The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) plans to partner with owners of business establishments on Boracay Island for the co-management of the island’s wetland ecosystem.
DENR Undersecretary Jonas R. Leones told the BusinessMirror the idea is anchored on the fact that some of the business establishments should help the government in its rehabilitation effort by making the assistance a part of their corporate social responsibility to protect and conserve Boracay’s wetlands.
Boracay Island, the country’s top tourist destination, is an island paradise in Malay, Aklan. Boracay boasts of white-sand beaches and pristine waters but is also a biodiversity haven long before it became a tourist magnet.
The island is home to unique species of fruit and insect bats, and its surrounding waters and coral areas are frequented by marine turtles. Its wetlands also serve as staging ground of wintering migratory birds but over the years, the unbridled development caused some of the wetlands to vanish because of dump-and-fill activities, causing perennial flooding in low-lying areas.
Leones, the designated spokesman of Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu, said the agency plans to formally forge ties with shopowners of business establishments for this purpose.
“We are finalizing MOAs [memoranda of agreement] with different companies,” he said. “We are pushing for the adoption of the wetlands because it [management] will really entail a lot of money.”
By next week, Leones said, the DENR’s Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) is expected to present a final rehabilitation plan for the wetlands. A template, he said, will also be crafted by the DENR-BMB to guide the department’s would-be partners.
Several companies have already signified the intention to sign a MOA with the DENR to help rehabilitate and eventually co-manage the wetlands, according to Leones.
He said the Aboitiz Group, Gokongwei Group, San Miguel Corp. and Lucio Tan Group expressed willingness to help the government but are requesting for a template outlining their duties and obligation.
Wetland 6 will be adopted by Boracay Tubi, or the Lucio Tan Group. Wetland 3, 8 and 9 will be adopted by San Miguel, while the rest will be adopted by the Aboitiz and Gokongweis, he said.
“We want to maximize the support coming from the private sector. What we want is their responsibility will no longer be limited to just cleaning the wetlands,” Leones explained. “They will also invest in structures there to make the wetland an ecotourism area.”
He was quick to say the development will be limited to ensure ecological balance and environmental sustainability.
The program, to be called “adopt-a-wetland,” is patterned after the successful “Adopt-an-Estero/River” program being implemented by the DENR’s Environmental Management Bureau (EMB).
Leones, the concurrent undersecretary for policy, planning, international affairs and foreign-assisted projects of the DENR, held the position of EMB director and was instrumental in the program’s successful introduction and implementation.
According to the DENR-BMB, there are a total of nine wetlands on Boracay Island but only four of these remain. The DENR chief is determined to recover Boracay’s so-called missing wetlands, starting with the eviction of illegal forest occupants.
An older map of Boracay, moreover, revealed there are actually a dozen wetlands on the island but the unbridled development had caused these important water bodies to vanish over the years.
Some of the wetland ecosystems are relatively intact and could still be saved from destructive development.
Wetland 1 at the northern portion of Boracay is included in the proposed Boracay Island Critical Habitat, which covers 750 hectares of terrestrial and coastal areas of Boracay.
“Adopt-a-wetland should be consistent with the existing condition of the wetland. Every wetland has a unique feature so it will be a case-by-case basis when it comes to implementing management plan, or appropriate structures needed,” he said. “This should be based on sustainability.”