MANILA — The oil spill off Oriental Mindoro province has affected the livelihood of around 19,000 fishermen, whom government aims to help through skills and livelihood training, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) said on Monday.

The motor tanker Princess Empress was carrying 800,000 liters of industrial fuel oil when it went down in rough seas on February 28. Some 19,000 fishers across 9 municipalities in Oriental Mindoro and Caluya town in Antique were ordered to stay ashore as fishing activities were restricted, said BFAR chief information officer Nazario Briguera.

“Tinamaan talaga nito yung mga critical marine habitats na nandyan po sa apektadong lugar. Kasama na po dyan yung mga mangroves, mga coral reef, at napaka-fatal po kasi ang epekto nito doon sa mga fish larvae at mga itlog ng isda,” he told ABS-CBN's TeleRadyo.

(This hit our critical marine habitats, including our mangroves and coral reefs, and this is fatal to our fish larvae and fish eggs.)

• 'Taas-presyo ng isda posible dahil sa Oriental Mindoro oil spill'

On top of food aid for the affected fisherfolk, the BFAR is also allotting P4.2 million to help them find a temporary means of livelihood, Briguera said.

“Ang gagawin po rito sa pondong ito, maglalagay po ng mga proyekto. Unang-una yung livelihood skill training, kung saan tuturuan natin sila sa fish processing. But of course yung raw materials nito manggagaling sa unaffected areas,” he said.

(This fund will be used for projects, including a livelihood skills training for fishermen, we'll teach them fish processing. But of course the fish will come from unaffected areas.)

“Bibigyan sila ng mga smokehouses para sa fish processing,” he said.

(We will give them smokehouses for fish processing.)

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Briguera said the BFAR would also launch Kadiwa Oplan Isda, which would help fisherfolk cooperatives deliver fish to nearby markets.

“Isa naman po itong parang market linkage kung saan ita-tap natin yung mga fisherfolk cooperatives na sila mismo ang mag-distribute ng mga isda galing sa mga unaffected areas at ipapagamit po sa kanila ang mga logistical support ng pamahalaan sa pamamagitan ng BFAR, katulad ng mga refrigerated vans. Bibigyan din po sila ng mga chest freezers,” he added.

(It's a market linkage program. We'll ask fish cooperatives to distribute fish to the markets with logistical support from the government. We'll let them use refrigerated vans and chest freezers.)

The BFAR has tested water and fish samples in oil spill-affected areas and hopes to release the results this week to help local governments decide their next steps, Briguera added.

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