Relative Location: From Brentwood College School to Apo Island is a 22hr flight. South West of Puerto Princesa South East of Vietnam
Region:
What makes your MPA distinctive? ~One of the world’s best known community-organized marine sanctuaries ~Since the project was created it led to the creation of hundred of other other marine sanctuaries in the Philippines ~the money tourists pay to visit Apo island goes towards keeping the sanctuary clean and in good condition ~Contains 400 out of the 450 coral reefs in the Philippines
Physical Geography: ~3km around ~120m is the highest point on the island ~very hilly ~average elevation of 2 metres above sea level
Biome: Rainforest-humid climate, due to high rainfall/precipitation avg. temperature: 30-33oC
Specific Crops: Sugarcane, coconuts, rice, corn, bananas, cassava (manioc, tapioca), pineapples, mangoes; pork, eggs, beef; fish
Place:
Physical characteristics: ~small island with a beach ~Volcano ~
Human characteristics: ~Tourism for it's diving destinations ~Two villages- the main village "Main Apo" and the village of Cogon ~Languages: Filipino (official; based on Tagalog) and English (official); eight major dialects - Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilocano, Hiligaynon or Ilonggo, Bicol, Waray, Pampango, and Pangasinan ~Religion: 82.9% Catholic
Human Environment Interaction-(20 marks)
How have people modified or changed the location: ~Reasons for the damaged reefs and low fish population ~One of the world best known community-organized marine sanctuaries ~Apo Island resort ~Paul's dive shop ~rated in the top 10 dive sites in the world
Environmental Concerns-population, conservation, sustainability, sphere interaction and environmental impact ~Damage on the reefs from too many tourists, they have now restricted the numbers of tourists to visit the sanctuary at a time. ~Divers scare away the fish from the fishermen, they now have to be 50m away from fishing activities and not allowed to be close to popular fishing areas at all times. ~Cyanide, introduced during the 1970s for the aquarium fish trade. Aquarium fish are no longer collected in this region, but cyanide remained. ~Hydrosphere affected due to pollution from tourist boats ~Biosphere affected due to overfishing