You plan to move to the Philippines? Wollen Sie auf den Philippinen leben?

There are REALLY TONS of websites telling us how, why, maybe why not and when you'll be able to move to the Philippines. I only love to tell and explain some things "between the lines". Enjoy reading, be informed, have fun and be entertained too!

Ja, es gibt tonnenweise Webseiten, die Ihnen sagen wie, warum, vielleicht warum nicht und wann Sie am besten auf die Philippinen auswandern könnten. Ich möchte Ihnen in Zukunft "zwischen den Zeilen" einige zusätzlichen Dinge berichten und erzählen. Viel Spass beim Lesen und Gute Unterhaltung!


Visitors of germanexpatinthephilippines/Besucher dieser Webseite.Ich liebe meine Flaggensammlung!

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Showing posts with label Oslob. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Oslob. Show all posts

Sunday, September 2, 2018

Oslob Shark Tourism cited by National Geographic

By: Catherine Talavera (The Philippine Star)

MANILA, Philippines — National Geographic has cited Oslob in Cebu for its shark tourism industry, describing it as a booming business despite its effects on wildlife still being debated on.

“In the Philippines, whale shark tourism is a booming business. But questions have arisen about how this activity could harm the animals,” Kennedy Warne of National Geographic said in a story posted on its website.

Shark viewing or shark watching uses baiting or provisioning to attract animals.

“In this town, near the southern tip of Cebu island in the Philippines, whale sharks are a big draw. Tourism is booming for people who want to watch, swim with and take photographs next to the world’s biggest fish,” Warne said.

Warne said the shark tourism in Oslob has become the largest such venture in the world since it began in 2011.

“But the operation is controversial, because whale sharks don’t naturally gather here, unlike other such sites in the country. The Oslob sharks are hand-fed, and this essentially guarantees they will show up to thrill guests, who can snap close-range photos,” he added.

Warne emphasized that while shark watching is still an industry being debated on due to its impact on the wildlife, the Oslob shark tourism industry has seen some benefits, particularly the conservation of these sharks.

He added that there has been reduction in fishing pressure around Oslob.

“The 170 or so members of the local fishermen’s association, who feed the sharks and ferry the guests, no longer need to catch fish for food from increasingly depleted reefs. Likewise, fishers nearby can earn a living supplying the several hundred pounds of shrimp needed for each day’s shark food, thus placing less pressure on declining fish stocks,” he said.

The article added that the shark tourism industry also benefits the local Oslob economy as it attracts tourists.

“At night, the Oslob coastline twinkles with the lights of more than 50 hostels, resorts and guesthouses, as well as local homes,” National Geographic said.

Despite the benefits of the shark tourism industry to Cebu, scientists worry that sharks that take advantage of the free feed for prolonged periods may suffer ill effects, both physiologically and behaviorally. However, these effects are still unknown today.

“While research has begun, conducted for example by the Large Marine Vertebrates Research Institute Philippines, basic questions about the influence of this feeding remain unanswered. The shrimp they’re fed is a less diverse mix of planktonic creatures than what they would consume naturally. It’s not junk food, but neither is it necessarily a healthy diet,” National Geographic said.

Moreover, the article also pointed out while whale sharks have been nationally protected by the Philippines since 1998, some form of danger may still harm these sharks, particularly caused by boats, since they associate boats with free food.

“Almost half of the whale sharks studied at Oslob have propeller cuts on their bodies, which must have happened elsewhere, since the operation uses only hand-paddled vessels. These animals may also be more likely to one day approach a shark-fishing vessel,” National Geographic said.

According to earlier reports, the provincial government of Cebu is eyeing to implement a carrying capacity for BarangayTan-anawan in Oslob, an area popular with tourists for whale shark watching.

The said barangay sees an average of 1,000 tourists a day.

