MANILA – Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo on Monday said President Rodrigo Duterte ordered concerned government agencies to mitigate the impact of fish-kill in Taal Lake.
Panelo added Duterte expressed concern as over 605 metric tons of tilapia died due to sulfur up-swelling triggered by the strong Amihan which made worse by an extreme drop in temperature.
“The President has directed the appropriate government offices to closely monitor the situation, particularly the water quality in Taal Lake,” said Panelo.
“He also required the officials concerned to undertake measures to mitigate the impact of the natural phenomenon,” he added.
Duterte ordered “increased vigilance” over the prices and supplies and the freshness of fish sold in the market as he cautioned the public against spreading unconfirmed reports to avoid causing undue alarm.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) earlier said the fish-kill in Taal was the worst crisis faced by the fish industry with potential income loss estimated at P42.9-million.
According to the DENR, the fish-kill should not affect supply and prices since the phenomenon was no cause for alarm in the market. /PN
