TINIYAK ni Senator Loren Legarda ang kanyang pangakong maprotektahan ang Verde Island Passage (VIP), na itinuturing na isa sa mga pinakaimportanteng lugar ng marine shore fish diversity.
Sa kanyang talumpati sa “A Visit to the World’s Epicenter of Marine Shore Fish Biodiversity and a Hope Spot: The Verde Island Passage; A Dialogue with Dr. Sylvia Earle” sa Pasay, pinaalala ni Legarda ang pagpreserba sa VIP, na nasa mga lalawigan ng Batangas, Marinduque, Occidental Mindoro, Oriental Mindoro, at Romblon.
“The visit of Dr. Sylvia Earle and the Mission Blue team amplifies our earnest commitment to safeguard the Verde Island Passage, a jewel of marine diversity, and allow it to flourish with the buy-in of the local communities and the local governments, and the continued support of all our partners here with us today,” wika ni Legarda.
“Together, we stand at the forefront of a global movement towards marine conservation and sustainable development,” dagdag pa niya.
Si Earle ay nasa Pilipinas upang lumahok sa 2024 International Media Conference at nakipagdayalogo sa Department of Environment and Natural Resources upang malaman ang plano ng bansa sa mga protected areas sa dalampasigan.
Ang tanyag na marine biologist, oceanographer, explorer, awtor, at guro, ay nanguna sa pananaliksik sa marine ecosystems.
Siya rin ay nagtatag ng samahang Mission Blue, isang organisasyong tumutukoy sa key areas of marine preservation sa mundo, na tinawag na “Hope Spots,” kung saan napabilang ang VIP sa talaan noong Hulyo 2023.
“It was declared a Hope Spot by Mission Blue for a reason, and I am sure that reason includes the observation by many here that the passage has demonstrated the ability to bounce back from periods of coral bleaching due to warming episodes,” ani Legarda.
“As long as they do not come too often and too close together, there is hope of recovery,” dagdag niya.
Si Legarda ang principal author ng Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System (eNIPAS) Act, na nagtatakda ng mga batayan para sa pangangalaga ng mahahalagang ecological sites tulad ng VIP.
Ikinokonsidera rin ng batas ang bawat pangangailangan ng lokal na pamahalaan hinggil sa pagpreserba sa kani-kaniyang lugar lalo ang mga nauuri bilang protected areas.
“I certainly hope the passage of the Philippine Ecosystem and Natural Capital Accounting System Act, a law I principally authored and sponsored, will be useful, especially to pin down the actual damage wrought by incidences like the Mindoro oil spill, despite conflicting figures from different sectors,” pagtatapos ni Legarda.
