Verzosa leads clean up of RP coastal areas

MANILA, Oct. 6 (PNA) -- The Philippine National Police (PNP), living-up to its commitment to protect the environment, spearheads a nationwide drive to clean the country's coastal waters.

PNP chief Director General Jesus A Verzosa on Saturday led its officers and personnel in "Scubasurero 2008", a coastal clean-up project launched in San Juan, Batangas.

"The PNP supports all environmental protection initiatives of the national government particularly the preservation of the marine environment," he said.

A certified SCUBA diver trained as a combat and rescue swimmer, Verzosa spearheaded the diving teams from the PNP Maritime Group and other PNP units in cleaning the coastal waters and off-shore reefs in San Juan, Batangas which is part of the 494,700-hectare Verde Passage Marine Biodiversity Conservation Corridor (MBCC).

"We are holding this activity to jumpstart a wider and continuing advocacy campaign of environmental protection nationwide, and to be initiated at the local level by the PNP regional and provincial offices," the PNP Chief said.

According to PNP Spokesman, Chief Superintendent Nicanor A Bartolome, Scubasurero 2008 also aims to heighten public awareness to global environmental concerns, particularly on environment protection.

"After all, the PNP is not only maka-Diyos, makabayan, and makatao. We are also maka-kalikasan as we express every time we sing our PNP Hymn," he said.

International environmental organizations consider the Coral Triangle as the global center of marine biodiversity -- formed across Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste and Solomon Islands.

The Coral Triangle is home to over 600 reef-building coral species or 75 percent of all species known to science, and more than 3,000 species of reef fish.

America's Smithsonian Institute places Verde Passage at the peak of the world's Coral Triangle or "the center of the center of marine biodiversity in the world" because of its highest marine biodiversity with the greatest number of shallow water habitats and coral reefs.

It lies between waters off Batangas on the north, Mindoro on the south, Lubang Island on the west, and Tayabas Bay on the east.