THE Provincial Government of Southern Leyte has established its first coral transplantation site to address the challenges posed by climate change.
The transplantation site was recently completed in a fish sanctuary in Barangay San Antonio, Tomas Oppus. It has 5,000 square meters and consists of 1,250 coral cuttings planted at two-meter intervals, at depths between 15 to 20 meters.
The project, implemented by Governor Roger Mercado, aims to serve as a climate change adaptability measure by saving corals from imminent destruction due to high levels of siltation, pollution, and other factors.
The same coral species will be transferred to a more hospitable area where they are more likely to thrive, hence their physical relocation or transplantation.
The fish sanctuary was chosen as the pilot site as it has very low level of siltation, better water quality, away from big river deltas, and is regularly guarded from intruders. It is also a natural breeding ground of the endangered giant clams.
Lloyd Tria, of Life Time Dive Center, whose team extended its expertise to the project, said that this is the first, and perhaps the only coral plantation of such a scale, not just in Eastern Visayas, but the whole of the Visayas.
Tria is based in Pagadian City but his group has pioneered coral transplantation in the country. They have established several coral transplantation projects in the municipalities of Tukuran, Labangan, Pagadian City, Dumalinao, Tabina, all of Zamboanga Del Sur, and Buug of Zamboanga Sibugay.
The project uses the staghorn coral specie (Acropora cervicornis), which is a branching, stony coral with cylindrical branches ranging from a few centimeters to over two meters in length and height. This specie is considered the fastest growing specie among the hard coral family.
Tomas Oppus Mayor Agustin Escano expressed his support and cooperation to the project and thanked the Provincial Government for choosing his town as the pilot municipality.
The project will be regularly monitored by the Provincial Government, as the corals will soon become habitats to fish and other organisms, and therefore sustain the marine life of the area.
The same project will be replicated in other municipalities of the province in the future. (RE Cahambing)