BALANGA City – Tourism Sec. Ace Durano has described the 5th Philippine Bird Festival held in Balanga city as the biggest so far in the country with local and foreign delegations witnessing the two-day grandiose celebration that ended Saturday.
Durano also considered the birdwatching sites in the seaside villages of Sibacan, Puerto Rivas and Tortugas in Balanga as the most accessible compared to more than a dozen other sites in the Philippines promoted worldwide by the Department of Tourism.
He said Balanga has no hindrance with regards to accessibility. Aside from having the needed infrastructures, the modern Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway has serviced tourists who enjoyed their travel by land, he said.
“As an amateur bird watcher in my first visit in Balanga last year, I fell in love with one of the migratory birds I saw here, the black-winged stilt, with beautiful legs and so I consider Balanga’s birdwatching site as also my first love,” the secretary said eliciting loud roars from the big audience at the giant Bataan People’s Center.
He congratulated Balanga City Mayor Jose Enrique Garcia III and the Wild Birds Club of the Philippines for holding in the province the biggest bird festival in the Philippines. “Maraming kabuhayan, maraming trabaho ang ibibigay sa atin ng mga ibon kaya alagaan natin ang mga ito,” he urged the local folk.
Durano said that the wetlands of Balanga has the most number of water birds seen as compared to any part in the country.
“Let us know how we can further help,” he told Balanga City officials.
As a token of appreciation, Mayor Garcia gave Durano a replica of five black-winged stilt.
Michael Lu, president of the Wild Birds Club of the Philppines, said there are 72 species of birds, many migratory, in the wetlands of Balanga.
He said that Balanga remained always in the top 5 as to the number of water birds visiting the province. Last January this year, Candaba in Pampanga had 12,000 heads of birds counted while Balanga recorded 15,000, he said.
Balanga is similarly important like Candaba in birdwatching, a very important tourism project, he said. “Kaya lang sa Balanga, being an urban center and with almost complete road networks, bumaba ka lang sa sasakyan, pwede ka ng mag-birdwatching unlike in other areas where you have to hike far,” Lu said.
Dr. Joey Soriano, a member of the Bataan of Wild Birds Club, urged local officials to pass more ordinances to protect the birds. He said that there were 15,521 birds in Balanga as per last count on January 2009.
“Very wonderful, great, very good,” a delegate from Taipeh answered when asked how he found the birdwatching sites in Balanga and the bird festival. Aside from Taipeh, other foreign delegates came from Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, Hongkong, Thailand and Kaoshiung. Delegates from birdwatching associations in some provinces also witnessed the festival.
Mayor Garcia said that the festival aims to create awareness on the protection of the environment and the birds.
The more than one-hectare wetland park in Tortugas, with a P12-million funding, is being built, Garcia said, adding that the city allotted P8 million for its construction while Sen. Rodolfo Biazon donated P4 million.
“More funds are coming from the private sector, Garcia said.
The two-day bird festival started with a fluvial parade at 6:00 in the morning Friday. The bancas were with bird-like decorations that attracted many people along the river bank, the bridge and the wetland park.
Street dancing followed and later booths from 11 towns and one city and of various domestic and foreign birdwatching delegations were opened at the Bataan capitol compound.
Durano also considered the birdwatching sites in the seaside villages of Sibacan, Puerto Rivas and Tortugas in Balanga as the most accessible compared to more than a dozen other sites in the Philippines promoted worldwide by the Department of Tourism.
He said Balanga has no hindrance with regards to accessibility. Aside from having the needed infrastructures, the modern Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway has serviced tourists who enjoyed their travel by land, he said.
“As an amateur bird watcher in my first visit in Balanga last year, I fell in love with one of the migratory birds I saw here, the black-winged stilt, with beautiful legs and so I consider Balanga’s birdwatching site as also my first love,” the secretary said eliciting loud roars from the big audience at the giant Bataan People’s Center.
He congratulated Balanga City Mayor Jose Enrique Garcia III and the Wild Birds Club of the Philippines for holding in the province the biggest bird festival in the Philippines. “Maraming kabuhayan, maraming trabaho ang ibibigay sa atin ng mga ibon kaya alagaan natin ang mga ito,” he urged the local folk.
Durano said that the wetlands of Balanga has the most number of water birds seen as compared to any part in the country.
“Let us know how we can further help,” he told Balanga City officials.
As a token of appreciation, Mayor Garcia gave Durano a replica of five black-winged stilt.
Michael Lu, president of the Wild Birds Club of the Philppines, said there are 72 species of birds, many migratory, in the wetlands of Balanga.
He said that Balanga remained always in the top 5 as to the number of water birds visiting the province. Last January this year, Candaba in Pampanga had 12,000 heads of birds counted while Balanga recorded 15,000, he said.
Balanga is similarly important like Candaba in birdwatching, a very important tourism project, he said. “Kaya lang sa Balanga, being an urban center and with almost complete road networks, bumaba ka lang sa sasakyan, pwede ka ng mag-birdwatching unlike in other areas where you have to hike far,” Lu said.
Dr. Joey Soriano, a member of the Bataan of Wild Birds Club, urged local officials to pass more ordinances to protect the birds. He said that there were 15,521 birds in Balanga as per last count on January 2009.
“Very wonderful, great, very good,” a delegate from Taipeh answered when asked how he found the birdwatching sites in Balanga and the bird festival. Aside from Taipeh, other foreign delegates came from Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, Hongkong, Thailand and Kaoshiung. Delegates from birdwatching associations in some provinces also witnessed the festival.
Mayor Garcia said that the festival aims to create awareness on the protection of the environment and the birds.
The more than one-hectare wetland park in Tortugas, with a P12-million funding, is being built, Garcia said, adding that the city allotted P8 million for its construction while Sen. Rodolfo Biazon donated P4 million.
“More funds are coming from the private sector, Garcia said.
The two-day bird festival started with a fluvial parade at 6:00 in the morning Friday. The bancas were with bird-like decorations that attracted many people along the river bank, the bridge and the wetland park.
Street dancing followed and later booths from 11 towns and one city and of various domestic and foreign birdwatching delegations were opened at the Bataan capitol compound.
