PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan — The city government has raised the alarm on red tide again in Honda Bay, Barangay Sta. Lourdes following the Tuesday issuance of shellfish advisory by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR).
According to Shellfish Advisory No. 11 issued by the BFAR on March 20 and signed by Undersecretary for Fisheries Eduardo Gongona, red tide monitoring activities in Honda Bay showed that samples are positive for paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) at 110.18 ugSTXeq per 100 grams of meat.
The advisory was disclosed Wednesday to the local press by City Information Officer Richard Ligad.
“The shellfish ban is up again in Honda Bay. We advise shell sellers and the public that there should be no selling, no consumption, no collecting of shellfish and no collecting of shellfish and Acete sp. or alamang (shrimp) from the bay,” he said in a text message.
The shellfish advisory stated the BFAR will immediately send a new advisory if samples that will be tested in the following days would show that the toxicity level has gone down below the regulatory limit of 60 ugSTXeq per 100 grams.
“The public is also informed that fish harvested from the said areas are safe for human consumption provided they are fresh and washed thoroughly and their internal organs removed before cooking,” he said.
Aside from Honda Bay in Puerto Princesa, the shellfish ban due to red tide toxin is also up in Irong-Irong Bay in Western Samar; coastal waters of Leyte and its Carigara Bay, and the coastal waters of Biliran Province.
The ban on shellfish in Honda Bay came nearly two weeks after the BFAR and the City Agriculture Office (CAO) here announced the lifting of an earlier ban imposed on March 7. (PNA)
