THE Department of Tourism (DOT) has called the attention of the Malay local government unit (LGU) after Boracay Island’s carrying capacity was breached again during the Holy Week.
This developed as a total of 62,241 holidaymakers traveled to Boracay during the Lenten break this year, from April 2 to 9, according to data from the Municipal Tourism Office of Malay, which governs the popular vacation spot. This was a dramatic surge of 38 percent from the 44,981 tourists who visited the island from April 11 to 17, 2022, which was the Lenten break then.
This year, over 80 percent or 50,015 tourists were locals, while 11,535 were foreigners, and 691 were overseas Filipino workers.
Also, municipal data showed Boracay’s carrying capacity was breached on three days, with tourists reaching 25,480 on April 6 (Maundy Thursday); 25,2294 on April 7 (Good Friday); and 23,284 on April 8 (Black Saturday), despite the daily departures on those days. A study by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has determined the island’s carrying capacity for tourists at 19,215 at any given time.
Boracay consistently ranks among the most popular islands in the world in surveys conducted by international travel publications and news sites, because of its powdery white sand beach.
‘Tug of war’
DOT Director for Region 6 (Western Visayas) Crisanta Marlene P. Rodriguez has “requested the office of the mayor to give due attention to the existing carrying capacity of Boracay,” after noting the breaches. Carrying capacity refers to an ecosystem’s ability to support people and other living things without negative effects.
Malay Mayor Frolibar Bautista failed to comment on the matter, despite repeated attempts by this paper to contact him.
For his part, Tourism Congress of the Philippines President Roberto “Bob” Zozobrado described the issue in Boracay as “always a tug of war between profitability and sustainability. I think the DENR study, which pegs the island’s carrying capacity at 19,215, is just to put some semblance of control, but if you really look closely, how is it being monitored?”
He told the BusinessMirror, “I would push for an increase in Boracay’s carrying capacity to ensure sustainability of the products and services that the destination offers. Besides, these ‘breaches’ take place only on a few weekends throughout the year. What happened in the past was the result of decades of neglect not only by the stakeholders themselves, but also by the local government. Now, everybody is conscious of steps they have to take to ensure its sustainability.”
‘Good for business’
In a separate interview, a manager of a resort on the island who requested anonymity said, “Breaching [the carrying capacity] is good news to every stakeholder here in the island as it results to more business. I think the national government is amenable, too that the carrying capacity cannot be implemented fully. We already have the Boracay-Caticlan Sustainable Development Council, which will act as the sort of BIATF [Boracay Island Inter-Agency Task Force] for the island and we have discussed two weeks ago regarding the presentation of a higher carrying capacity.”
The island’s stakeholders have requested for an increase in carrying capacity in the light of infrastructure improvements made by the government. The appeal came on the heels of the breaching of the island’s carrying capacity last year, also during Holy Week.
Tourists on the island reached 21,252 on April 14 (Maundy Thursday) and 22,519 on April 15 (Good Friday). The DOT then, which co-chaired the BIATF, informed the DENR and DILG of the breach, requesting stricter measures be taken to prevent any future occurrences as the local government was still under Covid Alert Level 1 status. (See, “Boracay breaches carrying capacity for tourists on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday—DOT,” in the BusinessMirror.)
