THE launching of an initiative to protect the “Philippine Rise” is a most welcome development in efforts to take care of the diversity off the east coast of Luzon.
Larger than Luzon, it is a 24 millon-hectare undersea inactive volcanic plateau, which is home to rare corals and hundreds of species of marine creatures.
Formerly called “Benham Rise,” the diverse ecosystem of “Philippine Rise” attracts and serves as a spawning ground and nursery of migratory fishes.
It was discovered in 1933 by the late American surveyor Andrew Ellicott Kennedy Benham. In May 2017, it was renamed “Philippine Rise.”
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said the initiative aims to put in place lasting safeguards for one of the country’s most important but least understood offshore ecosystems.
DENR Secretary Raphael Lotilla said benefits from the “Philippine Rise” extend not only to impoverished but natural resources-rich Philippines but to the global community as well.
“We have the responsibility to take care of the diversity in that area,” said Lotilla, adding the undersea plateau is essential to ensuring its sustainable use and long-term protection.
The efforts center on the Philippine Rise Conservation Project, which is aimed at strengthening the management of the Philippine Rise Marine Resource Reserve (PRMRR).
With the decision to secure long-term protection and conservation for the “Philippine Rise,” the government, through the DENR, has apparently bowed to public demand.
In the view of many quarters, including the ordinary citizens, it is ample proof that the national government is, without doubt, sensitive to public opinion.
The post Philippine Rise appeared first on Journal News Online.
