of the Verde Island Passage, Philippines - weADAPT

Recommendations
chapter 1 • vulnerability assessment of marine ecosystems and fisheries to climate change: recommendations
Apart from the threats of global climate change, the
marine resources in the Verde Island Passage are
already in a tremendous amount of stress due to
various human pressures. The VIP is a major fishing
ground. Over-fishing and use of destructive fishing
methods disrupts the normal functions of the coral
reef ecosystem. They reduce populations of key reef
organisms either by direct extraction of coral and
reef fish species or by destruction of corals during
fishing (Licuanan and Gomez 2000, Wilkinson 2004,
Deocadez et al. 2009). The passage is also a major
navigational and shipping lane, and is constantly
under threat by oil spills and strandings. Similarly, it is
also surrounded by various industries such as ports,
oil refineries etc., which pollutes, increases nutrient
influx and sedimentation in reef areas. Pollution,
sedimentation, and nutrients affect the survival of coral
communities either by smothering corals and preventing
coral recruitment (McClanahan and Obura 1997)
or by promoting growth of macro-algae and other
invertebrates (McCook 1999, Nugues and Roberts
2003). Other pressures impacting the coral reefs in the
VIP is tourism, mining, coastal settlement, and other
land-based activities.
Adaptation mechanisms would require that the present
CRM programs be more tightly integrated through
establishing knowledge based communities. These
would involve multiple stakeholders working together
and the incipient MPA network in the VIP would be a
good starting point. The various CRM working groups
would also need to engage with each other through
inter-LGU arrangement joint fisheries law enforcement
teams (FLET) and bay management councils or VIP
level alliances can be formed.
Improving management through good CRM governance
processes where climate adaptation systems are
mainstreamed is imperative. The fisheries ecosystem
approach to management will need to be put in place
as natural links to the present conservation efforts with
the tourism industry. Reduction of prevailing threats
such as illegal and destructive fishing, emerging
pollution, and habitat degradation from urban and
industrial development must also be addressed.
Environmental concerns will not only marginalize fishers
and their fishing grounds, exacerbate the impending
climate change impacts but will jeopardize the future of
our next generations.
Since the VIP is the area where the State of the Coast
has been piloted in the province of Batangas, the
opportunity to scale up these efforts and at the same
integrate within an ICM approach is imperative. As
mentioned earlier the research and development and
extension arena would need to involve a monitoring
and evaluation, response and feedback program that
mainstreams climate change. Linking with the ICE
CREAM program would be an immediate next step
together with developing a cadre of local expertise from
the various higher education institutions, would be an
opportunity not to miss. Highly qualified expertise such
those in the De La Salle University Brother Shields
Marine Lab are available and are part of the ICE
CREAM program.
Research and monitoring imperatives
There are considerable gaps in the fisheries profiling
and the related targeted research and monitoring
concerns. The priority interactive concerns of the
ecological and social systems are necessary to be
integrated into an adaptation plan with its adaptive
management approach.
• Incorporating an adaptive management approach
would mean that the overall management framework
is integrated into an overarching context and
governance process that will be able to provide
timely interventions with the appropriate monitoring
and evaluation plan.
• Fisheries profiling using the FISH BE (Fisheries
and Bio-economic model) framework approach to
link effort regulation, MPA, and pollution abatement,
among others.
• Climate change enhanced research on target life
history studies and monitoring to provide inputs to
an ecosystem approach to fisheries management
and evaluate exacerbating effects e.g., collaborate
with the Department of Science and Technology
(DOST) funded ICE CREAM (Integrated Coastal
Enhancement: Coastal Research, Evaluation and
Adaptive Management) program. An opportunity
whereby the MPA network provides social network
insights that also derives biophysical information
from an integrated monitoring of governance,
ecological and social and economic indicators.
• Determine Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)
priority areas which highlights mitigating impacts
from coastal and marine development activities
(e.g., foreshore and navigation) so as to determine
an overall integrated coastal management approach
to the VIP incorporating climate change and
threatened species concerns. This should have a
close link with the social and economic research
imperatives, e.g., reducing threats from unplanned
development trends and improving compliance
through market and non-market based incentives.
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