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"This is where we can find
the wealth of our resources," Mayor Julius Caesar F. Herrera of Calape,
Bohol said as he exhorted a gathering of fishers and residents of Barangay
Madangog on Pangangan Island to help protect their town's marine resources.
The meeting was called to identify the site of a proposed marine sanctuary.
Mayor Herrera is one local chief executive who has fully embraced coastal
resource management (CRM) as a development strategy for his municipality.
As president of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP)-Bohol
Chapter and executive vice president for operations of LMP, he is determined
to model the way for CRM for the rest of Bohol and the country.
Under Mayor Herrera's administration, Calape, a moderately progressive
municipality on the northwestern side of Bohol facing Cebu, has become
a strong advocate of CRM, one proof of which is the one million pesos
allocated by the local government unit (LGU) for local CRM activities
for the year 2000.
Mayor Herrera is perhaps fortunate in that his CRM initiatives are generating
support from a host of organizations. BIDEF, a local NGO, has launched
livelihood programs and helped organize fisherfolk organizations. The
Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, through
its Calape Fishery Complex, is helping develop technologies for the culture
of the fish and other economically important marine organisms. CRMP
is on-call for whatever technical assistance
the LGU needs. The Project is currently helping the LGU form a multi-year,
multi-program participatory CRM Plan and helping assess the viability
of seaweed culture (Eucheuma spp.) as an alternative enterprise for fishers
on Mantatao Island.
The Coastal Environmental Program of the Department
of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has been working on Pangangan
Island since 1994, undertaking CRM activities through the DENR's Community
Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) in Tagbilaran City, Bohol's
capital.
But it is largely to Mayor Herrera's credit that these many agencies are
working as a cohesive, effective team. Seeing the need to pursue common
directions in line with the development thrusts of the LGU, the Mayor
has spearheaded the establishment of a municipal Coastal Resource Management
Office (CRMO), the first of its kind in Bohol. He envisions CRMO to serve
as the LGU's planning and management workhorse for the implementation
of CRM projects and activities within Calape's municipal waters. The activities
of the CRMO ensure that the various government organizations, non-government
organizations, and government agencies all work together to help the municipality
manage their municipal waters as a 'basic and institutionalized' service
of the town.
A lawyer, Mayor Herrera puts great import on law enforcement. One of the
priority CRM activities within Calape for 2000 will be the strengthening
of the local association of fish wardens and the formation of a composite
law enforcement team composed of Philippine National Police, barangay
and municipal officials and fisherfolk representatives. The LGU will provide
the necessary equipment, honoraria and insurance that the law enforcement
team members have requested, Mayor Herrera said.
The Calape LGU plans to expand its fish sanctuary area by another 50 hectares.
Considering the length of time required for marine resources to regenerate,
the fish sanctuary is not expected to yield immediate economic benefits
for local residents, but Mayor Herrera believes that once the fishers
start to realize the beneficial effects of the sanctuary, the fish corrals
that now dot the nearshore waters of Calape will no longer be necessary.
"All we need now is a little sacrifice," he told the Madangog
fishers. A farmer needs to re-plant after he has harvested the produce
of the land, he said, and so must leave enough seeds over for the next
season. It is the same in the sea, a fisherman should also leave enough
"seeds" to replenish what he takes from the sea, thus allowing
marine resources to grow and multiply. "The future of the sea depends
on us who utilize and subsist on its resources."
Calape does not have big business establishments and factories to take
in the local labor force, one reason why the LGU is giving CRM high priority.
Mayor Herrera is convinced that a well-planned and judiciously implemented
CRM program can bring a wealth of benefits to Calape and a lasting legacy
for the future generations of Calapenhons. With these paybacks, he can,
even now, foresee the realization of everyone's dream of a more economically
progressive Calape.
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