The provincial government of Pampanga is working with the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to install oil spill booms in the Bamboo Hub area of Lubao town. 

This is to shield the province from the ongoing oil spill in the neighboring province of Bataan.

Over the weekend, an executive meeting was held with members of the Incident Management Team (IMT) to focus on monitoring the province's coastlines. 

“Sa boom natin, nakapaglagay na tayo ng tuloy-tuloy, yung production tuloy-tuloy,” Governor Dennis “Delta” Pineda said.

The priority is to place oil spill booms along critical coastal areas including Barangays Mabuangbuan and Bangcal in Pugad, the Patalo River in Lubao, and Bangkung Malapad in Sasmuan. 

These areas are approximately 30 kilometers from the sunken motor tanker (MT) Terra Nova in Limay, Bataan.

“Ang plan po natin is to protect po ‘yung buong province ng Pampanga. Nakita po natin sa coast guard [na] kailangan po natin maglagay ng booms approximately 15 kilometers from Barangay Mabuanbuan to Consuelo, Macabebe,” Coast Guard Lt. Kristine Ann Opinaldo said.

In addition to the boom installation, tests have been conducted on seafood from local waters and fishponds to ensure safety. 

“Nagpa-test na tayo ng mga seafoods natin, pinadala natin sa PSAU (Pampanga State Agricultural University) to make sure na ‘yung mga seafoods coming from different municipalities, inside fish ponds and outside fishpond are safe,” Pineda said.

As of August 7, Pampanga has produced 1,174 oil spill booms, with over 100 already installed in targeted coastal barangays.