IMPACTS OF CLIMATE HAZARDS AND ADAPTATION IN SELECTED
COASTAL AREAS IN THE PHILIPPINES
Paul Joseph B. Ramirez1,2, Jaimie Kim B. Arias1, Shaneil R. Dipasupil3, Maripaz L.
Perez4, Patrick A. Regoniel5, Asa Jose U. Sajise1, and Glaiza J. Zamora4
ABSTRACT
This paper picks-up from a cross-country study covering Vietnam, Indonesia, and the
Philippines. It specifically focuses on documenting the impacts from two climate hazards
affecting selected coastal communities in the Philippines namely: typhoon/flooding, and
coastal erosion. It also analyzed planned adaptation options, which communities and local
governments can implement as well as the autonomous response of households to protect and
insure themselves from these hazards. It employed a variety of techniques ranging from
participatory based approaches such as community hazard mapping and FGDs to regression
techniques to analyze the results of the household surveys.
Results show that indeed households in coastal communities face a confluence of risks and
often adapt simultaneously to these risks. These risks have most impacts on the livelihoods of
households. Foregone income due to these risks is twice higher than the value of damages
from loss of assets including damage to houses. These impacts would eventually have effects
on their consumption. Using Vulnerability as Expected Poverty (VEP) as the vulnerability
measure, it was found that the incidence of vulnerable households in some coastal
communities in Palawan and Batangas are around 56% and 42%, respectively. The mean
vulnerability estimate for Palawan is 0.51 which means that on average, the probability that
households will fall below the minimum consumption level at which they will be considered
poor is 51%, while Batangas has a mean estimate of 0.38.
Various planned adaptation options, which communities and local governments can
implement, were studied using cost effectiveness analysis. A consistent and common result in
the study sites is that ecosystem based approaches (or natural barriers such as mangroves) are
more cost effective than hard infrastructure investments. There also seem to be a
preponderance of protective measures when in fact, the main impact or risks from these
hazards is really on the livelihoods of coastal-based communities. In Batangas, it was found
that livelihood diversification is a viable planned adaptation measure.
INTRODUCTION
Coastal and marine ecosystems are vital to most Southeast Asian countries, primarily because
most of the countries in this region depend on fish and other marine products to fuel their
economy and feed their population. Furthermore, population living in the coastal areas and
are dependent on this resource base are among the poorest in the region. Thus, governments
in this region have been concerned about the environmental problems confronting these
ecosystems and the population dependent on them.
With climate change, coastal ecosystems and the population are even more at risk. Most of
the attendant effects of climate change like sea level rise, storm surges, and typhoons often
1
Department of Economics, CEM, UPLB, Philippines
Corresponding author: pjbramirez@yahoo.com
3
University of Batangas, Batangas, Philippines
4
WorldFish, Penang, Malaysia
5
Palawan State University, Palawan, Philippines
2
emanate from the sea. Unlike before where environmental externalities have been traced from
the ridge to the reefs, with climate change the problem is looked at from the reefs to the ridge.
These ecosystems and the population dependent on them are thus in a very precarious
position. This means that increasing the resiliency of coastal communities to climate change
impacts is an urgent task for countries in Southeast Asia like the Philippines.
Increasing resilience to climate change hazards often involve household and community
adaptation. This can be in the form of protection and insurance and can be done either
privately, as with autonomous household adaptation, or as local government or public led
initiatives, as with planned adaptation strategies. For coastal areas, there have been numerous
identified adaptation options. These options range from specific activities such as mangrove
reforestation to large comprehensive programs such as integrated coastal management. Most
of these options, however, have existed long before the climate change issue became popular.
Therefore, benefits to these activities are general in nature and exist apart from those
associated with risk reduction and resiliency enhancement. What remains to be identified and
analyzed are the climate change related benefits (and costs) that come from these options.
This can only be done if there is a clear and concrete assessment of the vulnerability of
coastal communities to climate hazards and how these recommended options reduce the risks
and enhance the resilience of these communities against climate hazards.
This paper generally aims to understand public (planned) and private (autonomous)
adaptation of coastal communities against multiple climate related hazards by (1) validating
and assessing climate change impacts, (2) identifying the vulnerabilities and adaptation
strategies of households and communities, and (3) evaluating the cost-effectiveness of
planned adaptation strategies to climate change in selected coastal areas in the Philippines.
