Bohol creates group to maintain ‘global geopark’ status

PHOTO: Official Facebook page of Bohol Island Geopark

TAGBILARAN CITY — The Bohol provincial government has created the Bohol Island Geopark Management Council to protect the unique status of the province as the first and only United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) “global geopark” in the country.

Bohol Gov. Erico Aristotle Aumentado, in his State of the Province Address (Sopa) on Aug. 30, said he had directed all mayors with protected areas to conduct an inventory and monitor all structures and establishments to ensure they have permits.

He also asked the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to provide a comprehensive list of those who have been sent notices of violations “so that the local governments can assist them to comply with the law and to remove the structures that violate it.

“We are committed to continue protecting the environment, and to make sure that no such (illegal) structures are built in the future,” he said.

Aumentado was issued a six-month preventive suspension by the Office of the Ombudsman on May 28 for his alleged failure to stop the construction of a resort at the foot of the famous Chocolate Hills.

The anti-graft office, however, lifted the order and allowed Aumenatdo to report back to work in August after finding out that the governor was unaware of the development of Captain’s Peak Garden and Resort in Sagbayan town.

The Chocolate Hills, a geological wonder, consists of 1,776 conical shapes and sizes spread over Bilar, Carmen, Batuan, Sierra Bullones, Sagbayan, and other towns.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources said the Chocolate Hills had been named and protected under the Expanded National Integrated Areas Protected System (NIPAS) Act or Republic Act 7586, as amended by Republic Act No. 11038.

Aumentado said the province remains a top investment destination.

In its Philippine Hotel Investment Outlook Survey, real estate brokerage firm Leechiu Property Consultants revealed the emerging popularity of Bohol for investors who chose the province because of the proximity of Panglao Island to the new airport and the Unesco global geopark status, which means it has a geological heritage of international significance.

According to Aumentado, Bohol had recovered from the post-pandemic slump and achieved a 463-percent increase in tourist arrivals from 2021 to 2023.

“As an indicator of this increasing tourist traffic, we keep adding to the number of domestic and international flights to Bohol,” he said.

At present, Bohol has more than 20 flights. Aumentado said they recently met with the Japanese Consul to create direct flights from Panglao to Osaka, Japan.

“Bohol is a special province. And through all challenges, Bohol continues to be one of the most beautiful provinces in the country, if not the most beautiful,”  he said.