A STUDY on the carrying capacity of Boracay Island indicates that the famed tourist destination can only

host a maximum of 19,000 tourists at a time.

The study conducted by a multidisciplinary team of researchers from the Department of Environment
and Natural Resources-Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau (DENR-ERDB) and the University
of the Philippines at Los Baños also showed that the maximum carrying capacity of the island is 55,000
people including population, workers, and tourists.

The study was part of the 6-month closure of Boracay to give way to its rehabilitation.

In environmental terms, carrying capacity refers to the maximum population size that the environment
can sustain indefinitely, given the food, habitat, water, and other necessities available. It is also gauged
by the capacity of existing infrastructure and services to cater to a certain population size.

Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) officer-in-charge Eduardo Año said there is a
possibility that they might limit the number of tourists in the island.

The world-famous Boracay Island’s carrying capacity for tourists will be limited to 19,215 a day,
Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu said Wednesday. (Sept 12 2018)

Cimatu said that in the past, the highest tourist arrivals recorded was about 7,000 against the average of
6,000 a day.

"Yung average na nangyari noon is within (the carrying capacity). Ang maximum noon ay February and
Holy Week. Ito ang pinakamataas. Nag-exceed ang arrivals natin ng mga 6,000 average, umabot
ng 7,000 (In the past, the average number of tourist arrivals was within the carrying capacity. Back then,
the maximum was during February and Holy Week. These months have the highest. The arrivals
exceeded from 6,000 average to 7,000)," he said in an interview with reporters.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1047750