Virac, Bato Sign Sisterhood Pact with Makati City

VIRAC, Catanduanes, Dec 11 (PIA)-- The towns of Virac and Bato here signed sisterhood agreements last November 23, 2011 at the Makati City Hall with Makati.

Present during the signing of the separate memorandum of agreement (MOA) were Bato Mayor Eulogio Rodriguez and Virac Mayor Jose Alberto II with the members of their respective Sangguniang Bayan and Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay Jr.

The MOA will strengthen the friendship ties and mutual understanding of the local government units through exchanges in Science and Technology, Culture and Arts, Tourism, Planning and Urban Development, Commerce and Trade and Industry, Education and Sports Development, Environmental Protection, Public Health and Social Services, and other concerns.

The said towns will also benefit from the sisterhood with regards to the expected assistance from Binay which includes donation of books and multicab, scholarship grants at the University of Makati for the indigent students, calamity assistance, training programs for local officials, and on-the-job observation tours of best practices at the city of Makati to share the best practices.(PIA/Catanduanes)

Source: PIA Press Release
Sunday, December 11, 2011

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PRC Conducts Mobile Outreach Program in Catanduanes

VIRAC, Catanduanes, Dec 5 (PIA)-- The Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) conducted a Mobile Outreach Program at the provincial capitol of Catanduanes on November 25-26.



It is the first time for PRC to conduct such service in Catanduanes. According to regional director, Elenita Tan of PRC, the said program aims to make it easy for applicants in the renewal of licenses, registration of new passers, and application for those who would like to take the examination on December 29.

She also said that their program will continue and their agency is also considering the establishment of an extension office in the province.

Repeaters, she added, will have to take the examination on January 30, 2012; while on March 11, 2012 it will be the turn for those taking the Licensure Examination for Teachers (2012).

Those benefited by the program were thankful since it helped them save a lot in terms of convenience, time, money, and effort. (PIA/Catanduanes)

by EA Bagadiong
Source: PIA Press Release
Monday, December 05, 2011

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NAIA-1 Gets P1-billion Face-Lift

MANILA, Philippines - A newly refurbished Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1 will rise from the shell of the old, much-maligned main gateway, but still would not provide free sleeping quarters for vagrants and those on a tight budget. The repairs will cost P1 billion.

According to Terminal 1 Manager Dante Basanta, the NAIA-1 had a “dayroom” decades ago, rented at P840 per day ($20) and located near the arrival area, just beside the duty-free shops.

(The “dayroom” is still there, available for those who may want to use it, although it’s not being properly advertised by airport authorities. Most of the time, however, the area is used as a holding room for those scheduled for deportation and who are awaiting their flights.)

The face-lift of NAIA-1 will start in January and is expected to be finished within 2012. The 67,000-square-meter building has a capacity of 4.5 million passengers a year. Last year it served way beyond its capacity—or some 7.3 million people.

The tight space and limited amenities have irked some bloggers who, unable to find sleeping quarters at NAIA-1, graded it the worst in the world.

NAIA-1 was recently voted as the “World’s Worst Airport to Sleep In” by the “The Guide to Sleeping in Airports,” a web site of low-budget travelers who used the airport as overnight motels to save on money.

But Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa) General Manager Jose Angel Honrado said this is not why the passenger terminal is being spruced up; the undertaking had been discussed by various administrations in the past.

Honrado said the firm of Leandro V. Locsin and Associates, the original architect of NAIA-1, is helping conceptualize ideas about how the newly rebuilt structure would look.

Also part of the project are furniture and interior designer Budji Layug, architect Royal Pineda and Cebuano designer Kenneth Cobonpue, who are providing their expertise pro bono to give the NAIA-1 a major face-lift, 30 years after it was constructed. The original design was by National Artist for Architecture Leandro V. Locsin.

Transportation and Communications Secretary Manuel Roxas II is spearheading the NAIA-1 restoration. He held consultations last week with top officials of the customs, immigration and quarantine bureaus, as well as the Miaa.

