Metro Manila 7th 'most vulnerable' to climate change

[GLT]

Study: Metro Manila 7th 'most vulnerable' to climate change

By KATHARINE ADRANEDA, The Philippine Star | 03/07/2009 1:14 AM

MANILA, Philippines - Metro Manila was ranked seventh “most
vulnerable” to climate change among provinces and districts in
Southeast Asia.

This is based on a study made by an organization that supports
training and research in environmental and resource economics.

Dr. Herminia Francisco, director of the Economy and Environment
Program for Southeast Asia (EEPSEA), and Dr. Arief Yusuf Anshory
conducted the study.

“To assess the level of vulnerability of an area or a province, we
compared each province or area to the others through a composite
index,” Francisco said.

“We determined their ability to be resilient to climate change
adaptation. We based our study on their exposure to climate hazards
using information from historical records based on the assumption that
past exposure is the best available proxy for future climatic risks.”

The study aims to help policy-makers and external donors in resource-
allocation decisions on climate change initiatives in the region.

“We also based the study on their adaptive capacity, which include
existing infrastructures, poverty situation, people’s income,
literacy, inequality, life expectancy, as well as available
technology,” Francisco said.

During the Philippine launch of the New Regional Climate Change
Vulnerability Map for Southeast Asia in Makati yesterday, Francisco
identified 13 other provinces in the Philippines as “climate hot
spots.”

“This may not be a perfect map but we hope this would bring people
together to come up with effective adaptation programs to climate
change,” Francisco said.

“Climate change is here, it’s been happening. We just have to perhaps
correct some adaptation behavior and teach communities on what must be
done, as well as help policy-makers and donors in determining the
direction of programs and funding efforts.”

The study covered 530 sub-national areas in seven countries.

It specifically covered 341 districts in Indonesia, 19 provinces in
Cambodia, 17 provinces in Laos, 14 areas in Malaysia, 14 provinces in
the Philippines, 72 provinces in Thailand, and 53 provinces in
Vietnam.

A majority of provinces or areas in the study’s 10 most vulnerable to
climate change are found in Indonesia, with Central Jakarta ranked as
1st; North Jakarta, 2nd; West Jakarta, 3rd; East Jakarta, 5th; South
Jakarta, 8th; Kota Bandung, 9th; and Kota Surabaya, 10th.

Mondol Kiri and Rotanokiri in Cambodia were ranked 4th and 6th,
respectively; while Metro Manila in the Philippines was ranked 7th.

The 13 other “climate hot spots” in the Philippines are the Cordillera
Administrative Region, ranked 27th; Central Luzon, 30th; Cagayan
Valley, 34th; Bicol, 36th; Ilocos, 40th; Southern Tagalog, 44th;
Eastern Visayas, 60th; Northern Mindanao, 74th; Central Visayas, 86th;
Western Mindanao, 87th; Western Visayas, 96th; Southern Mindanao,
103rd; and Central Mindanao, 105th.

The study, which includes a map showing all climate hot spots in
Southeast Asia, was funded by the International Development Research
Center (IRDC) of Canada.

14 areas ‘overfished’

At least 14 areas in nine regions nationwide are “overfished,”
resulting in economic losses of about P6.25 billion a year, a recent
government study revealed.

The National Stock Assessment of Marine Fisheries Resources was done
by experts from the National Fisheries Research and Development
Institute (NFRDI) and Fisheries Improved for Sustainable Harvest
(FISH) between 1998 and 2008.

The 10-year study showed that the most overfished areas were the
Lingayen Gulf in the Ilocos Region, Davao Gulf, and Lagonoy Gulf in
the Bicol Region.

Overfishing occurs when the ability of fish stocks to replenish is
impaired because of massive commercial and local fishing.

“The marine fisheries of the Philippines are in a critical state
because of overfishing,” the study said.

A fishing area is measured by experts through a ratio of fish caught
and the number of fish killed due to natural causes.

The ideal values of such ratio are between 0.3 to 0.5, said Geronimo
Silvestre of the FISH Project.

“A ratio that is higher than 0.5 indicates overfishing,” he said.

The study was conducted in partnership with the Bureau of Fisheries
and Aquatic Resources of the Department of Agriculture.

“Unless regulatory measures such as fishing gear restriction and fish
size limit, closed seasons and law enforcement are effectively carried
out, the country’s marine fisheries could be depleted,” the study
said.

Results of the study were provided to The STAR by the Philippine
Council for Aquatic and Marine Research and Development of the
Department of Science and Technology.

The total catch of commercial and municipal fishers was estimated at l.
74 million metric tons and valued at more than P65 billion, according
to the study.

The NFRDI, an agency under the DA, was created under Republic Act
8550.

On the other hand, FISH is a project of the government and the United
States Agency for International Development (USAID).

It aims to support the efforts of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic
Resources and local government units to conserve biological
biodiversity in the target areas.

The primary purpose of FISH is to conserve biological diversity in at
least four biologically and economically important marine ecosystems
in the Philippines, namely: the Calamianes Islands in Palawan, Danajon
Reef in Bohol, and Tawi-Tawi and Surigao del Sur in Mindanao. – With
Helen Flores

as of 03/07/2009 1:55 AM