El Nido installs Mooring Buoys to shield reefs as marine wildlife remains at risk

According to the El Nido Municipal Engineering Office (MEO), the project was finalized on July 3 and funded through the town’s Ecotourism Development Fee (ETDF), with a total budget of ₱1,123,497.

These buoys are meant to offer secure tie-up locations for tour boats, reducing physical damage to reef structures while supporting the town’s strategy to balance environmental conservation with the growing demands of tourism.

But just two weeks earlier, on June 16, a grim discovery beneath El Nido’s clear waters raised concerns that marine life remains vulnerable despite these protective measures.

Local diver Glen Comprendio found a dead sea turtle lying motionless on the seafloor, its shell torn open and one flipper severed, injuries he believed were caused by a boat propeller. He took a photo and shared it on social media, a post that quickly gained traction among concerned residents and environmental advocates.

The incident highlighted what many divers and conservation advocates have quietly raised for years, that while El Nido has made strides in coral protection, through initiatives like buoy installations, the same level of regulation has yet to reach boat operations.

There are currently no enforced speed limits for motorized tour boats in most of El Nido’s island-hopping routes, and the use of propeller guards remains at the discretion of operators.

El Nido is one of Palawan’s busiest marine tourism hubs, with dozens of island-hopping tours operating daily. While each boat is only allowed to conduct one tour per day, the pressure to maximize efficiency and cover multiple destinations still drives operators to move swiftly across the bay, often with little room for caution.

Today, in the calm shallows of Bacuit Bay, 23 newly installed mooring buoys bob gently with the tide, quiet markers of a government effort to balance preservation with profit.

But somewhere beneath those same waters, a turtle’s shattered shell rests undisturbed,a silent casualty of a system still being built.

And while no one spoke on record about that loss, yet its timing, just days before the final buoys were anchored, brings to light the sobering fact that protecting paradise means more than safeguarding coral. It means defending all life that calls these waters home.