MANILA – A House of Representatives committee approved a bill declaring the Bucari area in Leon, Iloilo an ecotourism zone.
House Bill 5072 was authored by Cong. Arcadio Gorriceta of Iloilo’s 2nd District. The municipality of Leon is part of the district.
Bucari is regarded as the “little Baguio” of Panay Island because of its cool climate, pine forests and highland attractions.
The area is actually composed of Bucari, a hinterland barangay in Leon, and neighboring barangays of which 14 are in the municipality and seven in the adjacent town of Alimodian.
The House committee on tourism chaired by Cong. Lucy Torres Gomez (4th District, Leyte) unanimously approved the bill.
Some 58 kilometers northwest of Iloilo City, Bucari is around 10,000 hectares wide, of which 60 percent is forested. It also produces vegetables and fruits.
Bucari has a temperature and pine forests comparable to Baguio’s. The area just needs to be developed to become a tourist destination, according to Gorriceta.
Local and foreign tourists would surely enjoy the place, he said, citing Bucari’s scenery that included 21 waterfalls, myriad flora and fauna and mini rice terraces./PN
