MANILA, Philippines—The Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park, one of the country’s top natural attractions and recognized as a World Heritage Site by the United Nations, has entered the second round of an ongoing global search for the seven new wonders of the world.

The Coral Triangle, a region that the Philippines shares with five other countries and representing the majority of the world’s corals and marine-based species, also made the cut of 226 sites from among the original 441 entries in last year’s Internet-based voting campaign.

The qualified national and multinational nominees from 222 countries feature iconic locations, such as the Grand Canyon in Colorado, Loch Ness in Scotland, the Black Forest in Germany, and Mount Fuji in Japan, alongside the Amazon, the Danube, the Dead Sea, the Great Barrier Reef, Iguazu Falls, the Kalahari Desert, Mont Blanc and Niagara Falls.

“We congratulate the successful qualifying locations from the Philippines and wish them the best of luck in the second phase of voting,” said Tia Viering, head of communications of New7Wonders, a private foundation based in Zurich, Switzerland, which is spearheading the search.

The foundation was established in 2001 by the Swiss-born Canadian filmmaker, author and adventurer Bernard Weber to contribute to the protection of the world’s human-built and natural heritage and to foster respect for the cultural diversity on our planet.

The first phase of online voting in the New7Wonders of Nature website (www.new7wonders.com) ended on Dec. 31, 2008, at midnight on the International Date Line (8 p.m. in Manila).

1 nominee per country

Palawan’s 8.2-kilometer underground river set on a huge primeval karst formation in the northwestern coast of Puerto Princesa City bested six other local natural attractions in last year’s polling.

According to the N7W rules, only one nominee from each country is allowed to proceed into the second of three stages.

Failing to hurdle the first round was erstwhile voting leader Tubbataha Reefs, also located in Palawan, Chocolate Hills in Bohol, Mayon Volcano in Albay, the Hundred Islands National Park in Pangasinan, Mount Pinatubo in Zambales and Taal Volcano in Batangas.

In a statement, Viering noted the strong and enthusiastic participation of the other national nominees that are not proceeding, many of whom already benefited from a significant increase in worldwide awareness.

Final list in 2 years

Of the original nominees worldwide, 180 or more than 40 percent were eliminated, according to the organizers. The final list of the world’s seven new wonders will be chosen through Internet-based voting and an international panel of experts in two years.

Viering said her group expected over 1 billion votes to be cast during the final rounds. The panel will select the 21 finalists from the top 77.

On July 21, the third and final phase of voting will begin, Viering said. “The people of the world will then have approximately two years to vote among the 21 finalists for the official New7Wonders of Nature to be revealed in 2011.”

Nature’s blessings

“We are proud to announce that the Philippine marvels have stood strong in the first round of voting. This affirms to us of the support of Filipinos, as well as other tourists, in helping our natural sites make their mark in the global scale,” Tourism Secretary Joseph Ace Durano said in a statement.

“With billions of supporters all over the globe, promotion of spectacular sites from all over the world has been set to greater heights. It is also very important to call on the sustainable promotion of these tourism sites, which are nature’s blessings,” Durano added.

Puerto Princesa Mayor Edward Hagedorn said the selection of the underground river was an affirmation of the city’s combined efforts to promote the place as a world-class destination and its commitment to preserve a “wonderful natural heritage” for the next generations.

“We’re very happy to make it to the top despite joining this campaign as a latecomer. We owe it to all the people from all over the world who have come to visit us and support us,” said Jamas Mendoza, protected area manager of the river.

Coral reefs

The Coral Triangle features an abundance of coral reefs straddling the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste.

Covering more than 6.5 million square kilometers with over 600 reef-building coral species that encompass 75 percent of all species known in the world, the region is regarded by environmental experts as top priority for conservation of marine life.

More than 3,000 species of fish live in the Coral Triangle, including the largest fish—the whale shark—and the living fossil coelacanths, according to the World Wildlife Fund.

Among the Philippines’ neighbors, the selected entries include Vietnam’s Ha Long Bay, Cambodia’s Yak Loum Lake, Brunei’s Tasek Merimbun, Laos’ Nam Ha National Park, Singapore’s Bukit Tima Nature Reserve, Malaysia’s Sipadan Island, Thailand’s Ko Phi Phi Island, Jaco Island in East Timor, the Mergui Archipelago of Burma (Myanmar) and the Mekong River, shared by China and mainland Southeast Asian countries. Reports from Jerome Aning, Ronnel W. Domingo and Redempto Anda, Inquirer Southern Luzon