Task Force to assess Boracay's redevelopment

Members of the Boracay Task Force will soon convene to assess the voluntary demolition being conducted by private firms in this resort island for the past week.

Malay Councilor Rowen Aguirre said the assessment aims to determine the next step of the 'redevelopment' in this resort island.

The Malay local government is a member of the task force mandated by President Benigno S. Aquino III to ensure environmental conservation of Boracay.

"The assessment is also aimed to determine what we will do to those stakeholders who refuse to comply with government regulations," Aguirre said.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has listed around 293 illegal structures such as tents and stage halls swamping the island's front beach area. Private firms have voluntarily dismantled the structures after they were given a one-week warning.

According to the study of the Tokyo Institute of Technology, this resort island is undergoing over-development and lacks social infrastructures because of man-made activities.

Experts from Japan in collaboration with the University of the Philippines-Marine Science Department recently conducted the environmental research here.