A CHINESE vessel sighted near a Philippine-occupied island in the West Philippine last month has caused some P11.15 million worth of damage to the marine environment, the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development (PCSD) said yesterday, citing results of a recent damage assessment.
The Philippine Coast Guard has said the Chinese vessel with bow number 16838 ran aground at the Pag-asa Reef 1, some 2.6 kilometers east of the Philippine-occupied Pag-asa Island, on June 7. It said the vessel was likely driven to the shallow area by “adverse sea conditions, characterized by wave height of two to three meters and strong winds.” The vessel managed to extricate itself from the reef without any external assistance, the PCG has also said.
Benjamin Gonzales, a member of the PCSD’s scientific advisory panel, told a press briefing yesterday that some 464.96 square meters of marine environment was damage during the incident.
Gonzales recommended the collection of penalty from the Chinese vessel “for the environmental damage within the territorial waters” of the Philippines.
Gonzales said also recommended the implementation of a coral rehabilitation program in the area.
The council, an agency under the Office of the President, said most of the damage was caused by the parachute anchor, a device used to stabilize a vessel and limit its drift in the water, that was found at a depth of nine meters and covering and area of 307.74 square meters.
“This 307 square meters (area) is considered damaged,” said Mark Ace dela Cruz, chief of PCSD’s Habitat Management System.
Dela Cruz said the absence of flattened reef structures indicated that the vessel did not actually ran aground on the reef.
He said the damage — such broken fragments of branching hard and soft corals, and massive corals — were caused by the dragging of the parachute anchor.
A six-man diving team from the council tried to remove the parachute anchor but was unsuccessful.
Philippine Coast Guard for the West Philippine Sea spokesman Commodore Jay Tarriela said “specialized equipment” will be needed to retrieve the parachute anchor.
He said the damage will get worse if the anchor stays longer in the area.
Tarriela also said the PCSD is a member-agency of the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS).
NTF-WPS spokesman Cornelio Valencia expressed concern over the damage.
“The NTF-WPS supports the PCSD’s recommendations on reef rehabilitation
and the enforcement of environmental accountability under Philippine law,” said Valencia.
ANOTHER CASE
Retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Francis Jardeleza called on the Marcos administration to file a legal case against China, over the environmental damage.
Jardeleza who solicitor general and part of the team that argued the case against China before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in 2013 challenging China’s massive claim in the South China Sea.
He expressed confidence that filing another case “will put the debate on another level.”
Last year, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said the government is studying the filing of another case against Beijing before an international tribunal regarding the massive environmental damage in the WPS caused by China’s reclamation and other activities in the area.
A study conducted by the University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute showed Beijing owes Manila some P33 billion annually since 2014 in damage to the marine ecosystem in the WPS through its reclamation, dredging and illegal fishing activities in the area.
Jardeleza said they received some information that the President does not want to file another legal challenge to China.
“Ang aming naririnig ay ayaw ng Pangulong Marcos. Yun po ang sabi (What we have been hearing is that President Marcos does not want to file another case. That’s what was said),”Jardeleza said in an interview with radio dzBB.
He said it seems the government’s strategy is to appeal and seek the help of its allies, particularly the United States, in countering China’s aggressive activities in the WPS.
Manila and Washington has a mutual defense treaty which commits both countries to come to each other’s aid in case of foreign invasion or armed attack.
Washington has repeatedly said the Mutual Defense Treaty also applies to any attack on Filipino ships, aircraft, or personnel in the WPS.
CORNERSTONE
Foreign Affairs Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro yesterday said the 2016 ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration remains a cornerstone of the Philippines’ maritime policy.
The July 12, 2016 ruling invalidated China’s massive claim in the South China Sea, declaring its claim based on the so-called nine-dash line theory has no historical or legal basis.
“The Philippines will strongly adhere by the arbitral award. The arbitral award is one of the basic anchors of our maritime together with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea or UNCLOS,” Lazaro said in a press briefing, her first since assuming the post from Enrique Manalo.
Manila and Beijing are signatories to the 1982 UNCLOS.
Lazaro also reiterated that the Philippines will continue to adhere to a rules-based approach and international law in resolving maritime disputes while maintaining open lines of communication with Beijing.
“We will also leverage partnerships with our allies and multilateralism,” she said.
Lazaro said she will continue Manalo’s strategy in dealing with China and resolving disputes.
“The President is the architect of our foreign policy and the President has already given out his position on the matter and therefore what has been started by former secretary Manalo, I will be continuing it,” she added.
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a statement on the ninth anniversary of the ruling, said the 2016 arbitral award “is nothing but a piece of waste paper that is illegal, null and void, and non-binding.”
“China neither accepts nor recognizes the `award,’ and will never accept any claim or action arising from the award,” it added.
The military yesterday held simultaneous flag-raising ceremonies at its camps and bases nationwide to commemorate the anniversary.
Armed Forces chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr led the ceremony at the AFP general headquarters at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City.
In a statement, the AFP said the simultaneous ceremonies symbolize “unity and resolve in safeguarding the country’s sovereignty, particularly in the West Philippine Sea.” – With Ashzel Hachero
