Photo courtesy of the PENRO-DENR in Negros Oriental.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Negros Oriental is strengthening coordination with law enforcement and local stakeholders following the discovery of two dead marine animals this week.
The move came after a pregnant melon-headed whale and a green sea turtle were found lifeless in coastal waters near Pantawan People’s Park along Rizal Boulevard on separate days.
Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer Jimmy Panebio said authorities were ramping up efforts to safeguard wildlife through closer collaboration with communities and partner agencies.
He said the DENR had recently conducted training for Deputized Environment and Natural Resources Officers and Wildlife Enforcement Officers in Manjuyod, with similar activities already completed in Ayungon, Bindoy, and Tayasan.
Additional training sessions are scheduled in the coming days in Bais City, Amlan, Tanjay City, San Jose, and Sibulan to expand enforcement capabilities across the province.
Panebio also acknowledged the prompt response of various agencies and volunteers during the marine mammal stranding incident, which involved personnel from the Philippine Coast Guard, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, the Philippine Marine Mammal Stranding Network, Silliman University, and the DENR.
The melon-headed whale was brought to a fisheries facility for examination, where responders discovered a fully developed fetus inside the animal before both were buried along the coast.
A separate incident involved a female green sea turtle recovered near Barangay Tinago, where initial findings showed a tumor on its body, while another stranding was earlier reported in Bindoy, prompting renewed calls for stronger wildlife protection measures.