The Sagay Marine Reserve is a protected area in the Philippines, located in Sagay, Negros Occidental. It was established in 1999 to protect marine life in Carbin and Maca reefs. [1] It is the largest marine reserve in the Philippines, covering an area of 32,000 hectares (79,000 acres). [2]
On August 7, 2024, molasses from MT Mary Queen of Charity, a ship that was carrying over 300 metric tons of the syrup, leaked into the waters off Sagay Feeder Port, causing a 1.3-hectare (3.2-acre) water discoloration within the marine reserve. [3] [4] [5]
Negros Occidental, officially the Province of Negros Occidental, is a province in the Philippines located in the Negros Island Region. Its capital is the city of Bacolod, of which it is geographically situated and grouped under by the Philippine Statistics Authority, but remains politically independent from the provincial government and also one of the two regional centers in Negros Island Region. It occupies the northwestern half of the large island of Negros, and borders Negros Oriental, which comprises the southeastern half. Known as the "Sugarbowl of the Philippines", Negros Occidental produces more than half the nation's sugar output.
Guimaras, officially the Province of Guimaras, is an island province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. The capital is Jordan, while the largest local government unit is the municipality of Buenavista. The province is situated in Panay Gulf, between the islands of Panay and Negros. To the northwest is the city and province of Iloilo and to the southeast is Negros Occidental. The whole island is part of the Metro Iloilo–Guimaras, one of the twelve metropolitan areas of the Philippines.
Bacolod, officially the City of Bacolod, is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the Negros Island Region in the Philippines. With a total of 600,783 inhabitants as of the 2020 census, it is the most populous city in the Negros Island Region and the second most populous city in the entire Visayas after Cebu City.
Dumaguete, officially the City of Dumaguete, is a 2nd class component city and capital of the province of Negros Oriental, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 134,103 people. It is the most populous city and the smallest city by land area in Negros Oriental as well as one of the two regional centers in Negros Island Region.
Oslob, officially the Municipality of Oslob, is a 4th class municipality in the province of Cebu, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 29,264 people.
Cadiz, officially the City of Cadiz, is a 2nd class component city in the province of Negros Occidental, Philippines. It was the capital of the short-lived province of Negros del Norte, before the creation of the province was declared unconstitutional on August 18, 1986.
Escalante, officially the City of Escalante, is a 4th class component city in the province of Negros Occidental, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 96,159 people.
Sagay, officially the City of Sagay, is a 2nd class component city in the province of Negros Occidental, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 148,894 people.
Toboso, officially the Municipality of Toboso, is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Negros Occidental, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 43,445 people.
Apo Island is a volcanic island covering 74 hectares in land area, 7 kilometers off the southeastern tip of Negros Island and 30 kilometers south of the Negros Oriental capital of Dumaguete in the Philippines. The name "Apo" means "elder" or "respected ancestor" in the Visayan languages.
On August 11, 2006, an oil spill occurred in Panay Gulf when the oil tanker, MT Solar 1, sank off the coasts of Guimaras and Negros in the Philippines, causing what is considered to be the worst oil spill in the country's history.
Apo Reef is a coral reef system in the Philippines situated in the western waters of Occidental Mindoro province in the Mindoro Strait. Encompassing 34 square kilometres (13 sq mi), it is considered the world's second-largest contiguous coral reef system, and is the largest in the country. The reef and its surrounding waters are protected areas administered as the Apo Reef Natural Park (ARNP). It is one of the best known and most popular diving regions in the country, and is in the tentative list for UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
The Sugar Loaf Islands are a collection of five small uninhabited islands and several sea stacks near Port Taranaki, New Zealand.
The State University of Northern Negros (SUNN), formerly Northern Negros State College of Science and Technology and abbreviated as NONESCOST, is a state university in Sagay, Negros Occidental, Philippines.
The Tañon Strait is a body of water, separating the islands of Negros and Cebu in the Visayas, Philippines. The strait, which is about 160 kilometres (100 mi) long, connects the Visayan Sea in the north to the Bohol Sea in the south. Its width varies from 5 to 27 kilometres, with the narrowest point in the south. In the north the strait is closed off by the Don Islands, the largest of which is Bantayan. The cities of San Carlos, Negros Occidental, Bais, Negros Oriental and Toledo, Cebu have deepwater port facilities. The Tañon Strait is known for whale and dolphin watching, with tour boats operating from Bais.
In September 2013, 1,400 tons of molasses spilled into Honolulu Harbor. The spill was discovered on 9 September 2013. It was caused by a faulty pipe that malfunctioned while the molasses was being loaded onto a ship, for which the shipping company Matson Navigation Co. took responsibility. Molasses is an unregulated product, and neither Matson nor government officials had a contingency plan to respond to a molasses spill. Natural currents and weather were expected to eventually dilute and flush the molasses out of the harbor and a nearby lagoon.
Negros is the fourth largest and third most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of 13,309 km2 (5,139 sq mi). The coastal zone of the southern part of Negros is identified as a site of highest marine biodiversity importance in the Coral Triangle.
The Northern Negros Natural Park is a protected area of the Philippines located in the northern mountainous forest region of the island of Negros in the Visayas. It is spread over five municipalities and six cities in the province of Negros Occidental and is the province's largest watershed and water source for seventeen municipalities and cities including the Bacolod metropolitan area. The park was established first as a forest reserve spanning 107,727 hectares on 28 April 1935 through Administrative Act No. 789 signed by Governor-General Frank Murphy. On 7 August 1946, the Northern Negros Forest Reserve was reduced to its present area of 80,454.5 hectares with the signing of Proclamation No. 798 by President Manuel Roxas. In 2005, the protected area was converted into a natural park under the National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) Act by virtue of Proclamation No. 895 signed by President Gloria Arroyo.
The Sagay massacre occurred when a group of gunmen shot and killed nine sugarcane farmers, including four women and two children, while they were eating dinner in a makeshift tent on a farm in Sagay, Negros Occidental, on October 20, 2018. The farmers were members of the National Federation of Sugar Workers (NFSW), and the massacre may have been motivated by ongoing conflicts over land reform in the Philippines.
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