THE Manila Bay Dolomite Beach will remain closed to the public until further notice to give way for the completion of rehabilitation and expansion works in the facility, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said on Wednesday, November 3, 2021.
DENR Undersecretary Jonas Leones said improving the water quality, repairing the drainage system in the outfalls of Padre Faura and Remedios Abad, completion of phase 2, renovating the fishing areas along the parts of Manila Yacht Club and the construction of playground for children, comfort rooms, souvenir shops and administrative office will be among the things that have to be dealt with before the beach will be opened to the public again.
“Ang gusto ng ating Inter-Agency Task Force at ng ating kalihim ay para mag-enjoy ang ating kababayan ay tapusin na po natin lahat ng gawain... Dahil may materyales at equipment po na dadaan sa dolomite area kaya minarapat na isara muna para di maabala sa gagawin dolomite area,” Leones said in a media briefing.
(What the IATF and DENR Secretary Roy Cimatu want is that for the public to really enjoy the beach, everything has to be done first. We have the materials and equipment passing by the beach already, so we prefer to finish the rehabilitation works first.)
“Tulad ng aming naipangako, ipagpapatuloy po natin ang pagsasaayos ng Manila Bay. Tutukan po natin ngayon ang paglilinis ng tubig sa Manila Bay upang sa ganon, hindi na lamang pasyal ang maaaring gawin ng ating kababayan sa dolomite area kundi pati pagligo at paglangoy,” he added.
(As promised, we will continue to the rehabilitation of Manila Bay. We will focus more on improving the water quality, so the public can also enjoy swimming in the area.)
Leones said the agency is eyeing to reopen the beach in the first quarter of 2022.
The reopening of the dolomite beach on October 16, the same day the alert level status in the National Capital Region was downgraded from level 4 to level 3, was criticized after hundreds of thousands of people flocked to the area, resulting in the violation of minimum public health protocols, especially the physical distancing.
Manila Bay Task Force commander Jacob Meimban was relieved over the incident.
Initially, the DENR ordered the closure of the dolomite beach from October 29 to November 3 in anticipation of the bulk of people who may visit the facility due to the long weekend for the observance of All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days. (SunStar Philippines)