Over a hundred people from 47 organizations and offices gathered one early morning last week at Silliman Beach to take part in the deployment of 800 reef domes.
The activity was coordinated by BPI Bayanihan para sa Inang Bayan-Dumaguete, the volunteerism and community engagement platform of the employees of the Bank of the Philippine Islands Dumaguete branches.
BPI Bayan and its partner organizations have deployed over 200 reef domes within the Bantayan Marine Reserve since 2012 until 2018, aiming to rehabilitate damaged portions of the natural reef, as well as to enhance marine biodiversity in the area.
“The encouraging coral growth on the domes inspired BPI Bayan and our partners to scale up the deployment,” said Gary Rosales, project coordinator.
Last year after successfully expanding the Bantayan marine reserve from 3.37 hectares to 7.08 hectares through legislation, some 750 reef domes were deployed on the sandy bottom of the expansion area.
Latest monitoring conducted early this month revealed that the domes have become home to at least five species of fish, and several species of marine invertebrates.
A green turtle nicknamed “Banti”has also been sighted frequently in the area.
The 800 deployed domes were made from September 2023 to July this year at the NCCP DYSR Compound in barangay Banilad by volunteers from 32 organizations representing schools, alumni, civil society organizations, NGOs, businesses, and churches.
Rosales said last Saturday’s deployment of 800 was part of the annual deployment target of 1,000 domes committed until 2029.
It was also one of the activities prepared to celebrate the 13th anniversary of BPI Bayan. (PR)
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Photo caption: Some 800 reef domes are deployed at Silliman Beach in Dumaguete by over 100 volunteers from 47 organizations and offices, coordinated by Bayanihan Para sa Inang Bayan (BPI Bayan) Dumaguete. (Photo by Hersley Ven Casero)
