The Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Office (MENRO) of Casiguran conducted a comprehensive assessment of the current state of marine habitats within Casiguran waters from November 3 to 7, 2025. This crucial activity focused on vital resources, including fish and corals within Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), seagrass beds, and economically valuable mollusks. The successful execution of this assessment was made possible through the unwavering support of Mayor Roynald Soriano and Vice Mayor Eugene Calugtong.

Under the leadership of Casiguran MENRO’s head, Forester Jestonee Bitong, the assessment team was a multi-agency collaboration. It comprised staff from the MENRO, the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO) of Aurora, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), the conservation group Daloy ng Buhay (Daluhay), Aurora State College of Technology (ASCOT), the Community Environment and Natural Resources Offices (CENROs) of Palanan (Isabela) and Casiguran, and a dedicated Coastal Resource Management (CRM) expert.

The team was efficiently organized into four specialized groups. The first two teams, Team Fishes, led by Ms. Isabell Kittel, and Team Corals, led by Sir Jagger Enaje, both teams assessed all existing MPAs simultaneously, except the site in Barangay Culat, which was inaccessible due to extreme wave currents caused by the approaching Typhoon Uwan. The second group, the Seagrass Team, headed by Ma’am Cherish June Holongbayan, evaluated five different sites, including the seagrass meadow along the shore of Barangay Marikit, which had not been assessed in the previous survey. Unfortunately, the recorded seagrass bed in Barangay Ditinagyan could not be located based on its recorded map; local fisherfolk alleged that it had been covered by sand. The third group, the Mollusks Team led by Ma’am Maria Christina Cañada, assessed those economically valuable mollusks, such as bivalves and gastropods, across five designated sites.

This assessment is crucial for understanding the current condition of the municipality’s marine natural resources. Fish and corals within MPAs are vital, providing long-term livelihood for the community while ensuring species conservation. Seagrasses are essential, serving as a home and food source for diverse marine animals, including invertebrates, fishes, dugongs, and sea turtles, in addition to acting as a natural water filter. Similarly, mollusks are important not only for the community’s livelihood but also because they serve as water filters and function as bioindicators of environmental health. The results of this comprehensive assessment are expected to be available on December 19, 2025, to be the baseline basis for the formulation of the Integrated Coastal Management Plan (ICMP) and the updating of Marine Protected Area Network Plan (MPANP) for the period of 2026–2035 to be present at Sangguniang Bayan, on the first quarter of the year 2026.

Written by: D.V