BURGOS–If you want to see some giant turtles, come visit this town at this time of the year.

During the month of October, various species of giant turtles such as Olive Ridley and Leatherback come ashore at the white sand beach of this scenic coastal town to lay eggs.

Mayor Domingo Doctor said this has been happening over the past several years and residents have been helping out the turtles by enclosing their nests in nets to prevent the hatchlings from prematurely venturing out into the sea.

The baby turtles are kept at bay for about a month and the nets are removed around end-November.

Last year, about 10 kinds of rare species of turtles were found here, Doctor said.

The mayor also said their town, which has a small population, has become an ideal habitat for the turtles because of their clean coastal waters and strict policies against illegal fishing. 

A sea patrol team called Bantay Dagat guards their coastal waters every night.

The seven-kilometer area where the turtles nest had been made part of the protected area watched by the Bantay Dagat.

Previously, residents of sitios Cabaoangan, Pao and Paratek, all in Barangay Ilio-ilio, 22 kilometers away from the town proper where turtles hatch their eggs, sold the eggs which are believed to be an aphrodisiac as well as the turtle meat.

The mayor put a stop to the practice by implementing a reward scheme for those who look after the turtles and their eggs.

Violators are also penalized based on existing national laws.

A local ordinance declaring the area as protected is currently being drafted.

The mayor said they currently do not have the funds to boost their tourism potentials but hope to someday be positioned as an eco-tourism destination.

Doctor said visitors from Norway have conducted tests on their sand and found it to be among the finest not only in the Philippines but in the world.

Burgos, classified as a fourth class town, is the smallest in the first district of   Pangasinan with a population of about 24,000. #

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