The Red Tide alert is still in effect in Tambobo Bay in Siaton, Negros Oriental, although the toxicity level of the algal bloom has significantly dropped, according to an official of the Provincial Agriculturist’s Office.
Wilmencita Pialogo, head of the PAO’s Provincial Task Force on Red Tide, disclosed on Friday that based on water sample results, the red tide cell counts are now minimal. She said the red tide occurrence in Tamboboy Bay is now “below danger level.
However, it is still not safe for people to consume shellfish from the bay, she stressed.
The Task Force will continue to collect samples for three consecutive weeks that would show a negative result in the presence of Red Tide, before the area can be declared safe and the alert level lifted, Pialogo said.
The Bureau of Fisheries & Aquatic Resources has the sole authority to declare the area negative and safe of Red Tide, Pialogo added.
In early August, the BFAR issued a notice of Red Tide occurrence in the bay, after high level of concentrations of toxins such as phosphate and nitrate were observed that had caused the algal bloom, according to Pialogo.
While Red Tide is a common occurrence, high density of dino flagellates or the organisms that cause the algal bloom make it harmful for humans to consume shellfish collected from a particular area, the PAO official said.
Pialogo had earlier identified that the organism, pyrodinium bahamense, was believed to have caused the Red Tide event. (With reports from Judy Flores Partlow/PNA)