Description of the Study Sites
The Philippines is an archipelago consisting of 7,107 islands located off Indo-china in the
Western Pacific, which has a land area of more than 300,000 km2 and a total coastline length
of 36,289 km. Located within the Coral Triangle, the center of high marine diversity, the
country’s vast, rich and diverse coastal and marine resources are composed of coral reefs, sea
grass beds, mangrove and beach forests, fisheries, invertebrates, seaweeds, marine mammals
and many others. These marine and coastal resources yield USD3.5 billion annually in goods
and services (World Bank Report 2011). About 60 percent of the total Philippines population
live in coastal zones and depend on these coastal resources for livelihoods. Unfortunately, the
Philippines is both geographically and meteorologically one of the world’s natural hazard
“hot spots” where tropical cyclones, storm surges, floods and droughts have already been part
of the country’s history and culture.
World Bank (2011) records show that there has been an increase in the frequency of cyclones
entering the Philippines Area of Responsibility from 1990 to 2003. Recent evidence suggests
a tendency for wetter conditions during the dry season, as the frequency of heavy storms
during this period have increased. Moreover, the number and the inter-annual variability of
rainy days have increased since 1990s. While there is an overall projection of rainfall
increase, there are significant regional variations. For provinces in the Southern Tagalog
Region, a 60–100 percent increase in annual rainfall is projected (PAG-ASA Report 2011). In
terms of sea levels, it is projected to rise by the end of the century (2090-2099) by 0.35m
(0.23m to 0.47m), although the spatial manifestation of this rise will not be uniform due to
circulation changes and ocean density.
The study covered four barangays in two municipalities in the Southern Tagalog Region.
Two of these barangays, Hugom and Catmon, are from the coastal municipality of San Juan,
Batangas. The municipality has often experienced climate related hazards like typhoon, storm
surge and flooding. Based from the anecdotal reports, the residents have also noticed that the
sea has encroached inland as a result of sea level rise for the past 20 years. Over the last five
years, sea level surrounding the Verde Island Passage, for which San Juan is considered to be
its “center of the center” has been increasing at 0.5 to 1.0 mm per year (CI 2009). This sea
level rise could lead to inundation of low-lying wetland and dryland areas, erosion, saltwater
intrusion, increased risk of flooding and storm damage. Specifically for the two barangays,
the climate risks to address include coastal erosion, typhoon and flooding. With coastal
resources serving the community the majority of its needs, it is critical that something should
be done in order to address the geophysical impacts of the confluence of these hazards in
order to minimize its adverse effects.
The other two barangays are Binduyan and Babuyan located northeast of the City of Puerto
Princesa, Palawan facing Honda Bay. The City Government of Puerto Princesa (GIS Map of
Puerto Princesa 2011) identified areas in northeastern portion of the city that are prone to
flooding including these two barangays. Some of the recent (2007-2010) flooding events in
the area are attributed to heavy rains alone. Typhoon incidence also is becoming more
frequent and stronger in the last 10 years.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
A common framework was used in analyzing climate change hazards, vulnerabilities,
impacts, policies and adaptation options in the study sites. Figure 1 illustrates the flow of
methodologies that was used to come up with a comprehensive basis for analysis that
addressed both the differences in the situations across site and the commonalities that allowed
comparisons and generate lessons learned not only terms of results but the approaches used
for arriving at these results.
Community
FGDs
Hazard
Analysis/
Mapping
Vulnerability
Analysis
CEA of
Identified
Planned
Adaptation
Field Survey
Vulnerable
sectors or
population/
sectors at
risk
Autonomous
Adaptation
and Coping
Mechanisms
Sampling
Frame for
Field Survey
Figure 1. General flow of methodologies
Valuation of
Damages
Vulnerability
Index (VEP)
Climate change, in general is expected to affect coastal communities through a rise in sea
surface temperature (SST), sea level rise (SLR), and changes in precipitation. As a
consequence, water resources, agriculture, human health, fisheries, tourism and human
settlements in these areas will be at risk. This study contends however, that coastal
communities face a confluence of risks. For instance, typhoons result to both inundation and
coastal erosion. Focusing on SLR for instance and attributing all damages to SLR can
therefore be misleading. The impact of SLR is often magnified by storm surges and typhoons.
Therefore, this study will deal with multiple threats coming from Typhoon/ Flooding and
Coastal Erosion as the primary hazards or risks. To analyze the impacts of these hazards as
well as responses of households, local governments, and communities a variety of methods
were used.
