Benham Rise Plateau

Aurora

Benham Plateau also known as the Benham Rise, is a 13 million hectare under sea region east of Luzon and is 35 meters underwater at its shallowest point off the provinces of Aurora and Isabela. It is delimited by the West Philippine Basin to the north and east.

It is a seismically active undersea region and extinct volcanic ridge east of the Philippines, in the Philippine Sea whic ...

h lies a number of Basins including the West Philippine Basin of which inside the Basin is located the Central Basin Fault.

Benham Rise Plateau News

  • Next Miracle Drug May Come From PH Seas Say Scientists

    The next miracle drug may come from the country’s seas, scientists here said last week.

    “There are so many potential drugs which can come from the ocean. This is precisely the next frontier which we feel pharmaceutical drug discovery efforts should look into,” said Dr. Aaron Joseph Villaraza, associate professor at the University of the Philippines Institute of Chemistry in Diliman.

    Speaking at the 39th Luzon session of the National Academy of Science and Technology here on May 16, Villaraza said medicines for pain relief or compounds used for cancer research had been synthesized f ...

  • Protect PH Rise Villar

    Senator Cynthia Villar, chairman of the senate committee on environment and natural resources, has added her voice in the calls to protect the Philippine Rise (formerly Benham Rise), as the latest addition to Philippine territory.

    "The territory of the Philippines nearly doubled in size with the addition of resource-rich waters and spawning ground of assorted fish species."

    "That there is a vast amount of natural resources there and that those resources can adequately provide the food requirements of Filipinos—are just two very important reasons why we need to defend and protect the P ...

  • Group Pushes For Declaration Of PH Rise As a Marine Protected Area

    A conservation group is calling for the immediate declaration of the Philippine Rise as a marine protected area to protect the 13-million hectare underwater plateau from destructive activities.

    Conservation group Oceana Philippines also pushed for the declaration of the Benham Bank, the shallowest portion of the Philippine Rise, as a no-take zone, where human activity is not allowed.

    In a policy dialogue called "Bayanihan Para sa Benham" hosted by Oceana and graced by representatives from various government agencies and other stakeholders, Biodiversity Management Bureau Director Mundita ...

  • Fisherfolk Welcomes New Name Of Benham Rise Calls To Strengthen Our Claim Over The Plateau

    The fisherfolk group Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (PAMALAKAYA-Pilipinas) welcomes the renaming of Benham Rise to Philippine Rise as a way to exercise our claim over the 13-million hectare resource rich underwater ridge.

    President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday signed the Executive Order No. 25 renaming the undersea feature.

    In a statement, PAMALAKAYA said a welcome development to assert our rightful claim over the rise. The group urges President Duterte to fortify the protection of our territory from any foreign fishing fleets that exploit our waters and marine resou ...

  • Saving The Philippines Last Untouched Coral Reefs

    Hundreds of miles off the Philippine coast, an untouched oasis lies beneath the waves. Terraces of coral sprawl into the dim blue. Tropical fish weave through huge sea sponges. Whale sharks and tiger sharks occasionally glide overhead. This Shangri-La is Benham Bank, and it's one of the Philippines' last, best chances to protect old-growth coral reefs.

    It's no secret that ancient reefs are in trouble. From Australia to Hawaii, they are succumbing to pollution, destructive fishing, and the effects of climate change. Things are especially dire in the Philippines. More than a million fishermen ...

  • Oceana Partners With Stakeholders To Champion Benham Rise

    Together with its allies in the government and private sector, Oceana Philippines is urgently pushing for the legal protection of Benham Rise (renamed recently as Philippine Rise) as a marine protected area including the declaration of Benham Bank, the shallowest portion of Benham Rise, as a no-take zone, where human activity is not allowed.

    In a policy dialogue called "Bayanihan Para sa Benham" hosted by Oceana and graced by representatives from various government agencies and other stakeholders, Director Mundita Lim of the Biodiversity Management Bureau of the Department of Environment an ...