Mayor Glenson Alanano of Zamboanguita, Negros Oriental has assured of a plan to put up an office for the Protected Area Management Board of world-famous dive destination Apo Island to address the issue on the island’s carrying capacity of tourists.
The proposed PAMB office will be at Malatapay in barangay Maluay, Zamboanguita, which the mayor described as the “gateway to Apo Island” considering its proximity.
Mayor Alanano disclosed to reporters over the weekend that right now, there are plans for a public-private partnership to construct a terminal in Malatapay.
However, due to tedious paperwork and other requirements, the local chief executive said the project might commence by the end of this year.
Establishing a PAMB Office in Malatapay for the Apo Island Protected Landscape and Seascape has long been deliberated by stakeholders as a means to address the growing problem of the island’s carrying capacity.
The absence of proper procedures to regulate and control the influx of tourists to Apo Island has caused worry to island officials, villagers and other stakeholders.
Apo Island is a famed dive destination as well as a sanctuary for endangered sea turtles where people can swim and interact with them.
According to Efren Rombaoa, Protected Area Supervisor of Apo Island and concurrent Community Environment and Natural Resources Office chief, there is no available data as to the exact number of tourists that come to the island in one sitting.
Rombaoa disclosed that a study was done on the carrying capacity of Apo Island in 2008 but there was no follow through.
He said he hopes that some environmental groups will undertake the study to help protect the island.
The CENRO chief said a PAMB Office at Malatapay would be a big help because personnel manning that station will be constantly communicating back and forth with Apo Island counterparts to determine the number of visitors there and if the island is already “overflowing” with tourists. (Judy Flores Partlow)