Vulnerability Assessment
Community-Based Assessment
The first step in the analysis was the qualitative assessment of the vulnerability of coastal
communities to climate hazards. As in any vulnerability assessment, the bio-geophysical
impacts of the climate hazards were identified and quantified. This involved delineating
areas, resources, population, and capital at risk. The general approach that was taken to
implement a preliminary vulnerability assessment was a community-based/participatory
approach. This was undertaken to generate a more in-depth understanding of the potential
social impacts of the climate hazards as well as verify the existence of important issues
related to climate hazards from the perspective of those who are directly affected, i.e. the
communities.
Focus Group Discussions (FGD) with members of the community who represent various
sectors of the society were conducted to identify the relevant issues related to climate change
and its impacts. The FGD also served as a venue to gather information that helped refine the
household survey instrument that was used. Various toolkits and guidebooks for communitybased and participatory vulnerability and adaptation assessments have already been
developed (see for example Regmi, Morcette, Paudyal, Bastakoti & Pradhan, 2010; Reid,
Cannon, Berger, Alam & Milligan, 2009) and necessary adjustments and modifications were
made to suit local conditions in the project sites.
The toolkit that was developed for the project included modules for (1) Historical Timeline
Analysis, (2) Development of Vulnerability Matrices, (3) Hazard Mapping and Physical
Vulnerability Mapping and (4) Household and Sectors at Risk from Bio-geophysical Impacts
of Vulnerable Areas and Sectors.
Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) with the community were also conducted to determine the
adaptation activities and policies that are already being undertaken (i.e. autonomous
adaptation). Local government officials were interviewed to identify past, current and
proposed interventions aimed at reducing the vulnerability of these local communities.
Through the FGDs, adaptation objectives and adaptation gaps were established. This served
as a crucial input in identifying new adaptation strategies that can increase resilience of
coastal communities. Selected existing adaptation strategies and proposed adaptation options
were then subjected to cost-effectiveness analysis.
Vulnerability as an Expected Poverty
Quantitative assessment of household vulnerability was the next step in the flow of
methodologies. The quantitative assessment was meant to complement qualitative
information already gathered from the FGDs. There are basically two quantitative
approaches: the index based approach and the econometric based approach. Because the
index-based approach suffers from arbitrariness, in particular in the way weights are set
arbitrarily to come up with an index, this study has opted to use an econometric approach.
The approach adopted for the study utilizes the concept of Vulnerability as an Expected
Poverty (VEP). This is an econometric approach in measuring the vulnerability of
households. In the VEP framework, vulnerability is defined as the probability that households
or individuals will move to poverty in the future or fall below a minimum consumption
threshold level, given certain shocks (Chaudhuri, 2003). These shocks may include the
occurrence of climate extremes or climate variability.
The analytical procedure followed the work of Chaudhuri, Jalan & Suryahadi (2002) and
Deressa, Hassan & Ringler (2008). First, it is assumed that the stochastic process that
generates the consumption of a household is given by:
The variable
is per capita consumption expenditure,
is a vector of observable
household characteristics,
is a vector of parameters, and
is a mean-zero disturbance
term which captures shocks. The model assumes that the variance of is given by:
and
were estimated using the three-step feasible generalized least squares (FGLS)
method (Amemiya, 1977). Using the estimates of
and , the expected log consumption
for each household
was computed:
As well as the variance of log consumption:
By assuming that consumption is log-normally distributed, the above were used to estimate
the probability that a household with the characteristics,
, will be poor (which is
essentially the household’s vulnerability level) using:
Where
(.) denote the cumulative density of the standard normal distribution and
is the
log of the minimum consumption level, below which a household would be called vulnerable.
The study used the World Bank minimum consumption threshold level of USD 1.25 per
capita per day. The analysis is based from the assumption that climate extremes or climate
shocks, particularly, typhoon, flood and drought will have an influence on the probability that
households’ consumption will fall below a given minimum level (Deressa, Hassan & Ringler,
2009).
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Adaptation Options
Another objective of the study is to look at the economic viability of different planned
adaptation options, i.e. adaptation options that can be implemented by communities or local
governments. Since the complete array of benefits from various adaptation options is difficult
to monetize, Cost-Effectiveness Analysis (CEA) was used as an evaluation tool. The decision
criterion of CEA was to choose the option that can achieve a specific objective at the least
cost. In cases where the objective of adaptation is multiple, CEA can be applied if one
objective can be expressed in the other by assigning importance (weight) to the objectives.
