• CHERYL G. CRUZ
The coastal waters of Bacolod City, as well as of Talisay, Silay, Victorias, EB Magalona, and Hinigaran in Negros Occidental remain free from the toxic red tide, as of Dec. 1, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources said.
BFAR officer-in-charge Zaldy Perez added that the Tambobo, and Siit bays in Siaton and Bais Bay in Bais City, Negros Oriental; the coastal waters of Borongon, San Dionisio in Iloilo; coastal waters of Altavas, Batan, and New Washington in Batan Bay, Aklan are also among the areas that continue to be free from the harmful algal blooms.
Perez said that while the coastal waters of President Roxas and Pilar in Capiz are now free of the red tide, samples taken from the waters off Pontevedra, also in the province, tested positive for paralytic shellfish poison (PSP).
Shellfishes collected and tested from Sapian Bay, straddling Ivisan and Sapian in Capiz, and Mambuquiao and Camanci, Batan in Aklan; from the coastal waters of Roxas City in Capiz; of Gigantes Islands, Carles in Iloilo; of Dauis and Tagbilaran City in Bohol; of Dumanquillas Bay in Zamboanga del Sur; Lianga Bay in Surigao del Sur; and coastal waters of San Benito in Surigao del Norte are still positive for PSP.
“All types of shellfish and alamang gathered from these areas are not safe for human consumption,” Perez said.
But he stressed that fish, squids, shrimps, and crabs are safe for human consumption, provided that they are fresh and washed thoroughly, and the internal organs such as gills and intestines are removed before cooking. | CGC
