An Assessment of Mobod Marine Sanctuary in Barangay Mobod, Oroquieta City: Carrying Capacity and Economic Valuation Perspectives for Sustainable Tourism Management

Abstract

This study assesses the sustainable tourism potential of the Marine Sanctuary in Barangay Mobod, Oroquieta City, explicitly highlighting its ecotourism capabilities, carrying capacity, management constraints, and economic valuation. Driven by the need to balance ecological protection with community livelihood, this research uniquely integrates a preliminary carrying-capacity framework and benefit-transfer estimates to guide responsible tourism development. Using a descriptive quantitative approach anchored in sustainable tourism management theory, the study evaluated responses from purposively selected stakeholders. The assessment reveals the sanctuary’s strong potential for low-impact activities like snorkeling and firefly watching, alongside pressing management concerns related to sanitation, pollution, and coral depletion. Acknowledging limitations in site-specific data—such as daily visitor counts and willingness-to-pay responses, this study provides preliminary benchmarks for evaluating tourism limits. Ultimately, the findings extend current protected-area scholarship by demonstrating that tourism development in Mobod Marine Sanctuary must prioritize environmental monitoring, activity zoning, and locally retain economic benefits before commercial expansion.