Resource Assessment of Tambac Bay in Western Pangasinan, Philippines

Abstract

Tambac Bay is a rich fishing ground for fisherfolks from the coastal areas of Alaminos City, Bani and
Anda, Pangasinan. Its coastal and fishery resources need to be conserved and managed for sustainable fishing activities of
the fisherfolks. Hence, this study was conducted to assess the status of the coastal and fisheries resources of Tambac Bay.
A total of 507 fisherfolks from Alaminos City, Bani and Anda were surveyed to gather information on their sociodemographic
and socio-economic profile, fishing experience, the types of fishing vessels and fishing gears used, and
species composition, volume and price of fish catch. Results revealed that 98.42% of the fishers of Tambac Bay were
males, married (90.73%), with an average number of household members of 4, having an age bracket ranging from 31 to
50 years of age (64.3%) and are members of the Roman Catholic Church (86.78%). Majority of the fisherfolks were high
school graduates. About 52% of them have a mean monthly household income ranging from PhP 5,000.00 to 10,000.00
while about 48% of them have a monthly household income of less than PhP 5,000.00. About 72% of the fishers had
fishing experience of 11 to 30 years while 23% had 1 to 10 years, and 5% had more than 30 years of fishing experience.
Of the 507 fisherfolks, 65.68% of them had motorized boats while 34.32% had non-motorized boats. Fish corrals
(90.93%) were the most commonly used fishing gear followed by gill nets, scissors nets, and lever nets. Twenty one species
of marine fishes belonging to 12 families composed the catch of the fisherfolks in Tambac Bay. Siganids dominated the
fish catch, followed by mullets, gobies, tilapia, spotted scats, and trevallies. The recorded average volume of catch was
7.69 kilograms. Market prices of the catch vary depending on the species and value of fish.