Despite being a world class tourism destination, the island of Boracay is facing a serious water crisis.

 

 

   This small island of Caticlan Municipality in Aklan is presently witnessing a tourism boom which has led to the mushrooming of infrastructure projects. New hotels are being built regularly, such as a large hotel chain to cater to the growing number of visitors.

   Inevitably, the local water supply is certain to be hard-pressed to meet all the new needs at affordable prices, even though the town  is considered self-sufficient in water needs for the moment. And to make matters worse, proficient drainage systems to ward off monsoon flooding and intrusion of salty ocean water is lacking.

Expensive water

   Officials say, the solution is to increase the price of water. But that would almost certainly put the valuable resource out of reach of the majority of inhabitants. Inhabitants like Sonia, an ordinary private employee, who feels that her water bills of 400-600 pesos (8 to 12 U.S. dollars) a month is already  too high to afford. “Tuwing dumarating sa bahay namin ang singil sa tubig, pigil ang hininga ko dahil baka ako maatake ako sa taas ng babayaran. (Everytime water bill is delivered to the house, I hold my breath because I might get a heart attack knowing how expensive it could get),”she says.

   Clearly, something is not right in this booming tourist town. Already, price of municipal water here -   per month minimum charge is Peso 500 (about 10 U.S. dollars) -  is among the highest in the country. And locals are not sure whether increasing the prices further is the right way to resolve the issue.

   But Romy di Vicente, Supervisor of the Boracay Water and Sewerage System (BWSS), stresses that high prices are inevitable because more investments are being made on the system. BWSS already operates eight pumping stations, one water treatment plant, has distributed 2028 connections,  and is now readying to construct a drainage system to prevent flooding.

   More investments are planned under the Boracay Environmental Water Project - a joint venture of the Department of Environment and local government units - which envisages building new receiving wells, water treatment plants, sedimentation tanks and a plan to expand the main pumps from the Nabaoy river. This makes the additional cost to consumers more than justified, the official says, adding that cost of potable water will probably be held at current rates. 

Demand for rate cuts

   But that is not enough, say local residents,who fear that water prices, already very high, will be increased further to finance the project. Residents and local resort operators are all unhappy with the plan, and want authorities to figure ways to cut rates.

   An owner of a resort here who requested anonymity is leading residents and establishment owners to demand the local government to bring down rates. “I don´t know how we will manage with the current rates," he says, adding, "we will stop at nothing to convince authorities that there must be a roll-back”.

   The high cost of water is fast emerging as the biggest issue to hit this tourist town. There were 200,000 visitors last year from January to September. The Department of Tourism (DOT) says that 223 hotels currently operate on a four kilometre stretch of "White Beach" to cater to these visitors.

   But construction has not stopped. A new 320-room Shangrila Hotel, which is being built here, is attracting criticism for the vast amount of water it will need to operate. Critics say that the hotel will need 400 cubic metres of water every day, severely straining the supply. In effect, point out critics, local residents and small businesses are subsidizing the visitors' water-use by paying high prices.

   Olive Quijano of Crystal Sand Resort recalls how her water bills have increased to almost double in the last three months. “We usually paid 6,000 pesos (about 117 U.S. dollars) per month. Now we’re close to 12,000 pesos (about 234 U.S. dollars). Sometimes we just skip payment. As a result, the bills keep piling up,” she complains.

   One resort owner argues that the DOT should not confine itself to only counting number of visitors or launching cultural awareness campaigns but also try to resolve the water issue. “They must also take an upper hand in resolving water problems since water issues here are mostly in the context of tourism activities,” he says.

   But DOT officials are reluctant. “We have our mandate and our priorities. Sure there are water issues in the island, but there are lead agencies assigned to take care of those issues. As for us, we take the lead in the Tourism Council together with the local government. We can  cooperate in addressing water problems but only in a limited capacity,” a DOT official said.

   Business owners are however hopeful that if they lay aside the confrontational stance, the government might listen to them. “We really hope to be able to arrive at a consensus with the local government as far as water is concerned. We will do our best to resolve the situation and convince them to lower the cost of water. Otherwise, it will be a tough to simply accept and just live with” one manager said.

Coliform Scare

   High cost of water is not the only problem in Boracay. Inadequate sewerage and rainwater drainage system has also compounded the problems by causing periodic scares of coliform contamination of its beaches. 

   Zeny Atienza, a business executive from nearby Cebu, couldn´t help but notice the flooding when it rains and admitted that it gets on her nerves when her feet is soaked in the murky flood waters. “Who knows what else is in there that could make you sick,” she said.

   Many residents remember a 1997 stunt when then DOT secretary Mina Gabor, in order to quell concerns of coliform scare, swam in the dirty waters of White Beach. Later she said that the beach was contaminated only at particular times of the year. She proposed using red and white flag markers to notify swimmers whether or not a given stretch of seashore is safe to swim. Shortly thereafter, Boracay was declared a tourism zone and was placed under the jurisdiction of the Philippine Tourism Authority (PTA) which made some investments in bringing fresh water and installing waste-water treatment facilities.

   These days, despite an alert from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources or DENR  which has resolved to be more vigilant in monitoring water quality, there is still considerable scepticism. Some visitors worry that lapses by establishment owners or DENR will cause new coliform scares. (ENDS/AWW/TR/SP/080306)