City on the Brim

Puerto Princesa is surrounded by Mangrove forests, one of few such cities in the country

It’s hard to forget that Puerto Princesa was once just a sleepy Spanish town. In the 19^th century, it was named the capital of Paragua, the old name of Palawan, one of the last territories to be incorporated into the Spanish East Indies. For years, it hadn’t experienced much growth until it became a base for the country’s booming mining industry in the 60s and 70s.

Many in Puerto Princesa are openly against mining. In fact, the industry is banned throughout the city’s more than 2000 square kilometers of land area, a seemingly vast haven but for most of Palawan, the mining still continues. It is interesting, however, that such a bias for environmental sentiments have pervaded the local populace, who otherwise could’ve took advantage of mining. One turning point in the fight against the industry was the killing of environmentalist Gerry Ortega. This incident sent shockwaves throughout Puerto Princesa, a city that rarely witnesses such a crime.

Mining aside, the city’s focus now is to develop its tourism industry. In 2011, more than half a million tourists visited the city, nearly double that of 2009. By 2014, the city government projects a million visitors, a figure ten times larger than the city’s current population. It is indeed la vie en rose for Puerto Princesa. Aside from the construction boom in the private sector, the national government has allotted hundreds of millions of pesos to rehabilitate the city’s infrastructure. In fact, a new international airport is in the pipeline.  Certainly, Puerto Princesa has the forebodings of a future Pattaya, where commercial tourism thrives in the heart of a tropical setting. 

Only up to 900 tourists are allowed at a given time inside
the Underground River

In November 2011, the city’s famed Underground River joined the ranks of Ha Long Bay and the Grand Canyon, winning an international search for the world’s seven best natural wonders. The recognition sparked an onslaught of curious tourists, prompting the local government to limit the number of visits to the river. However, elsewhere in the city, it is apparent that tourism is at a high. Foreigners of all color, shape and size, roam the city’s avenues. Businesses are having a heyday day after day. Traffic is clogging the streets and the airport, which was recently expanded, is now at running at full capacity.

For a city that was heavily reliant on agriculture, the rise in tourism was a welcome development, especially that it provided more opportunities and income for the locals. Nevertheless, to what extent is Puerto Princesa willing to go to advance its potential in tourism, given the unavoidable negative effects it will have on its natural habitats?

Puerto Princesa Mayor Edward Hagedorn revealed a midterm plan that will at least ensure a high-degree of environmental sustainability despite the ongoing tourism boom. Aside from limiting the number of tourists to sites such as the Underground River, he said a building code is being strictly imposed. None of Puerto Princesa’s new buildings were allowed to be higher than the canopy of trees that cover the city’s streets. “Para na rin sa ambience,” he claimed. Truly, despite the high demand for more hotel rooms, the city’s new hotels are all low rises. Yet, the city has so much to improve on. Like many other urban areas in the country, planning seems haphazard and what should be staple provisions such as pedestrian sidewalks, working streetlights and sewage systems are mostly absent in most areas.  The streets are simply too narrow to accommodate the increasing traffic and transportation around the center is just a choice between carbon-emitting tricycles and Toyota vans.

Ka Lui, owner of a widely recognized restaurant along Rizal Avenue, shares his own perspective of the booming tourism industry. “With tourism, we fear the cannibalization of culture,” he lamented. Anywhere people flock, a wave of commercialism ensues. He fears that when fast food chains, humungous malls, glitzy hotels and bars all come to the city, that is when Puerto Princesa not only loses its natural flair, but also loses its culture. He came to the city in the 80s and started a restaurant that served local fare. More than 20 years later and several awards gained, the restaurant continues to be a hit. On an ordinary night, it’s a full house. Most guests will have to reserve beforehand to get a seat. More than the sumptuous Palawan cuisine the restaurant serves, most guests are after the ambience. It’s like dining in a nipa hut. That’s the culture Ka Lui wants to preserve, the very same culture that faces aggression from Puerto Princesa’s rapid development.

Caucasians making the best out of their low-cost Asian

vacation! They make up a sizeable chunk of the tourists
 headed for Palawan.

The prospects are even more troubling in the areas far from the city center, for it is where the city’s natural reserves flourish with minimal contact from human activities. It is there where the negative externalities of tourism can potentially pose a big threat to the environment. In Sabang, locals have seen the biggest crowds they’ve seen yet. Sabang is the entry port to the Underground River. From a torpid fishing village, it has grown to become a very busy district that happens to be mountains away from Puerto Princesa’s bustling poblacion. Even here, development has taken on a rapid pace. Boats now crowd the local port amidst the arrival of thousands of tourists driven in big white vans. The local stretch of beach is now lined with resorts, restaurants and souvenir shops. It could be away from the hustle and bustle of central Puerto Princesa but the ambience is slowly becoming no different. Butch Tan, a resort owner from Manila, has witnessed the whirlwind upturn in this village. He opened his Daluyón resort in back in 2007, when the anticipation of a rise in tourist arrivals was still a mere anticipation. Nonetheless the timing was just right and he’s now constructing a 10-room expansion on an adjacent beachfront property. “For me, I like Sabang the way it is. Huwag na yung mga bars, yung mga maiingay,” he told. Indeed, his resort wasn’t too high density like some of his neighbors. Rooms are sparse and are scattered throughout the property in small huts. “It’s the natural setting that make people come here. In fact, we planned the resort so that it’ll have a minimal impact on the environment,” he shared. From water-saving measures to a carefully planned layout, the resort was built to have a zero carbon footprint. Mr. Tan, an advocate of a reduction in carbon footprint in resorts, has also encouraged other establishments in Sabang to follow suit.

Limestone formations dot the northern landscape of the city

This focus on Puerto Princesa is like reading a suspense novel. You’ll never know what’s going to happen next. However, what makes Puerto Princesa a case that should be excruciatingly followed is the gravity of what is at stake. The people of the city have a lot to lose if they don’t find the perfect balance between development and the environment. Being in the country’s so-called Last Frontier, it is one of the few remaining bastions of nature in the Philippines. Rarely in the country do you find a vast forest cover pierced by towering limestones. In them thrives different sorts of life, some of which have become extinct in many parts of the country. At the same time, the opportunity of tourism stands before the city. For most, it is Puerto Princesa’s opportunity of a lifetime. People are coming, the funds are pouring and the quality of life in the city will subsequently improve. Puerto Princesa cannot choose one over the other, but it has to strike a balance. It’s not an impossible feat, but it takes one with an open mind and a genuine concern for the environment and the people to know and discern what is right and just for Puerto Princesa.