With attractive prawn export prices and the availability of hatchery fry and commercial feeds, Philippine aquaculture has experienced a shift from milkfish to prawn Penaeus monodon and an intensification from traditional and extensive prawn culture to higher stocking densities. This paper features the results of a survey of intensive prawn farms (n = 21) in Western Visayas and Northern Mindanao conducted in 1990. Average farm size, production, feeding and water management are described. To solve the self-pollution characteristic of intensive ponds, the farms utilized some 40 chemical and biological products; at least another 35 were available in the market at the time of the study. These include therapeutants and disinfectants, soil conditioners, bacteria-enzyme preparations, algicides and piscicides, plankton growth promoters, and feed additives. The possible ecological effects of effluents drained into adjacent marine waters are discussed; some recommendations are given.