The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources has been seeing signs of weakening red tide that plagued several bays in Eastern Visayas since September. BFAR regional director Juan D. Albaladejo said typhoon-induced rains and cooler weather in the past few weeks have contributed to lower water temperature and salinity, which are not friendly to the toxic organisms. “Toxicity level in both shellfish meat and seawater has been going down, but shellfish ban is still up in affected bays. Red tide should be consistently negative for three readings before we can declare that an area is red tide-free,” Albaladejo said.

Caspe, M. (2015, December 27). Red tide alert still up, weakening signs show. Manila Standard, p. A7.