THE OFFICIAL WEB SITE OF MATI

A snorkeling site in the city of Mati is now open for local and foreign enthusiasts and tourists to take in their itineraries when they visit the province especially this summer season.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in the region recently opened the snorkeling area at Barangay Tamisan in Mati City as an offshoot to the enterprise development efforts of DENR’s Integrated Coastal Resource Management Project (ICRMP).

DENR-XI signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the local government of Mati City and the Tamisan Marine Protected Area Fisherfolk Association (TAMPAFAS) in implementing the ICRMP in the city.

As part of the agreement, 17 reef rangers were trained, and are now ready to guide tourists who want to explore the surface of the bay.

The trained reef rangers received their brand new snorkeling gears such as mask, fins, life vests, goggles and diving suits after the MOA signing on March 27.

Mayor Michelle Rabat who represented Mati LGU in the MOA, emphasized the need of protecting and conserving the coastal area of Barangay Tamisan in order to lure more tourists to come and snorkel in the area.

“Protecting and conserving the coastal areas also means sustaining your livelihood and enjoying the coastal resources specifically fishes. I am very happy that this enterprise development activity is finally realized,” Rabat said.

Rabat pledged to provide TAMPAFAS a service vehicle for their snorkeling and livelihood activities.

TAMPAFAS was represented by its president Giovanni Lazaro in the MOA signing, while DENR-XI was headed by its regional technical director Emmanuel Isip.

The snorkeling package also features food treat of special native delicacies of Mati City such as taro (local name for gabi), cassava cooked with coconut milk and sugar, salvaro, puto-cassava, lumpia, ube and the local version of mudslide made of milo, milk, tuba (coconut wine) and many more.

Meanwhile, DENR-XI Regional Executive Director Jim O. Sampulna said that DENR Secretary Ramon J.P. Paje have been closely monitoring the ICRMP implementation all over the country.

Paje was instrumental for the early release of the P441,603.00 as a funding support to the association for its start-up capital.

The DENR-ICRMP will continuously monitor the association’s activities and provide them technical assistance when necessary. (RIGA/DENR-XI/Bing Cordova/PIA-XI)