Nasa 3,457 na mangingisda na ang naghain ng compensation claims dahil sa oil spill na dulot ng lumubog na MT Princess Empress ayon kay Surigao del Sur Rep. Johnny Pimentel.
Ayon sa mambabatas, umabot ang halaga ng compensation claims sa 114 million pesos at inaasahan na tataas pa.
“Those figures from the International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds, or IOPC Funds, are very preliminary. Additional claims from capture fishery alone have probably been submitted by now, but have not been aggregated and reported yet,” pagbabahagi ni Pimentel.
Dagdag ng kongresista na miyembro ng House Committee on Ecology, hindi pa kasama sa naturang halaga ang danyos na sisingilin ng Philippine Coast Guard, iba pang ahensya ng gobyerno at tourism stakeholders.
“The Philippine Coast Guard and other government agencies involved are also expected to file their respective claims for costs incurred in cleanup operations and preventive measures as well as sea response,” dagdag ng kinatawan.
February 28 nang lumubog ang MT Princess Empress na naglabas ng hanggang 5,600 na bariles ng industrial fuel oil na nakaapekto sa katubigang sakop ng Oriental Mindoro, Batangas, Antique, at Palawan.
Ang London-based IOPC Funds ang namamahala sa pagproseso ng compensation claims ng mga naapektuhan ng oil spill. | ulat ni Kathleen Jean Forbes
