Challenges and Opportunities in Adopting Ecosystem-based Adaptation in Restoring Fisheries and Coastal Resources: Partido, Camarines Sur

Catherine B. Demesa1, Charlie V. Balagtas2, Roquelito H. Mancao3, and Fernando P. Gervacio4

I. Introduction:

This case study describes challenges and opportunities in adopting ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) in 4th Congressional District (also known as Partido Area) of Camarines, Philippines. Partido Area is located in the eastern pacific border of South Luzon. It harbors relatively extensive mangroves, sea grass beds and corals that support a productive and diverse fishery. Nearly 80% of coral reefs in the province of Camarines Sur are located and concentrated here.

Partido Area is comprised by ten municipalities of Siruma, Tinambac, Garchitorena, Caramoan, Lagonoy, Presentacion, San Jose, Sagnay, Tigaon and Goa. It has total of 299 barangays. Nearly 152, 300 (NSO, 2007) of its population live along the coastline of its 122 coastal barangays. Partido has a total land area of 200,075 hectares with fishing and farming as primary source of income .

1Executive Director, Network of Sustainable Livelihoods Catalysts, Inc

2Planning Officer III, Partido Development Administration

3Associate Technical Director , Rare

4Field Supervisor, Network of Sustainable Livelihoods Catalysts, Inc

FIGURE 1: Resource of Map of Partido

II. Climatic Condition, Risks and Hazards

According to David et.al, there are ten types of climatic conditions happening in the Philippines that are attributed to climate change. Based on the Figure 2, Partido Area belongs to Cluster 9, where increase in the sea surface temperature (SST) is expected to be within medium range. Other factors such as increase in precipitation and sea surface heights (SSH) are medium to high.

Figure 2. Climatic Conditions in the Philippines, David et.al

The following were observed incidences brought about by climatic variability for the past 30 years in Partido area:

• Coastal communities experience frequent occurrence of strong typhoons and storm surge during Northeast Monsoon (amihan) from the months of November to March.

• Weather patterns in the region have changed. Though number of visiting typhoons has been reduced in the last five years, fishers and farmers have now difficulty predicting the onset of the dry and wet season.

• Observed Sea Level Rise from 1993 to 2009. Bicol Region where Partido Area is located has an average seal level rise of 7-8mm/year (Siringan, 2012).

• Coastal erosion by 2-3 meter/decade were also observed in various fishing village in the area (Vulnerability Assessment Workshop, 2012 and 2013).

• Coral bleaching and algae colonizing the reef areas were observed specially during summer with longer period of high sea surface temperature.

On top of these climatic hazards, threats of overfishing have been in Partido as early as 1980’s (Silvestre and Hilomen 2004). Use of compressor and cyanide in fishing, dynamite, and other forms of illegal and destructive fishing were rampant. There were also incident of commercial fishers using more efficient gears poaching in municipal waters.

III. INTERVENTION DONE

This case study probes how AGCA Marine Sanctuary, the locally-managed marine protected area (MPA) in Partido exemplify as ecosystem-based adaptation approach in maintaining the integrity of marine ecosystems and sustaining community livelihoods.

The AGCA Marine and Wetland Sanctuary in Tinambac1. It is locally-initiated and managed by fishers' organizations, local government and

local NGO. To fully implement the ordinance providing for the establishment of the MPA, the mayor issued an Executive Order for the creation of- The Policy making body called Technical Working Group (TWG) and implementing body called Management Committee (MANCOM).

2. The result of the Participatory Coastal Resource Appraisal and Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment Workshops were used in assessing the sensitivity of their communities to the impact of climate change.

3. To get the community-buy in and support the local government of Tinambac, in partnership with Network of Sustainable Livelihood Catalysts, Inc (NSLC), with support from IUCN-NL and Rare, run the AGCA Pride Campaign5. Policies were made, environmental education conducted, and regular patrolling and guarding in placed. Through an incentive program, the mayor supports 3 to 6 fish wardens in every coastal barangay. Constructed a typhoon proof guardhouse and posted more billboards. There were also capacity program were local people attend a values formation and skills enhancement trainings. These processes enhance the community’s ability to adapt to changes caused by changing climate and changing ecosystems.