Cost-effectiveness is measured in terms of cost per unit of outcome effectiveness, for
example, cost per life saved. To compute this, one has to divide the budgetary cost of each
adaptation option i, denoted by Ci, by the effectiveness (or physical measure of benefit) of
that option, Ei. Mathematically, it can be shown as
CEi 
Ci
Ei
The CE ratio can be interpreted as the average cost per unit of effectiveness. In other words,
the most cost-effectiveness adaptation option has the lowest average cost per unit of
effectiveness.
In the climate change context, adaptation projects may incur cost at different times over the
life of the project. To reflect this change, the equation above can be modified as follows:
T
CEi 
C
t 0
it
/(1  r )t
Ei
CEA Assumptions (Batangas)
Five adaptation options were subjected to CEA, the construction of a sea wall, mangrove
reforestation, establishment of an early warning system, land zoning, and implementation of a
livelihood program. The proposed sea wall will be 3 meters in height and 1 meter thick. It
will have an underwater base that is 1.5 meters high and 3 meters thick. The proposed
construction materials are a combination of concrete and boulders, stacked to form a wall.
The mangrove reforestation would consist of propagules from the species already prevailing
in the site to ensure that the rate of survival would be relatively high. Through an effective
early warning system the number of avoidable and unnecessary deaths and property damage
could be reduced dramatically. In this study, this option also includes effective response
system involving evacuation and provision of temporary shelter. Because of budget
constraints, the temporary shelter would be in schools and in public gymnasiums. Land
zoning through the Comprehensive Land Use Program (CLUP) is an important option to
minimize the damage posed by typhoon and flooding. Through the CLUP, development in
lands that are flood prone will be prohibited. Also, subdivision developers will be required to
undertake flood proofing measures as part of the strategy, while informal settlers living near
the river banks will be relocated. Experiences in other countries had shown that the ability to
cope with increasing climatic hazards is highly dependent on the ability to diversify income
sources (Truong 2007). For the livelihood program, barangay residents would be provided an
opportunity to be trained in an off-shore, non-fishing source of livelihood. After the initial
round of training, they will be assisted in terms of management and financial aspects of the
business that they will set-up. Access to credit would also be part of the package.
Based from the best estimates of key informants, composed of an officer from the Provincial
Government Environment and Natural Resources Office (PGENRO), a civil engineer, an
NGO official engaged in mangrove reforestation and officers from the Municipal Agriculture
Office and Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council, the following assumptions about the
cost and impacts of the options were made:
The cost of seawall construction is about PhP 7.5M (USD174,054) for 1000 linear meter,
while the maintenance cost is PhP 50,000 (USD 1,160) annually. For the mangrove
reforestation, initial cost is PhP 300,000 (USD 6,962) with an annual maintenance and
monitoring cost of PhP 60,000 (USD 1,392). The cost of developing an integrated drainage
and flood control system is PhP 4M (USD92,829) spread over 2 years until its full
completion. Maintenance cost of the drainage system is at PhP 100,000 (USD2,321)
annually. CLUP formulation and revision is PhP 3M (USD69,622) while PhP 100,000
(USD2,321) is provided for the annual monitoring and evaluation of the zoning ordinance.
For the livelihood project, an investment of PhP 5M (USD116,036) is assumed for the first
two years, and a yearly monitoring and evaluation cost of PhP100,000 (USD2,321) is
expected. The early warning system will require an initial cost of PhP 2M (USD 46,414) in
the first year, with an operations cost of PhP 100,000 (USD 2,321) yearly, thereafter. The
annual cost for temporary shelter during calamities is PhP500,000 (USD 11,604) which
decreases by 10% annually starting at year 5 as a result of the assumed increasing
effectiveness of the early warning system. As part of the zoning implementation, PhP10M
(USD232,072) is allotted for relocation spread over the first five years.
It is assumed that the total number of households that will benefit from the projects is 500.
There is no benefit for the sea wall in the first year while the structure is being constructed.
The benefit of having the protection from coastal erosion starts at the 5th year when
mangrove propagules become fully matured grown trees and it is assumed to increase
through time. It is assumed that as the mangrove propagules become full-grown and mature
trees as time passes by, their ability to stabilize the shore increases. It further assumes a 60%
rate of survival for the propagules.
