ILOILO CITY – The Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Western Visayas has stepped up efforts to protect and preserve caves in the region amid widespread illegal excavations and unregulated access to the caves.

Damaso Fuentes, chief of the Protected Areas and Wildlife Division of the DENR in Western Visayas, said many of the caves in the region have been vandalized and have illegal excavations done by tourists and treasure-hunters. He also said the illegal collection of wildlife from the caves like the endangered bats on Boracay Island should be stopped.

Fuentes said all agencies, non-government organizations and local government units should institute measures to protect the caves.

There are an estimated 1,500 caves in the country, 38 percent of which are in Luzon, 37 percent in Mindanao and 22 percent in Negros and Panay Islands in the Visayas, according to Fuentes.

The DENR in Western Visayas has assessed and classified 20 caves last year as part of its efforts to protect the caves. The number of assessed and classified caves is the highest in the country, according to Arlene Dalawis, Regional Technical Director, of the Protected Areas, Wildlife and Coastal Zone Management Service.

The DENR, along with the Western Visayas Caving Association, National Museum of the Philippines and local government units have classified 20 caves according to the standards set by Republic Act 9072 or the National Caves and Cave Resources Management and Protection Act.

Four of the 20 caves belong to Class I or caves with fragile geological formations and threatened. The activities in these caves are limited to mapping, photography, education and scientific purposes.

These include the Butak, Taluto and Mugni Caves in Barangay Caguyuman in Dingle town in Iloilo and the Darkside of Paradise Cave located in Barangay Balabag on Boracay Island in Aklan.

Nine caves were categorized as under Class II. These are caves with areas which are hazardous and contain sensitive geological, archaeological, cultural, historical and biological values. Portion of these caves are closed to public access and are only open to experienced cavers or guided education tours or visits.

The caves under this category include the Guiso Cave in Barangay Moroboro in Dingle town in Iloilo and the Lapus-Lapus, Tayon-Tayon and Maanghit Caves in Barangay Caguyuman also in Dingle.

These also include the Bat Cave in Barangay Yapak on Boracay Island and the Pangihan Cave-1 and Pangihan Cave-2 in Malay town, Aklan; Panaderia Cave in Barangay Gabi, South Gigantes Island, Carles, Iloilo; and the Bakwitan Cavem Barangay Asluman, North Gigantes Island, Carles, Iloilo.

Seven caves were classified as belonging to Class III or those that are generally safe to inexperienced visitors and with no known threatened species and archaeological and geological value.

These include the Maestranza, Tuko, and Lungib Caves, in Barangay Moroboro, Dingle, Iloilo; Kawa-Kawa Cave in Barangay Caguyuman, Dingle, Iloilo; Crystal Cave in Barangay Yapak on Boracay Island, Aklan; Lungon-Lungon Cave in Barangay Asluman, North Gigantes Island Carles, Iloilo; and Pawikan Cave in Barangay Gabi, South Gigantes Island, Carles, Iloilo.

Fuentes said they will prepare a cave management plan, forge agreements with stakeholders and deputize cave protection enforcement officers to ensure the protection and preservation of the caves.*NPB

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Free Bowtech talk,
treatment today

A free talk and treatment on the Bowen Therapeutic Technique will be held at 5 p.m. today at the 3rd floor of Mayfair Plaza, Lacson Street in Bacolod City, a press release from organizers said.

Resource speakers are Bowtech Philippines organizer Kit Cooper and doctors Arneil Chua and Filipinas Ganchoon, the Mandala Centering Place release said.

Bowtech, developed in the 1950s by the late Thomas Ambrose Bowen in Australia, is a therapy that resets the body to heal itself.

It is a gentle form of body work in which very subtle moves performed with the thumbs and fingers over the muscles and connective tissues, the organizers said, adding that results can be remarkable even from the first session, the press release said.

With the technique, the body’s integrated response improves circulation and lymphatic drainage and aids in the assimilation of nutrients and elimination of toxins, it also said.

Some of the conditions that respond well to Bowtech are sciatica, frozen shoulder, knee problems, ankle strains, migraine, stress, bronchial symptoms, neck restrictions, back pain, kidney problems, acute and chronic fatigue, stroke and asthma symptoms, among others, the press release said.

Those who wish for more information may call Tel. No. 7091775, the press release added.*

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