Customs Commissioner Rozanno Rufino Biazon, Immigration Commissioner Ricardo David Jr., Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez Jr. and Honrado attended the meeting.

The interior renovation will cost P450 million, while the park development will fetch P500 million.

“The proposed P1-billion budget will help build a new image of the Philippines,” according to Pineda, who said in a recent interview that Naia 1, like all modern airports, would provide a “boutique” experience, “not so much for its modest size as for its distinct atmosphere of civility and expedience.”

To expedite the flow of arriving and departing passengers, concessionaires such as banks and insurance companies that are now located smack in the middle of the arrival and departure zones would be moved to the sides.

“Flow takes precedence. The proposed master plan includes freeing up the space to accommodate more passengers by transferring the offices and banks elsewhere,” Pineda said.

The arrival area, which had been expanded recently, will be surrounded by glass so that passengers could see all the way to the lobby and beyond, according to Honrado. He also said the wall that separates the customs from the luggage section would have to give way so that natural light from the outside would illuminate the area.

There are also plans to make the waiting lounge more pleasant and to add restrooms, Honrado said.

The proposal calls for refurbishing the facilities, decongesting, developing a park and enhancing the retail environment. It also calls for NAIA to work equally hard on the software, and the services.

Honrado said the National Competitiveness Council Program (NCCP) asked Layug, Pineda and Cobonpue to offer their own suggestions on the face-lift as part of a program to improve the country’s image. The NCCP was established by Presidential Executive Order 571, which seeks to improve the country’s competitiveness from the bottom third of competitiveness rankings to the top third by 2016.

According to the three designers, the airport and Roxas Boulevard need the most attention since they provide the visitor his or her initial impression of the country.

Pineda said the renovation of NAIA-1’s structure would be limited; it can no longer be expanded; nor can it accommodate extra load, he said in their web site. “We will create a boutique airport. With a small terminal, we can show efficiency and hospitality.”

Pineda said function would be the main priority. “It’s not just about adding toilets and rectifying the look, but also verifying the structural integrity of the building,” he said.

The team also recommended improvements in the operations, such as incorporating the terminal fee in the ticket instead of letting people line up. Only those with exit clearances, exempting them from travel tax and terminal fees, should queue in the counters. “Let majority of the passengers enjoy the smooth flow in the airport,” Pineda was quoted as having said.

Taking into consideration the Filipino culture of hatid-sundo, Honrado said the designers have addressed the need for an arrival extension for families and friends sending off or welcoming the passengers.

Honrado said the design team had proposed that the concrete open-parking lot in Terminal 1 be transformed into a three-story parking space and a lush landscape lined with select food outlets. The proposed park will showcase not only the best of Filipino dining brands but also changing art exhibits. A canopied walkway will lead to the greeters and well-wishers’ lounge.

Welcome parties can wait in the restaurants and enjoy the garden so that the lots can also become income-generating spaces.

Source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
By Recto Mercene, BusinessMirror
Posted at 11/07/2011 7:16 AM | Updated as of 11/07/2011 1:14 PM

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CENRO Urges Public Not to Capture Marine Turtles

VIRAC, Catanduanes, August 24 (PIA) -- The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Community Environment and Natural Resource Office (CENRO) is asking the public not to capture marine turtles (pawikan) released to the sea by neighboring countries.

Google Earth tour of the Coral Triangle. Click here to view it on a wider page.

According to CENRO OIC Officer Luvimindo F. Chioco, our partners in Saipan had installed satellite transmitter on the back of three (3) green sea turtles last summer and released them to the ocean.

Based from the satellite tracking, one of the turtles named Kumiko was said to have been detected between Catanduanes and Guinahoan or Refugio island north of Caramoan, Camarines Sur.

There is a possibility that the turtle will also reach south Catanduanes waters.

CENRO moreover advised the public especially those living in coastal communities not to capture the said turtles if ever they encounter such animal.

The turtles have transmitter on their back. It is advised that it would be better to just leave the sea turtle swim freely and do not remove the transmitter.

The said transmitter monitors the migration tracking of the turtle wherein data collected and gathered are essential for the conservation and protection of marine turtles.

