Guiuan earns global recognition for environmental programs

TACLOBAN CITY – Guiuan, Eastern Samar has earned international recognition for its environmental and sustainability initiatives, including coastal resource protection, solid waste management and renewable energy programs.

The municipality, where Magellan first landed in 1521, received four awards during The Philippine Model Cities and Municipalities 2026 on Sept. 24, being recognized as an eco-friendly municipality, tourism and culture hub, food security enabler, and sustainability champion.

The awards recognized Guiuan’s continuing efforts to protect its marine resources, reduce plastic pollution, promote clean energy and support sustainable livelihoods.

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Mayor Annaliza Gonzales-Kwan credited the recognition to the efforts of municipal officials, employees, community organizations and residents, saying environmental protection is closely linked to food security, livelihoods, tourism and the municipality’s long-term development.

“These awards are for you and because of you,” she said in an interview.

One of the municipality’s major environmental initiatives is the management of its coastal resources, including eight marine protected areas and marine sanctuaries managed with community organizations and local government support.

Guiuan is part of the nationally legislated Guiuan Marine Resource Protected Landscape and Seascape. Of its 60 barangays, 41 are coastal, with about 80 percent of the population depending on the sea for their livelihoods.

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The municipality also works with six other municipalities through the Alliance of Seven Municipalities for Integrated Coastal Zone Management (A7) to address common concerns involving fisheries, coastal resources, climate change and disaster risks.

READ: 2 teens missing after being swept by strong currents in Eastern Samar

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The alliance’s Fisheries Management Plan for 2024-2030 provides for regulations on fishing gear and minimum fish and crab sizes, as well as temporary and area-based fishing restrictions to protect spawning grounds, nursery areas and critical habitats.

Guiuan has also strengthened its solid waste management program through a plastic recycling facility that converts soft plastic waste into school armchairs. About 25 kilograms of plastic waste are needed to produce one armchair, while the facility has diverted about 48 tons of soft plastics from the landfill since its establishment.

The municipality also runs the “Basura Mo, Bugas Mo” or “Your Waste, Your Rice” program, under which residents receive one kilogram of rice for every two kilograms of properly prepared soft plastic waste they surrender for recycling.

Another initiative is the Guiuan Resource Extraction, Eco-cycling and Neutralization (GREEN) Facility, which promotes waste segregation, resource recovery, recycling, composting and environmental education.

Guiuan has likewise pursued renewable energy projects after formalizing an agreement with the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities on Oct. 10, 2024.

Among its initiatives are the solarization of the municipal hall, a solar-powered ice plant for fishers in Suluan, and solar lighting in island and poblacion barangays, as well as solar-powered facilities in marine sanctuaries.

The municipality’s environmental efforts have also gained international exposure.

Gonzales-Kwan represented Guiuan at the 2026 PEMSEA Network of Local Government Forum in Busan, South Korea, where she presented the municipality’s experience in coastal resource management and local government partnerships.

In her presentation, she emphasized the need for municipalities to work together because marine ecosystems, fisheries and climate risks extend beyond political boundaries.

Guiuan’s environmental programs have been developed amid the municipality’s exposure to strong tropical cyclones.

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It was among the areas devastated by Super Typhoon Yolanda in 2013, prompting the local government to strengthen programs aimed at protecting natural resources and improving community resilience. INQ