Assessment Of Environmental Policies And Ordinances Towards Sustainable Tourism In Sagada, Mt. Province

Abstract

Philippines has various national laws and local policies protecting the environment and natural resources. As a nature based tourism destination, such as Sagada, Mt. Province, these policies are used as ways to effectively manage the environment and preserve natural resources. In Sagada environmental-related policies are also applied however lack of ordinances and guidelines about issues such as zoning, sale of land, and other environmental practices are still observed bringing more threat to its tourism industry (Dulnuan, 2003). With the shift to sustainable tourism management in one of the most popular upland ecosystems in the country, the study aims to: a) collate all existing environmental policies and ordinances relevant to tourism management in Sagada, Mt. Province; b) assess the effectiveness of the existing environmental policies through identifying the opportunities, hindering factors, and challenges of its implementation; and c) identify environmental policies that need to be established relevant to sustainable tourism management in Sagada, Mt. Province. KII was conducted for MLGU Sagada and local community stakeholders while KAP surveyed through google forms for tourists. Data gathered was assessed and analyzed through the UN SDGs and UNWTO Sustainable Tourism for Development Guidebook partnered with SWOT Analysis. Both quantitative and qualitative data collection techniques and analysis procedures were used through frequencies, percentages, mean, standard deviation, and Pearson’s correlation analysis. Various environmental-related local policies aligned with the national laws are in place that are focused on the conservation, preservation, and protection of natural and cultural heritage partnered with good strategies for information and dissemination. However, some aspects need to be considered and strengthened. KAP of the Tourists have shown high over-all ratings with significant correlation between each aspect but Practice of tourists shows implementation needs to be strengthened, same with the assessment gathered from MLGU and tourism stakeholders. Overall, Sagada has the majority of the needed aspects in place - policy and development plans wise - towards sustainable development. It’s recommended to strengthen the implementation, reinforcement, monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of the policies and plans through stronger coordination and collaboration with its tourism stakeholders.