The Province of Batangas started applying the ICM framework for managing the development of Batangas Bay in 1994. The demonstration project was funded by GEF, and resulted in the development and implementation of the Strategic Environmental Management Plan (SEMP) consisting of six major action areas: legal and institutional mechanisms, integrated policy and planning systems, integrated management systems and technical interventions, management and technical skills improvement, information base improvement and sustainable financing development. From 1999 to the present, technical, institutional and financial support has been provided through regular allocation from the Provincial budget.
Having realized the benefits and the value of ICM as demonstrated in Batangas Bay, the Provincial Government replicated ICM in Balayan Bay and adjacent bays of the province.
While Batangas Bay is located in a rapidly industrializing area, the Balayan Bay region is more for tourism and agro-industrial activities. Successful ICM replication in the Balayan Bay region has motivated the local government to replicate ICM in all bays in the province. In 2004, the Provincial Government developed an SEMP covering Batangas, Balayan and Tayabas Bays. The Provincial Government has also proposed to expand its institutional support to ICM through the establishment of a province-wide environmental protection council.
The Batangas Bay Region Environmental Protection Council (BBREPC) of the Province of Batangas, Philippines, was established in 1995 as the coordinating body chaired by the Governor of Batangas and consisting of representatives of national and local governments, academe, the private sector, media and community organizations as members. The BBREPC's secretariat is the Provincial Government Environment and Natural Resource Office (PG-ENRO), which is also responsible for the day-to-day operations for the ICM program. The BBREPC has expanded over time to include other local government units and stakeholders, as the ICM program has scaled up to cover the entire coastline of the province. The BBREPC has recently been renamed the Batangas Environmental Protection Council.