‘PAMBANSANG BASURERO’ NG DENR NAGLINIS SA BINANGONAN — Inaalis ni Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Undersecretary for Solid Waste Management and Local Government Units (LGUs) Concerns Benny D. Antiporda (kanan) at Jerome Antiporda (naka black vest), pangulo ng Rotary Club of Binangonan, ang mga water hyacinth o water lily sa ginanap na Laguna Lake Cleanup Drive ng Rotary Club of Binangonan sa Brgy. Libis, Binangonan, Rizal noong June 11. Tinawag si Antiporda na Pambansang Basurero bilang utak sa likod nang maraming solid waste management (SWM)-related projects, initiatives, at collaborations tulad ng expedited closure of open dumpsites at swift approval ng SWM plans ng LGUs. Si Antiporda din ang Alternate Chair ni DENR Secretary Roy A. Cimatu sa National Solid Waste Management Commission. Kasama sa larawan ang mga kinatawan mula sa Philippine Coast Guard at Philippine National Police.
Local fishers to help clear Laguna Bay of water hyacinths
LOCAL fishing communities in the Laguna Bay area will be tapped anew to help the
Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in clearing the bay with water hyacinths.
Benny Antiporda, Undersecretary for Solid Waste Management and Local Government Units Concerns and Head of the Manila Bay Anti-Pollution, said that the DENR will continue its project, which started in October, 2020, to tap local fishermen in addressing the proliferation of water hyacinths, commonly known as water lily.
“The DENR has a project where we commission the labor or assistance of our local fishermen to harvest the water hyacinths in polluted waterbodies,” Antiporda said during the cleanup drive in Binangonan town, Rizal province initiated by Rotary Club of Binangonan on June 11.
He added that the project provides livelihood to the fisherfolk and at the same time “gives life to the Bay.”
Antiporda, who also committed to supervise the project, is confident that since the success of the Boracay rehabilitation, the feat to address the water hyacinth pollution in Laguna Lake will not be of a big task.
“I personally commit that in the coming weeks or so, we will be here in this lake to clean up all the water hyacinth and make sure that we will prevent incidents in the previous years where this lake is all covered with water lilies,” he stressed.
“We have rehabilitated Boracay. We are cleaning up the Manila Bay. Laguna Lake is relatively not that big. Why not, we clean this up, too?” Antiporda added.
Water lilies can be a nuisance because these allow disease-spreading vector species of mosquitoes to breed freely in the static waters. Their decomposition results in an obnoxious smell, decreases the clarity of water and depletes the level of dissolved oxygen making it unsuitable for human use.
The pilot testing for the said project was introduced to the local government of Taytay in Rizal province where the DENR also met with members of the Samahan ng Mangingisda sa Lawa ng Taytay or SMALT.