Saturday, June 18, 2016

Near Oslob: Another Vessel Stucks

 By 

ELIAS O. BAQUERO and 
OSCAR C. PINEDA
Rose in reef. A salvaging company will try to move today the mv Bell Rose (photo) from the reef it struck when it ran aground off Malapascua last Monday. (Capitol Public Information Office Foto)
Rose in reef. A salvaging company will try to move today the mv Bell Rose (photo) from the reef it struck when it ran aground off Malapascua last Monday. (Capitol Public Information Office Foto)
Another vessel also ran aground 2 days later near Oslob town in the south (map). (Capitol Public Information Office Foto)
ANOTHER vessel ran aground in Cebu’s seas, this time near Luisan point in Nueva Caceres, Oslob, Cebu at 1:30 p.m. last Jan. 15.
The vessel, LCT 788 of Seen Sam Shipping, ran aground while on its way from Naga City to Toledo City. The accident came two days after a foreign vessel, the mv Belle Rose, ran aground five nautical miles off Malapascua Island in Daanbantayan, Cebu.
In the LCT 788’s case, however, its captain and crew managed to move the vessel after 30 minutes. The Belle Rose remains in place.
A team from the Capitol and a salvaging company will try to remove the Belle Rose today, Cebu Gov. Hilario Davide III announced. The ship owner is willing to settle the damage amicably, he said.
Commander Agapito “Butch” Bibat, chief of the Coast Guard’s Cebu Station, said that officials from the Department of Agriculture (DA) reported to the Oslob police that LCT 788 ran aground and may have damaged the underwater environment.
Bibat said that the DA and the police prevented the vessel from departing pending an investigation by the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) and the Coast Guard.
Bibat said that Marina conducted an underwater inspection the other day, and that Marina 7 then issued a Certificate of Seaworthiness to LCT 788.
He said that the DA also reported there was no damage to marine life.
Based on Marina’s certification, Bibat said they cleared the vessel to sail for Toledo City to load vehicles and other rolling cargo.
Spill
Meanwhile, the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) 7 is still waiting for the consolidated report of its team before announcing the results of its investigation and recommendations on a reported oil spill in the tourism area of Moalboal, Cebu.
EMB 7 Director William Cunado said that their technical team took water samples from the shoreline of Bas Diot, as well as the Pescadores North, West, South and East stations.
Of the five sampling stations, Pescadores North, West and East failed to pass the sampling standard of 1mg/L.
“As per our laboratory analysis dated June 14-15, 2016, the said three sampling stations revealed two mg/L of oil and grease,” Cunado said.
But Cunado said they cannot yet make a conclusion and recommendation unless the consolidated report of the technical team will be submitted to EMB 7 and tackled thoroughly.
In Malapascua, drivers inspected the site to figure out the best way to move away from the reef the vessel Belle Rose, which is still carrying 48,000 metric tons of clinker, which is used in manufacturing cement.
Compensation
Right after the dive, lawyer Pedrito Faytaren Jr. said that the local council, mostly those who attended the emergency meeting last June 16, will again meet in Malapascua to approve the final salvage plan. He represents Salvor Marine Towage.
Governor Davide said that the joint group will take advantage of the highest tide between June 15 and 18.
A marine protest will still be pursued, but the Province is open to a compromise settlement to avoid a drawn-out investigation, Davide said.
“As far as compensation for damage, the vessel’s owner is willing to pay,” he told reporters yesterday.
Diving and marine experts will be at the site when the ship is removed, Davide said, so they can immediately assess the damage it caused.
He said the ship owner has to pay for the damage to the corals, based on the assessment done by a marine biologist from the University of San Carlos, Environmental Management Bureau (EMB), Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resource (BFAR) and Atty. Ben Cabrido, an environment lawyer and advocate.
“I can assure Daanbantayan, especially those from Malapascua, that they will be compensated for the damage brought about by the ship,” the governor said.
The Panama-registered Belle Rose cut through bed of corals 10 meters underwater, located four nautical miles southeast of the island of Malapascua, at 3 a.m. last June 13. The ship was reportedly trying to avoid fishermen when it ran aground.
Coming from a port in Tsukumi, Japan, the ship is carrying clinkers bound for San Fernando town in Cebu, where two cement factories operate.