As someone preoccupied with planning cities and developing mitigation strategies, I never thought I’d find myself creating a habitat for fish. But let me be clear: this endeavor is no less important—in fact, I consider it a crucial project.
In 2021, Typhoon Odette devastated the corals along the Majuyod shoreline, reducing them to white sand that now blankets the Hundred Steps Beach in Balaas, Manjuyod, near my property. This loss got me to thinking that I could once again populate the shoreline adjacent to the cliff of Mi Patria Chica.
While applying for a Special Use Agreement in Protected Areas for wave and ramp protection structure to safeguard my cliff from landslides during the Amihan season, the idea of restoring corals resurfaced.
I briefly mentioned this to Dominic Pastor of DENR Ayungon how I could once again populate my shoreline with corals. To my surprise, he had a fascinating solution: Fish condos.
I didn’t pursue this idea immediately due to my frequent travels between San Francisco and Dumaguete, but recently, while DENR Ayungon was inspecting my property for the SAPA application, I brought it up again with Carlito Perez of DENR Ayungon.
I was impressed by the proactive response from DENR Ayungon, led by Jimmy Panebio. Within a couple of days, Mr. Perez and Sheminith Sablada from the DENR Ayungon Tañon Strait Protected Seascape conducted a demonstration on how to create these fish condos with two of my workers.
It’s interesting to note that the TSPS was established in 1998 during President Ramos’ administration, with contributions from my friends, the late DENR Sec. Dr. Angel Alcala, and Dr. Ben Malayang, former DENR Undersecretary of Operations.
I’m thrilled by this innovative environmental mitigation technique, which uses indigenous materials to provide fish with habitats and to support coral growth. Following Carlito’s advice, I’ve been purchasing bakats from Bais City Market, and sacks of anapog from Manjuyod. Mixing these with cement and sand encourages the growth of lumot, a type of algae that fish feed on. So far, I’ve constructed 35 fish condos, with more on the way.
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Author’s email: efren.padilla@csueastbay.edu
