed a week after BFAR’s pronouncement wherein it singled out fish coming from the province of Cavite as “still not safe”.

“We continuously monitor all the sites, specifically in the province of Cavite. We are just waiting for the results of the PAH (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon),” Encarnacion told members of the Committee on Ecology on Tuesday, Aug. 20.

“Based on our latest result for Region 3, it’s below the level of concern. For Region 4A, we are still waiting for the result. And for NCR, it’s below the level of concern,” he added.

PAH is a natural component of oil, which according to studies have severe effects on fish, shellfish, and other aquatic animals.

“So, we’ll just wait for the final result for the PAH and another round of sensory evaluation, particularly for Rosario, Cavite,” the official said, noting that the evaluation should be passed three times before fish from the area would be safe for human consumption.

According to Encarnacion, the last round of the sensory evaluation will be conducted on Wednesday, Aug. 21, and the PAH testing to be released on Friday, Aug. 23.

Cavite 1st district Rep. Jolo Revilla, whose district is directly affected by the oil spill, has urged the BFAR to immediately provide results of the aforementioned tests to local government units (LGUs) so that the fishing ban in the province will be finally be lifted.

“Sana lumabas na agad ang resulta dahil sa totoo lang, hindi ho biro, paano mabubuhay ‘yung mga mangingisda dito sa lugar namin, sa mga distrito, sa lalawigan namin,” said Revilla.

(I hope the result comes out soon because honestly, it's not a joke, how can the fishermen live here in our area, in the districts, in our province.)

“Sa bawat layag nila kaya araw, minimum P500 a day ang kanilang kinikita. Pero sa ngayon, hindi pa po sila nakakapaglayag muli. Hindi lang naman mangingisda ang naiipit dito, pati fish vendor at mambibilad, apektado dito,” the lawmaker noted.

(They earn a minimum of P500 a day for each sail they make. But so far, they haven't been able to sail again. It is not only fishermen who are at lost here, but also fish vendors and dryers are affected by this.)

According to data from the BFAR, about 28,000 fisherfolks were affected by the Bataan oil spill. It is estimated that they have an income loss of P9.8 million, based on average daily income of P346.