BORACAY, Aklan—Following locals’ complaints of garbage left by tourists during the recent long Labor Day weekend dubbed “Laboracay” in this resort island, officials here have urged visitors to be responsible in disposing their trash.
Data from the Malay Municipal Tourism Office showed the recent Laboracay period of April 25 to May 1 recorded an all-time high 28-percent increase in terms of tourist arrivals to 70,879 tourists, from 55,370 last year.
More tourists, however, also led to a huge amount of trash collected during the weeklong series of activities and parties, as some netizens posted videos and photos on social media of garbage left in Boracay.
Executive Assistant IV Rowen Aguirre, Boracay Island administrator, said organizers of Laboracay parties were asked to clean up after their respective events.
“We obliged them to conduct clean-up activities and to provide necessary trash bins,” Aguirre said Thursday. However, he said, some tourists were “just irresponsible” in handling their trash.
Even after Laboracay, the local government of Malay continues to encourage tourists to become responsible, Aguirre said.
Admitting the lack of trash bins along the beachfront areas, Aguirre said the current administration has already allocated funds for the project.
“We are now on the bidding process for the acquisition of garbage bins, which will be installed in different locations in the island,” he added, adding they hope to have them in place within the year.