Drive for legal protection of Benham Bank continues

LED by four dancing shark mascots, environmentalists visited the Department of Environment and Natural Resources ( DENR) to deliver a special Valentine’s Day love letter to DENR Secre- tary Roy Cimatu.

The content of the card to protect the Philippine Rise was supported by over 50 institutions and leaders nationwide and asked Sec. Cimatu to declare Benham Bank, The protectors of Benham Bank including DENR Undersecretary Jonas Leones. the shallowest part of the Philippine Rise, as a ‘ no- take’ zone. Delivered along with the letter were over 9000 signatures from Oceana’s online petition to protect the Philippine Rise.

“The full protection and management of the entire 24-million hectare Philippine Rise might take months,” explains Oceana Benham Rise Campaign Team Leader Marianne Saniano. “However, there’s something Sec. Cimatu can do right now – and that is to have the 17,000 hectare Benham Bank declared as a ‘no-take’ zone.” Under the National Integrated Protected Areas System Act, RA-7586, the President can declare certain areas as protected with the endorsement of the DENR Secretary.

The declaration of Benham Bank as a ‘no-take’ zone triggers legal protection of the pristine area from human activity. Spanning 17,000 hectares, it occupies less than 1 percent of the Philippine Rise. ‘No-take’ zones have been proven to work in other coral reefs and protected areas in the Philippines, such as Apo Reef in Mindoro and the famed Tubbataha Reefs in Palawan.

Benham Bank is the shallowest part of the Philippine Rise. Portions surveyed by marine scientists in 2014 and 2016 revealed mesophotic or deep-sea reefs with 100 percent live coral cover – practically unheard of in the Philippines. Seaweed such as which resembles underwater cactus – were recorded to thrive in waters over 40 meters deep. It is recognized as part of the known tuna, one of the most expensive