CEA Assumptions (Palawan)
In Palawan, the adaptation options included in the analysis are summarized in table 1.
Table 1. Adaptation Options/Strategies in Palawan
SITE
BABUYAN
OBJECTIVES
To protect the household from storm
surges and loss of property, and
minimize sand erosion
To prevent river overflow and minimize
siltation that cause damages to coconut
plantations and fishponds.
To protect household from inland
flooding.
BINDUYAN
To protect households from strong
waves and storm surges
ADAPTATION OPTIONS
Breakwater Construction
Dike/levee Construction
Mangrove Reforestation
Riverbank rehabilitation using vetiver grass
Riverbank rehabilitation using vetiver grass
combined with mechanical method
Dike construction
River dredging
Upland reforestation
IEC/Establish early warning system and
provision of temporary evacuation center
Relocate affected households to safer place
Breakwater Construction
Mangrove Reforestation
Seawall Construction
Relocation of affected households
In Babuyan, the construction of a breakwater is expected to benefit 200 households living in
the coastal areas as well as a stretch of 6.3 kilometers of coastline. It is assumed that one
kilometer of shoreline will benefit 32 households (7.83 km shoreline with 251 HH residents).
The dike on the other hand will be constructed on the mouth of the river and will benefit only
126 households. Mangrove reforestation is expected to provide progressive benefits. It was
assumed that only around 10% of the expected household beneficiaries will benefit on the
fifth year and the number will increase by 25 households every year for the next four years.
In riverbank rehabilitation, the overflow of the river and siltation are expected to be
addressed. Using the Vetiver grass alone, eight hectares of fishponds and coconut plantations
will be protected from river overflow on the first year. On the second year, 24 hectares will
be protected and an increase of 20 percent is expected every year thereafter. The target
reduction in erosion and siltation is at least 80 percent and the full benefit is expected to start
on the 7th year. The impact of riverbank rehabilitation using the Vetiver grass combined with
mechanical method is assumed to be greater because of the additional materials used to
reinforce the capacity of the grass in holding the soil. In the case of coral reefs, benefit will
start on the 4th year. Dike construction along the mouth of the river will benefit a total of 107
hectares of coconut plantations, fishponds and coral reefs combined. Riverbed clearing as an
option which will be done annually will likewise benefit a total of 91.5 hectares of coconut
plantations, fishponds and coral reefs. The operation will require almost 3 months to
complete. Finally, 126 household are believed to benefit from upland reforestation. Expected
benefit will commence on the 6th year and will multiply at the rate of 25 households per year.
Likewise, half of the total household is seen to avoid any disaster that will come to the
community if a disaster warning system will be put in place. This option will go hand in hand
with the establishment of temporary evacuation centers. Furthermore, relocating the
community is another option. Their relocation is planned to be done in two batches. The first
batch will be composed of 125 households and after a year the last 126 households will
follow.
For Babuyan, both the breakwater and seawall are expected to provide a constant protection
to the households and the coastline. Breakwater is expected to provide 80% protection to the
household living in the coastal area due to the fact that the length of the breakwater will not
cover the full length of the coastline. Aside from the households being protected, the degree
of erosion is also expected to be minimized and about 90% or 8.58 kilometers of the total
coastal areas will be protected.
The cost assumptions for the planned adaptation options are presented in Table 2. There was
no identified maintenance cost for the structures. It was given that assuming the construction
process followed strictly the standard for seawall, dike and breakwater no cost will be
incurred within the specified effective life of the structures under normal conditions.
Mangroves planted during reforestation were computed to have 80 percent survival rate thus,
20 percent of the seedlings planted need to be replenished the following year.
Table 2. Cost assumptions for planned adaptation options
Adaptation Options/Cost Items
Breakwater Construction
Construction Cost
Dike Construction
Construction Cost
Mangrove Reforestation
Planting Material
Planting Material
Labor
Relocation of affected HH
Acquisition of Land/Devt
House Construction
House Construction
Volume
Cost per
Unit (USD)
100
298.68
1,000
34.81
50,000
300
50,000
0.30
0.12
1
125
126
23,210
1,160.36
1,160.36
Total Cost USD
(‘000)
298.68
298.68
34.81
34.81
5,819.67
15.08
0.09
5804.5
314.46
23.21
145.05
146.21
Year Cost
Incurred
Y0
Y0
Y0
Y1
Y0
Y0
Y1
Riverbank Rehab Using Vetiver Grass
Planting Materials
Labor
Transport
Replanting
Riverbank Rehab Using Vetiver Grass
combined with mechanical method.