4. It enhances the coral reefs ability to recover faster from bleaching and improve its resistance to changing sea surface temperature and sea level rise.

5. The establishment of AGCA Marine Sanctuary significantly improve the health of coral reefs, increase fish abundance and fish biomass.

5 Pride Campaign is the

6. The community buy-in of MPA among resource users and community members happened when they were able to see the connection of AGCA Sanctuary to their livelihoods and to the future of their children. The community resident partakes in the guarding of the sanctuary by reporting intrusions and giving their pledges and donations. The social marketing strategies used reinforce the commitment of the community and the local government to continue the protection of their coral reefs and mangrove forest. Community believed that in protecting their sanctuaries and coastal habitats it provided them multiple benefits such as improved fish catch, improved growth and harvest of their seaweed culture, improved protection from storm surge and possible tsunami, and enhanced their own resiliency to the climate change impacts.

Results of the intervention were measured by an independent institution through the “Climate Resilience and Adaptive Capacity for Fisheries and Marine Biodiversity Protection in Municipal MPAs in the Philippines” project of the University of the Philippines-Marine Environment and Resources Foundation (UP-MERF) funded by RARE Philippines. Permanent monitoring sites have been established inside and outside the no-take zone of the AGCA Marine Sanctuary. Data on benthos and fish have been gathered in 2011, 2012 and 2013. Observed Changes:

• After two years of strict enforcement, though there was an observed increase in hard coral cover, it is still in the “fair” category. Massive corals are dominant in the area and are not expected to grow rapidly. On the fourth year of strict enforcement, coral cover especially the branching types appeared to increase (UP-MERF Report, 2013).

• Fish biomass increased significantly inside the MPA from 32.8 MT/km2 in 2011 to 55.6 MT/km2 in 2012. Schooling of larger target species such as acanthurids, carids, caesionids and serranids/grouper were observed. It was also observed that there is higher fish abundance and biomass of the target or commercially important species inside the no-take zone than in outside stations (UP-MERF Report, 2012).

• During peak season, gill nets could catch as high as 300 kg. Normal catches are about 50 kg per trip compared to the time where there is no MPA yet wherein average fish catch is 2kg/trip (UP-MERF Report, 2013).

• Whale sharks (butanding) have also been observed more frequently (FGD, 2013)• Five years after establishment of AGCA Marine Sanctuary there is statistically significant increase in the

number of fishers (n=350) who can say that their fish catch has increase to 47.5% in 2011 and 56.7% in 2012 (KAP Survey, 2012). Contrary to the time when there is no MPA yet, nearly 99% of fishers in the area claimed that their fish catch have been declining (PCRA, 2005).

• Significant reduction in use of dynamite and cyanide in fishing brought happiness to the seaweed farmers. According to some farmers they observed an increase by almost 20% in their seaweed harvest . Income from seaweed were used to improve fishers’ house to become more durable and withstand strong typhoons and used as additional capital in diversifying livelihoods (FGD, 2012).

IV. Challenges Encountered in scaling up MPA and Adopting EbA in other municipalities

Fishers were identified as one of most vulnerable sectors in the society from the impacts of climate change. They have low adaptive capacity and coping mechanisms. The following are challenges that need to be addressed in replicating and scaling-up MPA in Partido area.

Poor GovernanceThere is an increasing number of MPAs in Partido however it appears that only AGCA Marine Sanctuary in Tinambac has been effectively managed. Figure 5 shows scoring of MPAs in Partido using the Marine Protected Area Management Effectiveness Assessment Tool by CTI-NCC.

FIGURE 5. MEAT Scoring of Marine Protected Areas In Partido

A total of 20 Marine Protected Area currently exists in Partido. Majority of MPA especially those located at remote and island barangays have poor fishery law enforcement and poor community buy-in.

Lack of policy and financial allocation to fisheries and coastal managementMajority of coastal municipalities has outdated municipal fishery ordinances (more than ten years). Only one municipality has updated Comprehensive Municipal Fishery Ordinance. Allocation of budget in implementation ranges from PhP 50,000.00 to PhP 800,000.00. However, only 30-80% of the budgets were actually spent to enforce the law and implement the plan. Final decision on where to spend the CRM fund often rests solely on the mayor.

