TABACO CITY—Beneath the towering majestic Mayon Volcano, the region’s rich biodiversity faced an imminent threat that could have disrupted its delicate ecological balance forever had a lighting project been greenlit.
The project, although now scrapped, served as a wake-up call for many including Jeffrey Jaymes Mesias, a passionate bird watcher and biologist based in Albay.
He said that lighting a mountain as big as Mayon would have harmed the biodiversity that was instrumental in Albay’s inclusion in a network of biosphere reserves around the world.
“It (would have been a) domino effect,” he warned, his voice laced with concern.
Mount Mayon is a vital ecological habitat. It is home to a diverse array of flora and fauna, and any disruption could have severe consequences on all species that depend on it.
Mesias said that if a project to light up the volcano pushes through, migratory species like the barn swallow (Hirundo tahitica), the giant golden-crowned flying fox (Acerodon jubatus), and the large flying fox (Pteropus vampyrus), a bat species considered vulnerable due to habitat loss and other threats, would face extinction.
Plans to artificially light Mayon, although it may have a minimal impact on humans, would significantly affect species, especially nocturnal ones, by directly causing food scarcity, he said.
The light would disrupt the animals’ patterns, as they rely on nighttime to forage for food, such as insectivores and carnivores like owls and eagles.
“Since insects are scattered and attracted to light sources, nocturnal species will struggle to find food,” he added.
Breeding behaviors of the animals will also be affected. Animals likes bats will have harder time finding mates to breed.
“Even migratory birds, like the barn swallow, are affected. These birds migrate from the northern hemisphere to warmer regions due to food scarcity. However, when they encounter artificial lighting in cities, their behavior is disrupted, as they are accustomed to dark areas. This is an example of the impact of lighting on migratory species,” Mesias said.
Birds and bats play a major role in pest control as they regulate insect populations.
This can impact the agricultural sector and may potentially lead to a decline in agricultural supply and increased prices.
Fernando Fajardo III, a science teacher at Tabaco National High School, and a licensed agricultural and biosystems engineer, said that artificial lighting could greatly affect the growth and development of plant species.
He highlighted that while artificial lighting can supplement light sources for plants necessary for photosynthesis, it can cause disruptions to the plants’ natural growth patterns.
“These have impacts over the plant’s stem length, leaf color, and leaf size as plants have the natural tendency to react to light sources, wavelengths and intensity. These impacts may even have a greater effect on endemic species of plants as these plants have already adapted to the local conditions and drastic changes can put stress on them.” Fajardo said.
He also said that the light pollution could disrupt the natural pollination process of plants in the area, potentially affecting plant reproduction.
“Like plants, pollinators also react with light sources. Nocturnal pollinators such as moths and bats may be disoriented by artificial lighting (since natural lighting has been disturbed) leading to decreased efficiency and poor reproduction of plants,” he added.
Project Lights Out
On March 21, a bold proposal emerged, envisioning a dramatic transformation of Mayon Volcano’s nighttime landscape through artificial illumination.
The estimated P1.3 billion plan sought to bathe the iconic volcano in spotlights, enhancing its visibility at night and luring more tourists to the region.
However, the ambitious project was met with swift backlash from environmentalists, local government officials, and the public.
Amid public backlash and concern, the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (Tieza) has officially scrapped the procurement process of the P500 million-worth “Mayon Volcano Heritage Aesthetic Lighting at Albay Under Design and Build Scheme” on March 25.
In a Tieza statement, Atty. Niño Ruperto Aquino, chairperson of the Bids and Awards Committee, called off the project due to “some issues from concerned stakeholders and government agencies and the need to obtain full stakeholder acceptability.”
The cancellation also rendered the bid evaluation of the project’s sole bidder, a joint venture between Amigo Entertainment Technologies, Inc. and BF Corporation, null and void.
The March backlash was not the first time the Albayano public opposed such plans to light up Mayon Volcano.
Back in 2019, the plan sparked widespread fierce resistance.
This year, there was online outrage when there was an alleged unannounced public hearing about the lighting of Mayon Volcano in Santo Domingo, Albay.
When Jessica Noelle Wong, president of the Association of Accredited Travel Agencies in Bicol, posted about the hearing on her social media account, it was the first time most Albayanos heard of a public hearing supposedly taking place.
In her post, Wong expressed her strong stance on the issue, alleging that “tourism stakeholders are kept in the dark.”
“As the president of the Association of Accredited Travel Agencies in Bicol, I never received any formal letter about this consultation meeting. I would think our organization should be one of the initial stakeholders. Instead, I learned through a group chat about a supposed public hearing that’s happening today, March 23, 2025, from 1 to 5 p.m. at Santo Domingo,” Wong wrote.