Planting Material
Labor
Materials Needed
Labor for Landscaping
Replanting of vetiver grass
Dike/levee construction
Construction Cost
Rehabilitation Cost (90% of the construction
cost)
Clearing of Riverbed
Backhoe/Dredger Rent
Fuel
Oil/lubricants
Wages
Upland Reforestation
Seedlings (free)
Trans. Cost
Replanting
Replanting
Replanting
Labor Cost
IEC/Establish disaster warning system and
provision of temporary evacuation center
Supplies and Materials
Prep of temporary evacuation centers
18,000
90
1
0.01
0.20
2.00
9.28
4.18
0.42
0.05
4.64
Y0
41.35
4.18
0.42
23.21
8.91
4.64
66.14
18,000
90
1
1
0.00023
0.005
23.21
8.91
Y0
Y0
Y0
Y0
1000
34.81
31.33
34.81
Y0
320
4,800
1
40
34.81
1.39
1.16
13.92
19.54
11.14
6.68
1.16
0.56
749.09
Y0
Y0
Y0
Y0
5000
1000
200
40
6240
0.05
0.05
0.05
0.05
0.12
0.23
0.05
0.01
0.002
748.8
Y0
Y1
Y2
Y3
0.23
1
0.23
0.23
1160.9
Y0
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The common and dominant threats in all the study sites are sea level rise (SLR) and extreme
events such as typhoons, and to some degree storm surges. The attendant bio-geophysical
impacts from the confluence of these hazards are coastal erosion and flooding/inundation.
Table 3 presents the summary of climate change issues and related concerns in the area. The
study concentrated on the impacts brought about by the confluence of these hazards as it is
difficult to separate or attribute a bio-geophysical impact to just say SLR.
Table 3: Summary of climate change hazards, impacts and other issues in the study sites
Batangas
Hazards
 sea level rise
 coastal erosion
Confounding Environmental Issues
 sand quarrying
 illegal charcoal making using mangroves &
other species
 illegal fishing using blasting and cyanide (nonresident)
 use of fine mesh net and superlight in fishing
Impacts
 damage to property (hotels, resort, houses and
boat) during typhoon or low pressure area
Palawan
Hazards
 more frequent and intense typhoons
 floods
Confounding Environmental Issues
 mangroves cut for charcoal, housing and fencing
materials
 weak enforcement of coastal laws
 illegal fishing
 burning of some upland areas to give way for rice
farming (kaingin)
 growing private beachfront property development for
housing and resorts
 lack of protection for the fish sanctuary because the
guard house was destroyed by a typhoon
 coral bleaching and increasing number of
crown of thorns
 impacts to livelihood and tourism in
vulnerable coastal areas
 a number of houses were relocated because of
coastal erosion
 houses, boats, and trees are washed out during
typhoons
 decrease in fish catch during typhoons
 mangrove areas, coral reefs, marine protected
area and beaches were also found at risk due to
climate change
Impacts
 water advances towards their homes
 change in the fish species caught
 more houses and more bancas were destroyed as a
result of typhoons
 coral bleaching outside of the sanctuary
 decreased area of land due to coastal erosion
 increased temperature killed a substantial number of
the traditionally gleaned shells along the coastline
 sea water is hotter during the 3-4 pm gleaning activity
 landslide; siltation extends up to 2 kilometers on both
sides of a nearby river
 bangus fry collected for the past 5-6 years declined
significantly
Similarly for all study sites there are also various factors that exacerbate the damages from
these bio-geophysical impacts. In the case of San Juan, Batangas, sand quarrying has
hastened coastal erosion from rising sea levels and storm surges. Illegal fishing has also been
observed that confounds the impact of SLR on declining fish stock and recruitment potential.
Charcoal making also has led to a decrease in the mangrove area in the study site. The same
contributory factors were observed in the Palawan project site. An additional factor in Honda
Bay, Palawan is the extensive foreshore developments that have hastened coastal erosion.
