MARIVELES — Even if it is already nighttime, Carl Joseph Leblanc insisted on showing the site of his former income source: ar-arusip, a green “sea grape” seaweed belonging to the Caulerpa species.

“I was in my 20s when I started helping my mother in delivering seaweed baskets to nearby cities such as Dagupan. Now, the seaweed is nearly gone,” Leblanc, 48, and now a security guard, told Bulatlat in an interview.

The arosep, as residents like Leblanc call it, or lato in other parts of the country, used to be abundant in this town. It provided a reliable livelihood for women, including Leblanc’s late mother Miding and the women from nearby coastal barangays. 

However, as part of Manila Bay, Bataan’s proximity to the country’s capital made it an appealing industrialization site, resulting in the reclamation of its rich marine coastlines which drew migrant fishers to the province.

Leblanc recalled that in the mid-1990s they would just squat on the shallow part of the shore to collect arosep, which his mother bought for P100 ($1.74) per bundle and resold for P150 ($2.62). He said that today it was impossible to fill a dipper.

He expressed hope that their local government can explain why the arosep stopped regrowing on the shore of the now-marina of a maritime school. They suspected that sodium used by fishermen from outside Bataan was to blame because it bleached the rocks where the seaweed used to grow.

When asked about the seaweed loss, the Agriculture Office of Mariveles did not provide much information, stating that they were unaware of any seaweed sightings in Barangay Alas-asin, where Leblanc lives.

Experts said that the impact of an altered marine environment is incalculable and cannot be underestimated.

The Caulerpa species are among the eight most commercially important in the West Philippine Sea regions, especially in the north which includes Bataan province, according to the 2024 State of the Coasts report by University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute. 

“However, unlike other marine resources such as corals, fishes, mangroves, and seagrasses, seaweeds are unlikely to receive attention in local or national conservation and management efforts as their contribution to the ecology and economy of the Philippines remains underappreciated,” the report noted. 

Less than a kilometer from the marina, the residents of another fishing village next to the Aboitiz-owned GNPower Dinginin, the country’s largest coal plant, blamed the reclamation on their shore for the seaweed loss.

Migrant-resident Lorena Sumagdon recalled the time when money was enough for their household needs, including their children’s education. They did not need to work far from home. “Filling up a mango basket worth P2,000 ($35) didn’t take long if you moved fast enough.”

She said that around 1998, they just crawled through the rocky area for seaweed. “What a shame it’s all gone now.” 

Her neighbor, Paulo del Mundo said that by noon they used to have P1,500 ($26) after three hours of snorkeling for seaweed which the women would clean up. “Our fishnets before would scrape against the rocks [where the seaweed thrived] but now it’s all mud.” 

According to him, they lost not only the seaweed but also a sea snail they call susong dalaga to the two power plants.

Wilfred John Santiañez, an author of the UP MSI report, said in an email that photosynthesizers such as Caulerpa species are stressed by loose sediments that block sunlight and do not tolerate temperatures above 38 degrees Celsius. Prolonged exposure to these stressors can kill them.

According to Santiañez, the Caulerpa thrives in shallow water environments, from sandy (to somewhat muddy) or on coarse, corally, or rocky substrates where water movement is calm and good and where light is abundant. The arosep, usually Caulerpa racemosa, is the most abundant wild-harvested species in the island of Luzon, he said. “As primary producers, seaweeds are at the base of the marine food chain. They also provide oxygen to other marine organisms and can store carbon dioxide in their bodies,” he said, adding, “The different complex structures and beds that some of the seaweeds may form can also support other marine organisms by serving as their habitat, foraging, and nursery grounds, among others.”

Meanwhile, Sumagdon continues to work for the coal plant’s canteen, where fresh vegetables harvested from the coal plant site’s garden are also served. Others applied for housework in Manila and went abroad to become domestic helpers. Leblanc’s mother switched to selling mussels.

Fish consignor Jonathan delos Reyes said that the impact on women’s livelihoods is expected because there is nothing left now, unlike before when a buyer from Pangasinan could buy a truckload of seaweed in their market. He noticed these changes began as their coasts became industrialized.

Those who did not transition like senior citizen Rosario Nievales returned to relying on their single income from their husband’s fishing, which is also impacted because their nearest fishing ground is now where the coal terminal stands. (DAA)