AS soon as it can already submit the copy of the water sample analysis results, the Municipal Government of Pontevedra hopes that the Pollution Adjudication Board (Pab) will immediately act on the recent fishkill incident reported in the river of the southern Negros Occidental locality.
Teody Sayson, supervising agriculturist of Pontevedra, told SunStar Bacolod yesterday, May 24, that they are still requesting from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environment Management Bureau (DENR-EMB) an “explanation” of the laboratory test result of the water samples it has taken.
Sayson said such “justification” from the agency will also serve as “concrete evidence” on the real cause of the fishkill, which reportedly affected at least five barangays of the town.
“The laboratory test result released by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic (Bfar) in Western Visayas only focuses on the causes of fishkill. We need the result of another analysis conducted by the DENR-EMB for our evidence to be more concrete,” he said, adding that the later can tell more of the impact of wastewater or pollution to the entire environment.
Results of the laboratory test conducted by the Bfar showed that water samples collected did not meet the standard limits for ammonia, dissolved oxygen, and nitrite.
"If standards are not met, this means that concentration in the water is very high that can cause the death of marine animals like fish," Sayson earlier said.
On May 8, a fishkill incident was reported after a dam of the sugar milling plant Central Azucarera de la Carlota Inc. (Caci) in Barangay Nagasi of neighboring La Carlota City collapsed and reportedly spilled over wastewater.
The Bfar and DENR-EMB then took samples of the water from different areas and subjected it to laboratory analysis.
SunStar Bacolod has obtained a copy of the result from the DENR-EMB Western Visayas which tapped an accredited laboratory in Bacolod City to do the analysis.
However, it has yet to provide the interpretation of the result.
The agency earlier said the Pab, an attached agency of the DENR, will determine the corresponding penalty for the sugar milling plant once proven to have liability on the incident.
Sayson said they will include in their report to the Pab its appeal for an immediate action, specifically determination and implementation of necessary penalties.
“Though the board has yet to convene once we submitted our concern, we hope they will attend to it immediately,” he said, adding that they will also ask the support of La Carlota City Government on urging speedy action from the concerned agency.
Caci, in a statement, said the company has yet to check on the results before it can comment on the matter.
But, earlier, it said that the management is looking into the incident that apparently caused the break of the southern wall of its dam. It is also taking measures to address the problem.