MANILA, Philippines— The Department of Tourism said it is now in close coordination with the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources tourist arrivals over Holy Week went beyond the carrying capacity allowed.
According to reports, the Malay Tourism Office received 21,252 tourists on April 14th and 22,519 on March 15.
The current island’s carrying capacity is 19,215. The number is meant to keep tourism’s impact on the environment manageable and to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
In a report of ABS-CBN, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said the tourism arrival figures are way beyond the pre-pandemic numbers.
“‘Yung Laboracay 2019, 14,000 a day lang. So it’s a concern na ngayon over 21,000. Pandemic pa,” she ABS-CBN News quoted him as saying. ‘Laboracay’ refers to the May 1 holiday that was a party tradition before the pandemic shut down tourism.
The Malay Tourism Office said Boracay tourist arrivals for April 1 to 16,2022 reached 95,646. These include 92,100 domestic tourists, 1,213 foreign workers/returning Filipinos, and 2,333 foreign travelers.
The COVID-19 Alert Level 1 for Aklan, Boracay’s island, is currently in effect. This is the most relaxed restriction that welcomes tourists with no restrictions.
Following the reported breach in carrying capacity, the DOT said it has “apprised” both the DILG and the DENR of the tourism overcapacity concern.
“We continue our coordination with them, especially the DILG, which has jurisdiction over the LGU, to address this concern and prevent similar incidents from happening in the future,” the DOT said in a statement.
Puyat also claimed that the mayor of Aklan must be responsible for the tourist cap breach during the COVID-19 pandemic.
DILG chief Eduardo Año, on the other hand, The defined carrying capacity wasFollow the steps of the world-famous Island
“The LGU should implement it in order to ensure the safety and health of tourists and residents, and protect the environment,” he was quoted as saying.
Boracay was closed temporarily for six months by President Rodrigo Duterte to make way for its rehabilitation. The reason? It has cesspool-like water.
It was closed in April 2018, and reopened to the general public in October 2018. The government also restricted the number tourists allowed to visit the island due to environmental concerns.
During the height of the COVID-19 epidemic, which occurred between March 2020 and June 2019, the tourist destination was also closed.
In October last year, then DENR Secretary Roy Cimatu said the agency is looking at increasing the carrying capacity of the island to accommodate more tourists.
“If there’s an investigation, the carrying capability might be increased,” said the resigned environment chief.
Cimatu said DENR’s DENR’s Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau (ERDB) will be the body tasked to determine if the number of visitors on the island increased.
