MEYCAUAYAN, Bulacan — A total of 5,000 bokashi balls were dumped by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on the Meycauayan River as part of the agency’s thrust to improve its quality.

Regional executive director Ralph Pablo said the dumping of the 5,000 bokashi balls marks the Philippine Environment Month celebration. He added that the use of the bokashi balls is part of the Manila Bay Rehabilitation Program.

“This is is supplemental to regular cleanup efforts and grubbing of submerged solid waste in river systems. As we release these balls into this river system, we are not just cleaning its water. We are revitalizing an entire ecosystem, as each bokashi ball purifies one cubic meter of water,” Pablo said.

Bokashi balls, a Japanese innovation now embraced in the Philippines, are mud balls, composed of organic materials like rice hull, garden soil, and effective microorganisms that break down toxins and bad bacteria in the water, as well as reduce fecal coliform levels of water bodies.

Also part of the Philippine Environment Month Celebration, the DENR distributed agricultural and residential land patents to several residents of Bulacan through its “Handog Titulo” program.

Director Pablo personally handed over the 28 patents to qualified beneficiaries from the towns of Bulacan, Bustos, Guiguinto, Malabon, Pulilan and Doña Remedios Trinidad.