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Climate risks and adaptation in Asian coastal megacities: A synthesis

Climate risks and adaptation in Asian coastal megacities: A synthesis

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Manila’s current climate—Tropical withdist<strong>in</strong>ct wet <strong>and</strong> dry seasonsFigure 3.7 shows the four ma<strong>in</strong> climate regimes<strong>in</strong> the Philipp<strong>in</strong>es <strong>and</strong> the relative frequency oftyphoons mak<strong>in</strong>g l<strong>and</strong>fall. Manila falls <strong>in</strong>to Type1, which is def<strong>in</strong>ed as hav<strong>in</strong>g two dist<strong>in</strong>ct seasons,with the dry season runn<strong>in</strong>g from November toApril <strong>and</strong> the wet season occurr<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the othermonths. About 16 percent of the typhoons cross<strong>in</strong>gthe Philipp<strong>in</strong>es pass <strong>in</strong> the general vic<strong>in</strong>ity of Manila<strong>and</strong> its nearby areas. The average temperatures<strong>and</strong> precipitation <strong>in</strong> Manila are shown <strong>in</strong> Table 3.6.Manila has an average annual precipitation of about1,433 mm, but there is significant variability.Ma<strong>in</strong> climate-related drivers of flood<strong>in</strong>g—driven by s<strong>in</strong>gle-storm events, usuallyrelated to typhoonsFigure 3.7 ■ Different ClimaticRegimes <strong>in</strong> the Philipp<strong>in</strong>esTable 3.6 ■ Manila: Monthly AverageTemperature <strong>and</strong>PrecipitationMonthTemperatureAverage Low( o C)TemperatureAverage High( o C)Averageprecipitation(mm)January 24° 30° NegligibleFebruary 24° 30° 12.1March 25° 32° 9.1April 27° 33° 15.9May 27° 33° 133.0June 26° 32° 150.8July 26° 31° 292.9August 26° 31° 305.8September 26° 31° 237.5October 26° 31° 137.2November 25° 31° 81.3December 24° 30° 58.0Total 1433.6Source: http://weather.uk.msn.com/monthly_averages.aspx?wealocations=wc:RPXX0017Unlike Bangkok, where floods are generated byheavy seasonal precipitation over 1 to 3 months,extreme flood events <strong>in</strong> Manila are caused by heavyprecipitation events over 1 to 3 days generally associatedwith typhoons <strong>and</strong> storm surge. The watershedarea for Manila’s Pasig-Marik<strong>in</strong>a River System is651 km 2 , which <strong>in</strong>cludes the San Juan River catchment.This is relatively small <strong>in</strong> comparison to thewatersheds of other cities <strong>in</strong> the study. The precipitationpattern caus<strong>in</strong>g flood<strong>in</strong>g is often associatedwith strong w<strong>in</strong>ds <strong>and</strong> flash flood<strong>in</strong>g, which canbe devastat<strong>in</strong>g for <strong>in</strong>formal hous<strong>in</strong>g located alongdra<strong>in</strong>age ways. Seek<strong>in</strong>g refuge dur<strong>in</strong>g such events isextremely difficult <strong>and</strong> hazardous to the population.Other climate-related factors contribut<strong>in</strong>g to flood<strong>in</strong>g<strong>in</strong>clude a comb<strong>in</strong>ation of high tide, excess runoff fromrivers, heavy ra<strong>in</strong>s, <strong>and</strong> sea level rise. A schematic ofthe watersheds around Manila is shown <strong>in</strong> Figure 3.8.Non-climate related drivers of flood<strong>in</strong>g!Even though l<strong>and</strong> subsidence is an important issue<strong>in</strong> Metro Manila, it was not possible to consider itfor the hydrological simulation for the Manila studybecause of lack of availability of reliable data. 33 TheSource: Muto et al. (2010).33One difficulty <strong>in</strong> Metro Manila is that the station that issupposed to measure l<strong>and</strong> subsidence of Manila de Bay islocated on one of the old piers of Manila Port, which itselfis s<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g gradually.Estimat<strong>in</strong>g Flood Impacts <strong>and</strong> Vulnerabilities <strong>in</strong> Coastal Cities | 33

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