By Raju Gopalakrishnan
About 600,000 tourists came last year to Boracay in the central Philippines, regarded as one of the world's best holiday destinations, and swam, ate and slept on an island that has only about 18,000 full-time residents.
The single narrow road that runs the length of Boracay is jam-packed, drain pipes bring floodwater to the beach and hotel taps can suddenly run dry. About 10 tonnes of garbage need to be treated and disposed of each day.
"It was a pristine natural environment and I hated to see it change, but it did."
Now, over 150 hotels and restaurants are crowded along the 5-km White Beach, renowned for its soft, powdery sand and the clear blue water that it gently descends into. Other parts of the island are less crowded but may be getting there.
Environment Secretary Lito Atienza announced a ban on construction on Boracay in August, but it was not implemented until January, and then only for new projects. The moratorium will stay in place at least until July. A master plan for developing the island will be in place by then.
"I feel that the island is very fragile," said Loubelle Cann, president of the Boracay Foundation, a local business association.
Despite the moratorium, about 100 unfinished shops, hotels and restaurants have been allowed to be completed and the noise of jackhammers, excavators and power saws can be heard across the island.
Nearby, a hillside is being excavated to build the Alta Vista resort while the Shangri-La's staff quarters are being constructed across the street.
White Beach, despite the crowds, is clean, and all buildings are a maximum two storeys high, lower than the coconut palms that fringe the sands. Unlike beaches elsewhere in the world, it remains safe at night and there are no overt signs of sleaze or drugs.
"It's not particularly crowded. From an ecologist's point of view, Martinique (in the Caribbean) is better, but you can live here easily."
It's not the big resorts like the Shangri-La or the Alta Vista that are the problem, they say, it's the smaller buildings which sometimes block natural waterways or do not have proper sewage or waste disposal.
"Some people moan that it was much better 20 years ago," said Victor Ocskai, a German who owns a resort on the beach. "And then they want cold beer, running hot water and air-conditioning.
(Editing by Megan Goldin)
