Cordova’s floating cottages have until Aug. 28 to operate

Cordova’s floating cottages. | File photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines – The floating cottages in Cordova town, Mactan Island only have 10 days left to operate. 

This after Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia issued an ultimatum to owners and operators of the structures that they have until August 28 before their operations will cease. 

Garcia, together with Cordova Mayor Cesar Suan, met with the over 400 owners of floating cottages in Cordova last Wednesday, August 17, to discuss measures in addressing the high levels of coliform detected in the town’s seawaters.

Among the solutions proposed was to stop the operations of fixed, floating cottages in order to pave way for the seas’ rehabilitation. 

“You have fair warning… Ten days na lang, napulo, including the (August) 28th. (Agusto) baynte-nuybe, implement na’ng order. Stop operations,” Garcia was quoted on saying.

Garcia is also expected to issue another Executive Order (EO) to make her recent instructions binding and official. 

The local government of Cordova has requested the Capitol to intervene in what they described as a ‘brewing environmental disaster’ involving floating cottages found on their coasts and seawaters. 

They blamed the uncontrollable number of fixed, floating cottages as the culprit behind the poor waste management and rampant pollution in their waters. 

Moreover, the local government unit (LGU) also discovered that these structures were considered illegal for they have failed to secure all permits needed to operate and that they have encroached on designated easement zones. 

The Environmental Management Bureau in Central Visayas (EMB-7) recently released the results of their water sampling tests from Cordova’s sea waters. 

The coliform level of the town’s seawater has reached 1,300 most probable number (MPN) per 100 milliliters (ml).

The allowable level of fecal coliform for coastal waters to be safe for bathing or swimming is at 100 MPN per 100 ml.

However, the report showed that the level of fecal coliform in the seven stations where the water samples were collected ranged from 170 – 2,400 MPN per 100 ml.

In turn, EMB-7 recommended that an ‘immediate course of action’ must be made in order to address the pollution found in Cordova’s seawaters. 

Coliform is the term used to describe the types of bacteria usually found in a human or animal’s digestive tract. 

Most coliform bacteria are harmless but some, such as the deadly Escherichia coli (E. coli), can be life-threatening. 

Experts stated that the presence of coliform bacteria in water indicates that other disease-causing organisms are also present.

/bmjo

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EMB-7 recommends immediate course of action in Cordova costal water problems