She also said that the public hearing was questionable and that it sounded like something was being done without transparency because it happened on weekends.
Meanwhile, Dorothy F. Colle, head of the Provincial Tourism, Culture, and Arts Office (PTCAO), said that the consultative meeting for the Mayon lighting project was where they first learned that the project would push through.
“We don’t agree with it because the Mayon Lighting is not part of the management plan we created for the Mayon Volcano,” Colle said, adding that such project could potentially harm Albay’s membership in the Man and Biosphere Reserve project of the United Nations Eductional, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (Unesco).
“If this project continues, Albay might be removed from the MAB program. It is disheartening to be removed since we’ve already invested resources. This wouldn’t just be a loss for Albay but for the entire Philippines.”
Albay became the third local government units in the Philippines included in the program in March 2016. To date, there are only four LGUs in the Philippines included in the program.
The Provincial Government of Albay has also criticized Tieza for the lighting project because its feasibility study did not consider the declaration of Albay as a biosphere reserve and its ongoing nomination to the Unesco World Heritage List as Mayon Volcano Cultural Landscape.
Following the consultative meeting, acting Gov. Glenda Ong Bongao of Albay Province released a statement on March 24, urging Tieza to halt the lighting project.
“The Albay Biosphere Reserve is subject to periodic evaluation by Unesco in 2026 and is at risk of being delisted as a biosphere reserve should the lighting project push through, as it is not aligned with the existing management plans for the site,” Bongao stated.
Biodiversity Profile
According to Unesco, Mayon Volcano is home to 156 floral species belonging to 36 families and 83 species of trees, including the single dipterocarp found in the area, locally known as baguatsa or gisok-gisok (Hopea philippinensis); and one near-threatened species from the rare family Nepentheceae, the pitcher plant.
It is also home to 71 woody species belonging to 49 genera and 33 families— about 32 percent of these species are endemic, while others are indigenous—and a habitat for 104 species of land vertebrates, including 57 species of birds, 10 species of amphibians, 24 species of reptiles and 13 species of mammals.
Seven of the thirteen mammal species are endemic, and three of them—the giant golden-crowned flying fox, Philippine brown deer, and Philippine warty pig—are classified as vulnerable.
The bird species found in Mayon include 37 endemic species with three species listed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list: the nearly threatened Luzon bleeding heart, vulnerable Philippine eagle-owl, and the critically endangered Philippine cockatoo.
The 10 amphibian fauna are all endemic frog species with four listed in the IUCN red list: the nearly threatened Luzon fanged frog, Luzon forest ground frog and Guenther’s forest frog, and the vulnerable banded pygmy tree frog.
The volcano also houses endemic butterflies, stick insects, and spiders in the registered insect and arachnid fauna and these endemic species were found nowhere else in the world.
Sustainable tourism
Although the lighting project has been officially terminated, the battle for Mayon’s preservation is far from over, sparking a renewed call from local communities, environmentalists, and advocates for a shift toward sustainable tourism practices that protect rather than exploit natural heritage.
For many, the controversy served as a wake-up call: the need to reimagine tourism not as an industry driven by spectacle, but as a movement rooted in respect, education, and ecological stewardship.
“The very reason why tourists flock to (see) Mayon Volcano is because of its natural beauty. We don’t need any lighting to accentuate its curves,” said Joey Brecia, a 19-year-old resident of Buang village in Tabaco City.
He also expressed skepticism about the effectiveness of lighting in attracting tourists, citing the example of the Manila Dolomite Beach, which sparked initial curiosity but eventually led to desertion, outweighing any potential benefits to tourism.
He also express concerns that tourism strategies like these often overlook the impact on the livelihoods of farmers who plant at the foothills of Mayon Volcano.
“They can be affected because the sites where the planned lighting project will be installed could be sources of livelihood for them, such as plants, animal habitats. It’s also possible that even their homes will be affected,” Brecia said.
Arianne Joy Bornasal, 21, a resident of Oson village, also in Tabaco City, expressed the same sentiment.
Borsanal, who came from a family of farmers, said that governments should focus on sustainable tourism practices that prioritize environmental conservation and community engagement, ensuring that Mayon’s splendor endures for future generations.
“If they want to enhance its beauty, they should focus on reforestation, especially in barren areas; maintaining cleanliness; and improving roads leading to the skyline or other spots,” Bornasal said. | story by Zamantha Bilan, Julievieve Bodino, and Hannah Franchezka Boragay
