A marine research assessment survey conducted by experts showed the Sandy Cays of the West Philippine Sea (WPS) are now experiencing a decline or degradation amid the presence of Chinese vessels in Philippine waters.

“The Pag-asa coral reefs, the cay, the Pag-asa Island itself have coral reefs that are now experiencing either a decline or degradation, overfishing, University of the Philippines (UP) Institute of Biology professor Jonathan Anticamara said in a news forum on Saturday.

“And the habitat itself is not in a good condition,” the professor added.

Anticamara is part of the team that surveyed Cays 1 to 4 of the WPS on March 20 to 23 along with representatives from the Department of Agriculture (DA), Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).

While the expert acknowledged that degradation of corals is normal, he however said they did not expect the present condition of the corals in Pag-Asa island as they are already far from a lot of fishers and the mainland.

He also discovered a “pile of rubble” in Philippine waters with “many characteristics” not found on a typical island formation caused by nature.

“Many of these characteristics suggest that most likely this pile of rubble is somewhat, siguro ano, made by human. So parang hindi siya typical of Islands in the Philippines ? as I said, I’ve looked at many islands in the Philippines and ano iyong mga characteristics na ‘to?,” he said.

He explained that the slope of the supposed pile of rubble is too vertical, which can only be found in a reclamation area unlike the typical islands that are naturally formed in the Philippines where slopes are “usually gentle because the wave will try to erode the island itself over time.”

“Second, it’s too high,” Anticamara said, referring to the pile of rubble.

“The Cay 2, Pag-asa Cay 2, the pile of rubber is over the height of a person. I don’t know if you can go around the Philippines and find an island that’s formed by nature, a typhoon or a current that will form that high,” he added.

Anticamara said the Philippines must provide management support to recover and rebuild the fish stocks and recover the habitat in the WPS. Presidential News Desk