Let's Adventure to Mindoro!

Oriental Mindoro is stepping up efforts to protect its already fragile marine resources against abuse by “irresponsible and illegal users,” the provincial governor said.

The thrust of the provincial government is “towards the construction and promotion of policies and programs which will set forth the conservation of our marine biodiversity and enhancement of its resources,” Governor Alfonso Umali Jr. said.

Umali vowed to support the initiatives of nongovernment organizations, in partnership with the local government and line agencies, in guarding the province’s 20 marine protected areas (MPAs), including a mangrove forest reserve and a marine turtle sanctuary.

“By doing so, we are certain that our fragile and diminishing resources in coastal and marine areas of our territories will not be exacerbated and abused by irresponsible and illegal users of our marine life,” the former Oriental Mindoro Second District representative said.

The Oriental Mindoro Marine Protected Area and Law Enforcement Network was established last year to coordinate marine conservation efforts among the province’s coastal municipalities. Currently, the network is composed of 12 municipalities and one city.

In partnership with Conservation International-Philippines, the network conducts resource management assessments and surveys to establish new MPAs and correct the boundaries of existing areas for improved management.

CI-Philippines said other activities include the operational planning for Bantay Dagat members, participatory development of MPA management plans, communication campaigns and formulation of relevant marine protection laws.

Romeo Trono, country executive director of CI-Philippines, said, “We are very pleased with the progress of our partnership so far with Oriental Mindoro, and are glad to know that the local government fully recognizes the importance of MPAs and the effective enforcement of fishery and conservation laws.”

“It is also equally important to point out another recent milestone—the first joint meeting of the MPA networks of Oriental Mindoro and Batangas, which happened last May,” Trono said, adding that the meeting was attended by members and officers of the two networks who discussed relevant concerns and areas for collaboration.

“It is a very promising development for the conservation of the Verde Island Passage,” he said.

Verde Island Passage covers more than 1.14 million hectares between the provinces of Batangas, Oriental and Occidental Mindoro, Marinduque and Romblon. It is among the four priority marine biodiversity corridors of the Sulu Sulawesi Seascape, one of the world’s most diverse and productive ecosystems. The Verde Passage Corridor contains more than half of the Philippines’ documented fish species as well as many globally threatened species.

Ely H. Vargas, municipal agriculturist of Naujan, said that the MPA and Law Enforcement Network are useful tools for easy facilitation and implementation of programs and projects on marine resource protection.

“Through the network, linkaging and close coordination between and among MPA managers are strengthened, and vigilance and access to information among Bantay Dagat members are intensified,” he said.

CI-Philippines cited the successful rescue of a stranded dolphin in San Teodoro as a fruit of increased collaboration among stakeholders. The rescue was carried out through the combined efforts of the municipal Bantay Dagat and Fishery Management Office, with technical guidance from the Provincial Agriculture Office’s Fishery and Coastal Resource Management Division.

Aside from technical assistance in resource assessments and MPA establishment, CI-Philippines said it provides logistics support for enforcement, including patrol boats, searchlights, global positioning system (GPS) units, cameras, life vests, megaphones and binoculars.

Trono said these will be distributed to the network members to beef up the capacities of their respective Bantay Dagat groups.

Ormin Power, Inc. LISTED JOLLIVILLE Holdings Corp. will build a 10 megawatt (MW) hydroelectric power plant in Mindoro through subsidiary Ormin Power, Inc.

In a statement Friday, Jolliville said mini-hydropower plant will harness the Inabasan River and benefit the municipality of San Teodoro in Oriental Mindoro province.

The power plant is estimated to cost P1.5 million and is expected to be operational by 2012.

Ormin Power is also constructing an 8-MW diesel power plant in Sta. Isabel, Oriental Mindoro which costs around P380 million and will be operational by 2011.

Jolliville recently increased its stake in Ormin Power to 60% from 46.8%

For the nine month period ending September, Jolliville posted a net income of P46.7 million.

It has interests in leasing, management services, property development and local water works.

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CALAPAN CITY, Oriental Mindoro, Philippines—The most modern public market in the Mimaropa region is set to open here but some lease holders are already selling their units ahead of the December 8 launch.

Some stall owners were selling their lease rights at a high price, the Calapan City Information office said in a statement.

Mayor Paulino Salvador “Doy” Leachon stressed that vendors could not sell their leased units.

“Vendors have no right to sell those stalls because this market is owned by the city government,” said Leachon, also the chairman of the League of Cities of the Philippines.

The Calapan City Public Market is currently the most modern public market in Region IV-B, composed of the island provinces of Oriental and Occidental Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan.

The two-story building, equipped with an elevator and an escalator, houses stalls for dry goods on the ground floor and the wet section on the second floor.

All stalls on the ground floor have been occupied while awarding of rights for the second floor is ongoing, the city government said.

Meat vendors have been sent and invitation to lease but no one has signified interest so far, it added.