There is a variety of autonomous adaptation that was documented in the study sites. The
behavior of households in particular the way they choose responses to climate change is quite
diverse. Tables 4 and 5 enumerate current and potential initiatives and projects on climate
change adaptation and disaster mitigation in the study areas. Some initiatives documented in
the table cover and respond to attendant confounding factors but may not contribute directly
to increasing the adaptive capacity of households. Nevertheless, they are important in so far
as creating an environment that enhances the effects of planned as well as autonomous
adaptations.
Table 4: Initiatives and projects on climate change adaptation and disaster mitigation in
Batangas
Government-led Initiatives
 Organizing the Municipal Disaster
Risk Management Council
(MDRMC)
 Financial assistance to boat men
affected by typhoons (Php 1,000 –
Php 2,000).;
 Establishment of the Municipal
Tourism Office (MTO)
 Enlarging and dredging of rivers to
prevent flooding
 Regular conduct of Information,
Education and Communication (IEC)
campaigns
 Maintaining and Enhancing Marine
Protected Areas (MPAs) and
mangrove areas
 “Billion of Trees Project”. Planting
of forest tree species and fruit
bearing trees in 400 hectares of
Communitybased Initiatives
 Aquaculture
activities as a
source of
livelihood (i.e.
shrimp, red
crab, bangus)
 Fish
processing
 Mangrove
planting
 Regular
collection of
crown of
thorns (COT)
by the resort
owners
Autonomous
Adaptation
Options
 Relocation
of houses
 Planting and
selling of
mangrove
seedlings
 Temporary
removal of
light
structures in
beach areas
upon the
earliest sign
of a low
pressure area
Available Resources
 MDRMC has a budget
amounting to 5% to 20%
of the Municipal
Development Fund;
 Budget allocation of Php
300,000 for MPAs.
 Soup kitchen in case of
emergency and calamity;
 2-way radio (donated by
First Philippine
Conservation
International)
 UST Biological station
at Brgy. Imelda
 5 Patrol boats, binocular,
GPS, laptop, 2 cameras,
projector and 6 life vests
(donated by
Conservation
International)
upland, lowland and sea areas. In
2009, 6 hectares have been replanted.
Table 5: Initiatives and projects on climate change adaptation and disaster mitigation in
Palawan
Government-led Initiatives
 Ordinance Enacting the Code of
Conduct for the Conservation,
Protection and Restoration (CPR) of
the Sources of Life of the City of
Puerto Princesa
 On-going flood control project and
plans to put up breakwaters to
prevent destruction of fishponds and
as protection to the rising waters
 Plan to reforest mangroves and put
up a watch tower in the upland
reforested area
 Organization of the Barangay
Disaster Risk Management Council
(BDDRMC)
Communitybased Initiatives
 Establishment
and expansion
of the fish
sanctuary
 Communitybased early
warning system
(going from
house to house)
 Bio-engineering
of riverbanks to
prevent siltation
and erosion
Autonomous
Adaptation Options
 Keeping the
integrity of home
lots facing the
coastal area by
using indigenous
materials like 3 to 4
inch wooden stakes,
rocks and bamboo
slats to contain soil
and sand (riprap)
 Resort owners use
cement and rocks to
control coastal
erosion in their
respective areas
Available
Resources
 Each barangay
have their own
Barangay Disaster
Risk Management
Council
(BDDRMC) and
has calamity
funds allocated
per year
 Non-government
organizations
engaged are
mobilized during
disasters
Vulnerability Assessment and Impacts of Climate Hazards
Participatory mapping activities were conducted to illustrate detailed information of village
layout and infrastructure from the community residents themselves. These are vital to capture
a better understanding of the livelihood strategies and assets of the communities in the study
area, their dependence on different resources, the climate changes they perceived, their
capacity to cope with these changes, to assess their needs, as well as to gain information on
the role of different institutions in supporting them to cope with and adapt to perceived
changes. In addition, hazard and physical vulnerability mapping were performed to identify
the areas and resources at risk from climate hazards as perceived by the residents. Table 6
presents the primary hazards identified in each study site based on the vulnerability matrix
and comparative ranking of hazards. Sectors that are highly dependent on coastal and marine
ecosystems or resources (e.g. fisheries and tourism) are those greatly affected by these
hazards.
Table 6: Primary hazards and most vulnerable sectors
Hazards
Primary CC Hazards
Highly Vulnerable Sectors
Batangas
Typhoon and Flooding
Fisheries, Tourism & Housing
Palawan
Typhoon and Flooding
Fisheries and Health
Results from the household survey confirm earlier information obtained from the FGDs.
