DENR questions tourism activities in Leyte’s

Kalanggaman Island
By Sarwell Meniano  September 6, 2018, 10:44 am

TOURISTS' FAVORITE. Kalanggaman Island in Palompon, Leyte remains a top tourist destination in Eastern
Visayas region. (Photo courtesy of DOT Region 8)

TACLOBAN CITY – After welcoming visitors for half a decade on Kalanggaman Island, the
legitimacy of the local government of Palompon, Leyte to run the site for tourism is now under
scrutiny by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

The DENR regional office here confirmed that the local government has no authority to run tourism
activities since the agreement signed in 2014 only allowed them to “protect, conserve, and preserve”
the island.

“The local government of Palompon as the operator and developer has no issued tenurial instrument
giving them the authority to develop the island much more to sub-lease it to another person or
entity,” said DENR Regional Director Crizaldy Barcelo in a letter sent to the Regional Development
Council (RDC) Wednesday.

In an inventory conducted by DENR early this year, the agency found out that the island has 12
concrete structures used as toilets and dressing rooms, 22 cottages made of light materials, and a
pavilion made of concrete materials.

Barcelo said the management of small island ecosystem is governed by a special regulation
provided under an administrative order issued in 2000.

The DENR field office here assessed Kalanggaman, acting on central office order issued March 1,
2018, to check the environmental compliance of establishments in tourism destinations. The
directive came after President Rodrigo R. Duterte declared that tourists have turned Boracay Island
into a "cesspool".

The Boracay closure that started April 26 prompted the DENR to evaluate all tourism-related
activities in unclassified public forest such as Kalanggaman Island.

The DENR regional office released the report on the status of the island after the RDC asked the
agency to comment on the proposal enjoining local governments with tourism sites in the region to
replicate the best practices of Palompon, Leyte.

Kalanggaman Island is part of the municipality of Palompon, which is about 115 kilometers east of
the airport in Tacloban City, the regional capital.

Raoul Bacalla, head of the Palompon municipal environment and natural resources office said they
were shocked to receive the letter from the DENR informing them the need to legitimatize their
tourism operations.
“The local government has been operating on the concept of co-management agreement signed
with DENR in 2014. The main purpose is to conserve the island. We are using tourism approach as
a tool for nature conservation. We are so particular on how we do tourism activities on the island.
We are so particular with protocols,” Bacalla told RDC members during a meeting here Wednesday.

The official said the local government and DENR will meet soon to settle this issue and comply all
requirements.

Department of Tourism Eastern Visayas Regional Director Karina Rosa Tiopes said they are
concerned with the issue since Kalanggaman is the region’s most visited destination.

“It’s quite alarming that our island destinations have several issues. It’s difficult for DOT to sell if
internally there are so many problems… I hope we can settle this for the good of Eastern Visayas,”
Tiopes added.

The DENR confirmed that other destinations such as Sambawan Island in Maripipi, Biliran and
Cuatro Islas in the towns of Hindang and Inopacan in Leyte are facing the same management
issues. However, only Kalanggaman was highlighted due to a proposal to make the island as
tourism model.

Palompon town has been receiving awards for managing Kalanggaman such as Best Tourism-
Oriented Local Government Pearl Award in 2014 to 2017, Climate Change Award Adaptation Award
by Climate Change Commission in 2016, Malinis at Masaganang Karagatan Award in 2016 to 2017,
and Galing Pook Award on Integrated Community-based Tourism in 2017.

The number of tourists visiting the island rose to 101,312 in 2017 from 95,677 in 2016.

Kalanggaman Island, a one-hour boat ride from the mainland, is a postcard-perfect virgin island
endowed with powder-white sand and crystal clear waters. It has a long sandbar that stretches
toward both sides of the island.

The island that is ideal for relaxation, swimming, snorkeling and scuba diving is one of the sites
offered for cruise tourism destination in the Eastern Visayas. (PNA)

Source : https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1047116