The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has noted significant improvements in the water quality of major outfalls directly draining into the Manila Bay a year after the rehabilitation of the polluted bay started.
“There is reason to celebrate because a year after we launched the ‘Battle for Manila Bay,’ we have recorded significant improvements in the water quality from major drainage outfalls,” DENR Secretary Roy Cimatu, who chairs the Manila Bay Task Force, said.
Before the rehabilitation kicked off on January 26 last year, the DENR recorded extremely high fecal coliform levels from major Manila Bay outfalls.
“Coliform levels have drastically decreased.”
But now, Cimatu said recent data from the DENR’s Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) have shown that the coliform levels have “drastically decreased.”
Citing EMB data, the environment chief said the fecal coliform count at the Padre Faura outfall is now down to 920,000 most probable number per 100 milliliter (mpn/100ml) from its pre-rehab record of 7.21 million mpn/100ml.
From 35 million mpn/100ml recorded before the rehabilitation began, the environment head said the coliform level at the Raja Soliman/Remedios drainage outfall across the Aristocrat Restaurant went down to 11 million mpn/100ml.
The coliform level at the Manila Yacht Club outfall is now 54 million mpn/100ml from a high of 110 million mpn/100ml, the DENR chief noted.
“Despite these improvements, more needs to be done.”
Despite these improvements, however, he said more still needs to be done especially since the standard fecal coliform level in Manila Bay is 100 mpn/100ml based on its classification as “Class SB” coastal and marine water.
Last year, over 10,000 volunteers joined a massive cleanup activity along Roxas Boulevard in Manila and other areas in the bay region as a kick-off to the rehabilitation project dubbed as “Battle for Manila Bay,” which enjoys the full backing of the Duterte administration.
President Rodrigo Duterte has allocated P42.95 billion for the implementation of the Manila Bay rehabilitation project within three years and at least 13 government agencies are now working together to carry out the mission.
The government targets the source of water pollution in an effort to rehabilitate, restore and maintain the historic bay to a level fit for swimming, as mandated in the mandamus issued by the Supreme Court in 2008.