Marine turtles have lived in the oceans for over 100 million years. They are an integral part of the traditional culture of many coastal indigenous peoples throughout the world.

Marine turtles migrate long distances between their feeding grounds and nesting sites. They have a large shell called a carapace, four strong, paddle-like flippers and like all reptiles, lungs for breathing air. The characteristic beak-like mouth is used to shear or crush food.

All marine turtle species are experiencing serious threats to their survival. The main threats are pollution and changes to important turtle habitats, especially coral reefs, seagrass beds, mangrove forests and nesting beaches. Other threats include accidental drowning in fishing gear, over-harvesting of turtles and eggs, and predation of eggs and hatchlings by foxes, feral pigs, dogs and goannas. (MAL/EAB,PIA Catanduanes)

by Edna A. Bagadiong

Source: Philippine Information Agency (PIA) - 24 August 2011

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The Case for PAGASA's Doppler Radars

To get a better view of the storms approaching the country, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) is looking to several more doppler radars across the country —on top of the three operational ones it is currently using for weather forecasting.

PAGASA in Bato

In a phone interview with GMA News Online, PAGASA's engineering and technology services division OIC Engr. Edwin Mandreza said the deployment of the radars in Antique, Busuanga and Zamboanga are currently in the planning stages.

On the other hand, two radars in Virac, Catanduanes and Tagaytay City, Cavite, are currently under construction, and will be finished before the year ends, Mandreza said.

Meanwhile, the doppler radar in Mactan, Cebu, will begin construction after the Tagaytay radar becomes operational by the end of 2011, while the radar in Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur is still being calibrated, he added.

A new doppler radar in Tampakan, South Cotabato, on the other hand, is set to begin construction this year.

The existing ones that PAGASA is using are located in Baguio City, Baler in Aurora and in Subic.

He added that their automated weather stations in Aparri and in Guiuan, Eastern Samar, which were funded by the Japan International Coordinating Agency, will soon have doppler radars of their own, too.

Mandreza said that should the agency complete its plans to have a total of 13 doppler radars sprawled across the country, it will give the agency a better view of oncoming storms and in turn give more accurate weather predictions.

On average, these doppler radars have a maximum coverage of about 480 kilometers, enough to produce images of weather disturbances far out at sea.

Mandreza clarified, however, that some of these radars have "blind spots" due to certain obstructions, such as towering mountains in the provinces.

He cited the case of the radars in Baguio and Baler, which could not accurately measure weather conditions in Metro Manila due to the blockage caused by the Sierra Madre Mountain Range.

"Kaya nagtayo ng radar sa Subic, para mas kaunti ang obstruction at malapit-lapit sa Metro Manila," he said.

These obstructions, he said, are one of the primary considerations of PAGASA in determining where to place their radars.

When mountains, for example, are near the radar, the microwave signal that the radar emits will quickly bounce back even before the radar's receiver opens to register the returning signal, which produces a blind spot in the radar image.

On most occasions, he added, these radars are placed on coastal lines, since these are the areas that often come in contact with different weather disturbances.

Compared with weather satellites, Mandreza said doppler radars are more accurate and useful since they have the ability to also measure middle and lower clouds, while the former can only produce images of the top view of the clouds.

"When it comes to measuring the amount of rainfall, it's very accurate. Maganda ang estimation. Nakikita niya kasi ang mga middle and lower clouds, na nakaka-affect rin sa area," he said.

He added that the radars placed in different altitudes also help in accurately pinpointing the location of the storm, which would not be possible using satellite images.

"Pag ang bagyo ay mababa, sa Guiuan makikita 'yan. Kapag tumaas, sa Virac, tapos kapag tumaas pa ulit, sa Baguio," he explained.

Though they already have the plans outlined, Mandreza said that as a government agency, they are also struggling to fund the deployment of the doppler radars they are planning to place in the coming years.

A typical mid-range radar (like the ones PAGASA is currently using), according to Mandreza, costs around P60 to P70 million pesos, while the more high-end ones sell for about P80 to P100 million pesos.

Source: GMA News Online

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