Don’t release fingerlings yet, BFAR advises fisherfolk in Taal

Taal fish cage owners should refrain from releasing new fry and fingerlings in Taal Lake until oxygen levels improve in the water, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) said Wednesday. “We issued an advisory asking fish cage owners to refrain from stocking new fingerlings while the dissolved oxygen level in Taal Lake has not reached six parts per million (ppm)," BFAR director Asis Perez said in an interview. However, BFAR did not say when it will lift the moratorium. Every two days, the bureau monitors water quality in Taal Lake. Perez meanwhile warned of a repeat of fish kill incident if fish cage operators insist on releasing new fingerlings without waiting for an improvement in oxygen levels. “There are still thousands of fish cages in Taal Lake. I see no guarantee that each and every fish cage operator will follow our advisory. Nonetheless, we have given them fair warning and we hope that they will heed our advice," Perez said. At a Senate committee hearing last week, an official of the Department of Agriculture pointed to overstocking as a possible reason for the massive fish kill in Taal Lake. Similar fish kill incidents also plagued Pangasinan. In its update two weeks ago, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council estimated that fish cage operators lost a total of P115.536 million to the fish kill. — PE/VS, GMA News