Report of the Second Workshop on The Biology and Conservation of ...

passage <strong>of</strong> national policies concerning marinemammal conservation; Fisheries Act <strong>of</strong> 1998;Wildlife Act <strong>of</strong> 2001.4) Public information and education and capacitybuilding: Joint Philippine-Sabah, MalaysiaTraining <strong>Workshop</strong> on Cetacean Research andSurvey in 1996; publication <strong>of</strong> proceedings <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>1st Symposium <strong>Workshop</strong> on Marine MammalConservation; assistance with publication <strong>of</strong>“A Field Guide to Whales and Dolphins in <strong>the</strong>Philippines” spearheaded by Bookmark Inc.;publication <strong>of</strong> a Marine Mammal StrandingResponse Manual; production <strong>of</strong> informationmaterials on marine mammal species (postersand postcards).With enactment <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Fisheries Act <strong>of</strong> 1998, <strong>the</strong>DENR lost its mandate to convene and spearhead<strong>the</strong> Task Force.A specialist workshop on dugongs was held in1998. Research to provide <strong>the</strong> scientific basisfor dugong conservation is carried out by threeagencies: DENR, WWF and <strong>the</strong> University <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>Philippines.With <strong>the</strong> institutionalization <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> IntegratedProtected Areas System in 1992, protected areasare considered an effective tool to managewildlife species including marine mammals. In1998, Tañon Strait, a significant cetacean habitat,was declared as Tañon Strait Protected Seascape(TSPS) by virtue <strong>of</strong> Presidential Proclamation1234. So far this is <strong>the</strong> only protected area(PA) that has been established explicitly for <strong>the</strong>management and protection <strong>of</strong> cetaceans. Because<strong>of</strong> existing intensive agro-industrial operationsin <strong>the</strong> area, <strong>the</strong> PA was classified under <strong>the</strong>seascapes category. However, management <strong>of</strong><strong>the</strong> area never was implemented. The area thatwas designated a PA was very extensive, covering41 municipalities. A Tañon Strait Commissionwas established in lieu <strong>of</strong> a ManagementBoard. Realizing <strong>the</strong> unmanageable scale <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>PA, <strong>the</strong> Commission was de-established by <strong>the</strong>President under an Executive Order in June <strong>of</strong>2002 (S. Greene, pers. comm.) (Doc. 26). There isan ongoing effort by <strong>the</strong> Negros Oriental chapter<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Vice Mayors League <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Philippines tode-establish <strong>the</strong> Protected Seascape itself.In o<strong>the</strong>r areas, however, <strong>the</strong> establishment <strong>of</strong> PAshas facilitated <strong>the</strong> protection <strong>of</strong> marine mammals,notably in Malampaya, Palawan and <strong>the</strong> Nor<strong>the</strong>rnSierra Madre Natural Park. These PAs wereestablished through <strong>the</strong> support <strong>of</strong> a European-Union-funded National Integrated Protected AreasSystem Project and <strong>the</strong> Conservation <strong>of</strong> PriorityProtected Areas Project, respectively. Theseprojects were designed to protect biologicallyimportant areas. In <strong>the</strong> case <strong>of</strong> Malampaya, itwas declared as a Land and Seascape for itsrich fishery resources. The declaration <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>area under <strong>the</strong> NIPAP accorded some form <strong>of</strong>protection for <strong>the</strong> Irrawaddy dolphins through itsProtected Areas Management Board when it wasestablished in 2000. With <strong>the</strong> implementation<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Malampaya Research and ConservationProject by WWF-Philippines, <strong>the</strong> Irrawaddydolphin was accorded special attention in <strong>the</strong>management <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> protected area. For <strong>the</strong>Nor<strong>the</strong>rn Sierra Madre National Park, an initialmarine mammal assessment was conducted priorto its PA establishment as part <strong>of</strong> its managementplanning process.Taytay and Roxas Bays in north-eastern Palawanare being established as PAs for dugongs. Severalo<strong>the</strong>r key dugongs habitats have <strong>the</strong> potential tobe protected through national parks and nationalmarine reserves.Finally, with <strong>the</strong> devolution <strong>of</strong> governance to localgovernment units under <strong>the</strong> Local GovernmentCode <strong>of</strong> 1991, management <strong>of</strong> municipal waters<strong>Second</strong> <strong>Workshop</strong> on <strong>the</strong> Biology and Conservation <strong>of</strong> Small Cetaceans and Dugongs <strong>of</strong> SE Asia 57