SMPC reseeds 500 endangered clams on Semirara Island

INTEGRATED energy company Semirara Mining and Power Corporation (SMPC), together with the Department of Energy and barangay local government units, reseeded 500 endangered clams on March 16 and 17, 2022 at the 138-hectare Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) of Barangay Alegria and Tinogboc in Semirara Island, Caluya, Antique.

Locally known as taklobo or manlot, the giant clams are keystone species crucial to the coral reef ecosystem and function as bioindicators of the overall health of the marine ecosystem.  They are ecologically significant because they promote marine biodiversity and filter dirty seawater. These bivalves can reach four feet in length and weigh 500 pounds.

“We thank SMPC for implementing the reseeding in our MPA, and we will ensure the barangay council will impose stricter rules to protect the area,” Barangay Tinogboc chair Romeo Malixi said.

“I am grateful to SMPC for its sustainability initiatives. Through the information campaigns, we understood more the importance of clams in the marine biodiversity,” Barangay Alegria chair Modesta Pionelo added.

SMPC continues to foster partnerships with the Municipality of Caluya’s Bureau of Fisheries and Agriculture and Bantay Dagat to ensure the program’s sustainability.

SMPC’s Semirara Marine Hatchery Laboratory (SMHL) has propagated over 170,000 giant clams. It has successfully spawned the eight species  of the endangered clams, two of which —Tridacna gigas and Tridacna derasa, are species tagged as “vulnerable” in the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species.

The giant clam propagation, part of the company’s reef rehabilitation program involving the spawning and reseeding of endangered clams in Semirara Island, was a runner-up in the 2015 ASEAN Energy Awards (Corporate Social Responsibility category). The program also includes coral transplantation with 1,567 corals and 500 seagrasses dispersed to date at the Marine Sanctuary of Barangay Semirara.

This year, SMPC celebrates its 25th anniversary since the acquisition and management control by parent company DMCI Holdings, Inc. in 1997.

Source: Panay News