kaban galing - front cover - galing pook

20 DAUIN, NEGROS ORIENTAL
Now the Divers Come with Cameras
Coastal Resource Management Program
THE corals of Apo Island in the municipality of Dauin, Oriental Negros,
is an internationally acclaimed destination for scuba divers. It has the
distinction of being cited as the best managed reef in Asia in 1997.
Dauin has been earning a lot from tourism as a result of the successful
implementation of its Coastal Resource Management Plan (CRMP).
The municipality now has several marine protected areas (MPA), which
have become the focus of numerous study tours from other provinces
and municipalities who want to replicate Dauin’s initiative.
They Came with Rocks
Before the CRMP was implemented, life had become difficult for the
fishers of Dauin. In 1980 local fishers noted a significant decrease in
their fish catch. There even came a point when they had to paddle very
far from the shore to be able to catch fish for their families. Illegal and
destructive fishing had become rampant, particularly muro ami, a grossly
destructive fishing method where divers break corals to drive fish into
nets. Commercial fishers from other municipalities also encroached into
the fishing zones of Dauin. And the fishers did not discriminate between
the fries, juvenile fish and those big enough for catching.
Concerned with the deteriorating conditions of the fisherfolk, Dauin’s
local government initiated efforts to rehabilitate the corals, the natural
habitat and breeding ground of marine species. Coastal communities
initially balked at initiatives to establish marine sanctuaries because
food was really scarce then, and they could ill afford to stop fishing in
identified protected areas. The concept was foreign and negated their
traditional practice of open access to the marine resources available.
They simply failed to appreciate the need to protect the seas.
76