THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is spearheading initiatives to safeguard the Philippine Rise Marine Resource Reserve, a 434,517-hectare portion of territorial water erstwhile known as Benham Rise.
In a press statement on Friday, Environment Secretary Raphael Lotilla said the government has begun a fiveyear effort to secure long-term protection for the Philippine Rise, a move seen as crucial amid mounting threats to the country’s marine resources, food security, and maritime domain.
The initiative aims to put in place lasting safeguards for one of the nation’s most important but least understood offshore ecosystems, Lotilla said.
“We have the responsibility to take care of the biodiversity in that area,” he stressed, adding that the Philippine Rise’s ecosystem benefits extend not only to the Philippines but to the global community as well.
He noted that understanding what lies within the vast undersea plateau is essential to ensuring its sustainable use and long-term protection.
The Philippine Rise Conservation Project forms the backbone of these efforts, strengthening management of the Philippine Rise Marine Resource Reserve and advancing its bid for inclusion under the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System.
According to Lotilla, this government push is critical since the Rise is a spawning ground for key fish stocks that supply local markets, a natural buffer against climate impacts and a strategic frontier where illegal fishing and foreign intrusions have long threatened livelihoods, biodiversity and national security. Rio N. Araja
The DENR through its Biodiversity Management Bureau implements the Philippine Rise Integrated Conservation for Enduring Legacies through Ecosystem Support Services (PRICELESS) project together with the Conservation International and Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia.
The initiative is funded by the Global Environment Facility under its seventh cycle.
PRICELESS seeks to strengthen governance, inter-agency coordination and enforcement across the reserve while improving on-site management and promoting sustainable resource use for nearby coastal communities.
