Desktop Study on - Regional Climate Change Adaptation ...

Assessment of Capacity Gaps and Needs of South East Asia Countries
in Addressing Impacts, Vulnerability and Adaptation to Climate Variability and Climate Change
2007). 30% of the cyclones passing
the Philippines are considered
destructive (RMSI, 2007). Table 6
show the top five natural disasters
– with respect to the number of
people affected. Also, over all the
natural hazard events concerning
climatic disasters, i.e. storms,
draughts and floods, between 1980
- 2009, storms were responsible
for 84% of all the people affected
(see Figure 18) and 83% of all the
economic damages caused (see
Figure 19) within this time period.
Table_6
Overview on natural disasters in the
Philippines from 1980 to 2009
Top 5 Natural Disasters in the Philippines, 1980-2009
Type of natural
disaster
Date/year
Storm Nov 1990 6,159,569
Storm Jun 2008 4,785,460
Storm Sep 2009 4,321,149
Storm Oct 1998 3,902,424
Storm Sep 2006 3,842,406
No of people
affected
Fluctuation in the seasonal rainfall
distribution is observed in the
Philippines. This is one of the
distinctive effects of the El Niño
Southern Oscillation (ENSO)
phenomenon that is associated
with ENSO warm (cold) events.
For the decades between 1950 and
2005, seven El Nino and La Nina
episodes have occurred exhibiting
certain climatic changes. For
example, the seasonal rainfall
response to ENSO turned sign
between boreal summer (July
- September) and fall (October -
December) for both, El Niño and La Niña. Changes
in the large-scale monsoon system occurred during
the ENSO events that brought drought and flood
conditions (Lyon et al., 2006, cited in RMSI, 2007).
Meanwhile, significant decrease in the number of
Figure 19: Percentage of damage (US$)
due to total natural disasters
1980-2009
Flood 16%
Total Natural* Disasters in the Philippines for the period 1980-2009
Type of
natural
disaster
Total no of
events
No of
people
affected
Damage
000 US$
Storm 192 90,765,856 5,045,830
Drought 7 6,549,542 64,453
Flood 84 10,546,024 981,557
*not considered are earthquake, epidemic, insect infestation, wet or dry mass
movement, volcano, and wildfire
Source: EM-DAT (2009) The OFDA /CRED; International Disaster Database; www.emdat.net
- Université Catholique de Louvain – Brussels, – Belgium.
rain days is observed in some areas since 1961
throughout Southeast Asia (Manton et al., 2001,
cited in GRID-Arendal, 2003).
Sea levels have risen partly due to local subsidence
particularly in the Manila area and partly due to
global sea level rise (Hulme and Sheard, 1999, cited
in ADB, 2009c).
Climate Projections
Climate change is expected to exacerbate existing
climatic hazards by creating more flood, drought,
and storm events (val Aalst, 2006, cited in RMSI,
2007).
Drought 1%
Storm 83%
Climate change projection studies show that
temperatures are expected to rise by 2.2 °C by
the last quarter of the 21st century (World Bank,
2005). In addition, not only are rainfall patterns and
substantial sea level rise projected, but also changes
in climate variability and extreme weather events are
anticipated to entail higher intensity in rainfall, hot
spells and monsoon rainfall variability (Amadore,
2005). Moreover, peak wind and precipitation
intensity of tropical cyclones are likely to increase in
some areas of the Philippines (ibid).
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