Uncontrolled number of fishers and fishing activitiesIncreasing number of fishers and increasing gear efficiency are considered as one of the major causes of threats/risks to the local fisheries.

Benefit-ExchangeDiscussion on benefit-exchange has always been a challenge in fishery conservation and management. There are costs to pay in establishing MPA such as fishers will be displaced and would be forced to fish farther thus consume more gasoline. Another is fisher’s main concern is providing for their family. They would be willing not to intrude inside the sanctuary should there be additional support to their livelihoods.

Limited access to communication and transportationAlmost half of coastal barangays in Partido have no road access. Fishery law enforcers and government officials have difficulty accessing those barangays especially during northeast monsoon. Enforcement and technical support is very limited.

High poverty incidence with limited livelihood optionsPartido is highly vulnerable in terms of Socio – Economic (SEA) parameters. Nearly 80% of fishers live below the poverty line. Low income from fishing (US$ 40-65 /month) and the depleting fish stocks significantly contribute to the inability of fishers to recover from strong typhoons.

V. OPPORTUNITIES:

1. Nearly 375 hectares of municipal waters was declared as no-take zone for the last three years. Small several MPAs can provide space for corals to recover from various stresses and offer more secure and safe zone for fish.

2. Presence of Partido Development Administration, an alliance of LGUs in 4 th

congressional district. In the last two years they have been assisting LGUs to strengthen MPAs and coastal resource management.

3. Replication of social marketing campaigns and best practices from Tinambac Pride Campaign to other LGUs in Partido. It is currently being replicated in four coastal municipalities.

4. Through an Incentive based mechanism the Congressman support the conservation of Partido Area’s life support systems. This has motivated the LGUs to improve their governance, increase budget allocation, adoption of relevant policies and improve delivery of social services.

Recommendations:In adopting ecosystem based adaptation, it is imperative that there are clear LGU personnel responsible in implementing and sustaining it. Setting up of CRM office, with functional CRM team, with CRM plan, with budget allocation and political support from the local chief executive is critical in implementing and sustaining the effort within government system.

In adopting ecosystem based adaptation, finding a local champion and building his/her capacity to continue the conservation efforts is crucial. He/she should have been involved at the very start of establishing MPA and enhancing fishery resource. He/she has big role in decision-making processes on restoring and managing local resourcesIn sustaining ecosystem based adaptation, there must be an independent support system that would ensure fishery program sustainability and climate change resiliency. The executive and legislative body has short-term term of office. In addition, the interplay of personality in politics affects the effectiveness of local governance and continuity of program. It could be in a form of civil society organization like NSLC, or strong alliance of LGU like PDA, or committed management body like AGCA ManCom or a combination of these three.

In sustaining ecosystem based adaptation, assessment of vulnerability and measuring progress and results would help improve community buy-in, support from LGU, and sustaining the momentum.

In sustaining ecosystem based adaptation, incentive based program can motivate the local community and government personnel to improve their coping strategies and resiliency and be more responsive to the changing climates and ecosystem needs. It can be taken from PDAF, Special Appropriation Fund and Climate Change Fund/Survival Fund.

In sustaining ecosystem based adaptation, there must be available small grant or fund available for CSO and people’s organization to support the effort of those municipalities with small IRA and to monitor the progress and results.

In sustaining ecosystem based adaptation, local solutions that work should be documented and must be shared.

ReferencesDemesa C. unpublished. Tinambac Pride Campaign 2010-2012: Campaign Learning Report.

Muallil R., Cabral R., Mamauag S., Aliño P. 2012. Status, Trend and Sustainability of Small-scale fisheries in the Philippines. Proceedings of the 12th International Coral Reef Symposium, Cairns, Australia, 9-13 July 2012.

Philippines 1 Biophysical Monitoring Report. 2012. RARE Program for Sustainable Fishing in the Philippines project. 161 p.

SILVESTRE, G.T. and V.V. HILOMEN. 2004. Status of fisheries in San Miguel Bay, p.292-299. in DA-BFAR (Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources). In turbulent seas: Thestatus of Philippine marine fisheries. Coastal Resource Management Project, Cebu City, Philippines. 378 p.

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