Apo reef is a beautiful and relatively remote place, that compared to many other parts of the Philippines is relatively unpopulated, however significant parts of the reef have still suffered from some serious abuse through over fishing together with destructive fishing techniques. I have been to Apo reef twice in 1994 and 2002 and did enjoyed some good diving on some of the dive sites.
Apo Reef (note: not the similarly named Apo Island, a marine reserve off Negros Island in the Southern Philippines) located off the west coast of Mindoro in the Philippines is trying to relive "old glories" and has put into place a total ban from 2nd October on "all extractive activities such as fishing, collection and harvesting of any life form"
Full article, courtesy of WWF-Philippines can be found HERE
One of the key problems with setting up these kinds of No-Take reserves is resistance from the local fishing community, to overcome this alternative sources for fishing have been developed, through installation of overshore fish aggregation devices. A local solution to the local situation, resistance will persist, but hopefully with increased fish aggregations and increased tourism, the project will be successful.
A worthwhile project to support and I hope to visit sometime soon.
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