Tags: Environment, Natural Wonders
By Anna Valmero
PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, PALAWAN— Anticipating a surge in tourism based on the provisional results of the New 7 Wonders of Nature contest, tourism officials here are still keen on intensifying ecotourism efforts to preserve the natural wonders of the majestic Puerto Princesa Underground River.
“The inclusion of the Palawan Underground River will surely boost the influx of tourists in the province,” said James Mendoza, Underground River protected area park superintendent.
“What remains as the greatest challenge and opportunity for us is to keep promoting nature preservation to locals and tourists first and foremost,” he added.
Some 600 tourists visit the Underground River daily to witness its huge limestone and cave formations that took millions of years to form, according to Mendoza .
This means that monthly tourist arrivals average from 18,000 to 20,000 persons in a month, with a possibility of reaching up to 22,000 visitors during peak months between January and May.
Shying away from the “destructive” nature of mass tourism, the park superintendent vsaid they will continue to focus on preservation of the protected area and Unesco Natural World Heritage Site.
This means that the number of daily tourists visiting the area would still be stringently monitored and kept under 600 persons.
He said they will only add two more boatmen to the existing ten tour guides and boatmen at the park. Even before the New 7 Wonders campaign, park officials, tour guides and boatmen recognize the need to keep the forest watershed and the underground river pristine.
“It is not our goal to commercialize the tourism in the park but to educate tourists that conservation of nature can be done,” said Mendoza.
The mandatory briefings on park regulations offered by boatmen and tour guides would also include greeting the guests to one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature, in addition to the Underground River being the longest navigable subterranean river around the world at 8.2 kilometers long.
Boatman Dario Lora or “Kuya Totong” was jubilant that the only entry of the Philippines made it to the provisional list of the New 7 Wonders of Nature. Tourism for him is essentially good news because it would create more jobs and support the local economy.
“Sana nga po mas sumigla pa ang tourism dahil nasa New 7 Wonders (of Nature) na ang Underground River. Sana yung mga turista lalo na ang mga Pilipino marealize nila na maganda talaga ang Pilipinas at maraming magandang puntahan dito sa atin,” said Lora, who has been a boatman at the park for the last 18 years.
Lora, however, urges fellow tour guides to be vigilant in performing their duties, particularly when briefing guests about park rules and regulations because previous guests wrote on the walls near the entrance of the Underground River.
Guests are also discouraged from touching the river water or the guano droppings so that the natural setting is preserved and possible contamination from oils in human hands can be prevented.
The only marks that were allowed to survive inside the cave walls were those written by Italian priest explorers who navigated and measured the navigable area pre-1990s.
Keeping the place undisturbed yields benefits such as the discovery of a 20-million-year-old fossil of a sea cow or sirenia by La Venta Geographical Exploration recently, said Mendoza. Also recently, a new mineral in the cave was identified as serrabrancaite by Italian crystallographer Dr. Paolo Forti of La Venta.
With the support from the organizers of the new 7 Wonders of Nature, Mendoza hopes that it would also yield an increase in visitors to the forest trail at the St. Paul Mountain range where numerous endemic birds and mammals could be seen following a foot trail.
Meanwhile, Palawan governor Abraham Kahlil Mitra commended the unity of the Filipino people for its votes for the renowned tourist attraction. Aside from creating more local jobs, Mitra said enjoined locals and tourists to do their part in keeping the Underground River clean and pristine.
“We have to continue doing our part in protecting this God-given natural wonder not only for the present generation but also for the future generation of Filipinos and the world,” Mitra added.
Related stories:
A call to put Palawan’s Underground River in New 7 Wonders of Nature
DepEd rallies support for Palawan underground river
New mineral discovered in Palawan’s Underground River
‘Baragatan’ streetdance celebrates Palawan’s cultural diversity
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