Seafood banned in P’sinan town as red tide hits seas

By Freddie G. Lazaro

DAGUPAN CITY, Pangasinan — The City Agriculture Office here said it is monitoring public markets to thwart any attempt to sell shellfish harvested from red tide-hit coastal areas of Anda and Bolinao in the province.

City Agricultural Officer Emma Molina said she had deployed personnel in the arrival site of the shellfish in the markets to check whether or not these are safe for human consumption.

She said that the entrance and exit points in Dagupan City are presently guarded to disallow the entry of contaminated marine products.

Earlier, the Department of Health warned that shellfish from the coastal waters of Bolinao and Anda in Pangasinan are unsafe for human consumption due to the infestation of the red tide toxin.

Aside from the towns of Anda and Bolinao in Pangasinan; the shellfish ban is also in effect in Dumanquillas Bay in Zamboangadel Sur and Murcielagos Bay in Zamboanga del Norte and Misamis Occidental due to red tide, according to a bulletin issued by the BFAR.

It was reported that the harvest, sale, procurement, and consumption of shellfish from the red tide-infected bodies of water are prohibited as they tested positive for "paralytic" shellfish poison that is beyond the regulatory limit.

All types of shellfish and Acetesap or “alamang” from the areas mentioned are not safe for human consumption, BFAR said.

This, as Central Luzon remains red tide-free despite reports of the occurrence of the said phenomenon in other parts of the country, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources reported last week.

BFAR said Bulacan, Zambales, and Bataan provinces remain clear from paralytic shellfish poison or most commonly known as red tide.

“The coastal waters of Bulacan in Manila Bay; Masinloc Bay in Zambales; and coastal waters of Mariveles, Limay, Orion, Pilar, Balanga, Orani, Abucay, and Samal in Bataan remain free of the toxic red tide,” the BFAR Shellfish Bulletin dated Nov. 23 reported.

BFAR said shellfish from the mentioned areas can still be gathered, harvested, and sold in markets and are safe for human consumption.