Valuation of household damages arising from flooding and typhoons, coastal erosion, and
saltwater intrusion reveal that most of the impact is on the earning capacity of coastal
communities. Disruption of income generating activities is inevitable since most of these
communities are resource dependent. Loss in income due to work disruption is almost twice
the value of damages in assets including damage to houses. This is perhaps not surprising
because these households are often very poor thus the value of their assets is also
comparatively very low.
Damages or disruption to income eventually redounds to a decline in consumption. This
study exploits this to derive an empirical measure of the vulnerability of households. As a
measure of vulnerability, the VEP framework was used. The estimates show the probability
that a household will fall below the minimum consumption threshold level at which they will
be considered as poor. The threshold used is the World Bank minimum of USD1.25 per
capita per day. The estimates range from 0 to 1, with 0 having the lowest vulnerability and 1
the highest vulnerability. In this study, it is assumed that households with a VEP estimate of
0.00 to 0.49 are considered not vulnerable, those with 0.50 to 0.79 are considered moderately
vulnerable and 0.80 to 1.0 are highly vulnerable. Separate regression analysis was undertaken
for each of the study site. The explanatory variables used are gender and education of the
household head, dependency ratio (number of members who are younger than 15 and older
than 64 years of age over household size), value of household assets, number of contacts for
credit, percentage of income from agriculture, fishery and forestry, dummy variables of
whether household is involved in farming, fishing, gleaning, and livestock raising; number of
floods experienced by household, and dummy variables for erosion and saltwater intrusion.
It was found that mean vulnerability estimate for all households for Palawan is at 0.51 while
Batangas is at 0.38. Mean VEP estimates for the highly vulnerable group in Batangas and
Palawan are 0.88 and 0.87, respectively (Table 7). In terms of incidence, or the percentage of
households considered vulnerable, Palawan is at 56% while Batangas is at 42%. The
incidence of those who are considered highly vulnerable is at 22% for Palawan and 15% for
Batangas. Figure 2 presents the household distribution according to their vulnerability level.
Table 7. Mean VEP estimates and number of households at different vulnerability levels.
Site
Batangas
Palawan
Vulnerability Level
Not vulnerable
Moderately vulnerable
Highly vulnerable
All Households
Not vulnerable
Moderately vulnerable
Highly vulnerable
All Households
Batangas
Mean VEP
172
81
44
297
130
101
67
298
0.11
0.68
0.88
0.38
0.18
0.69
0.87
0.51
Highly
vulnerable
22%
Highly
vulnerable
15%
Moderatel
y
vulnerable
27%
Number of HH
Not
vulnerable
58%
Standard
Deviation
0.14
0.09
0.05
0.34
0.17
0.07
0.05
0.32
Not
vulnerable
44%
Moderately
vulnerable
34%
Palawan
Figure 2. Distribution of households according to level of vulnerability.
One of the primary purposes of vulnerability assessment is to generate information that can
aid in decision making. Hence, after identifying who the vulnerable households are, we need
to describe their characteristics and analyze their profile. Such information can serve as a
guide for the government; private organizations, as well as the community themselves, in
strategizing how best to implement an adaptation program. Specifically, we looked at the
primary occupation of the household head, their perceptions about their knowledge and
preparedness to deal with future climate change impacts, and the damages and impacts that
they have experienced from past climate related hazards and events. Looking at the role of
gender also provided interesting insights.
Majority of vulnerable households are headed by persons whose primary occupation is in the
agriculture, fishery and forestry sector (table 8). Hence, it makes sense to implement
interventions that target this particular group. It is important to note that this sector is highly
sensitive to external shocks including those brought about by climate change. For instance,
typhoon and flooding can destroy standing crops and fish pens. It can also prohibit fishermen
and forest gatherers (who rely on their daily catch/collections to provide nourishment to their
family) from going out to sea or to the forest. One strategy could be livelihood diversification
and income augmentation. Training and credit provision to support alternative livelihoods
may be pursued towards this end. The possibility of providing insurance may also be
explored. In Batangas, however, a significant proportion of vulnerable households has heads
who are laborers; service-oriented/ trade /unskilled workers; or plant and machine operators.
Hence, it is also beneficial to implement interventions that target this sector.
Table 8. Primary occupation of heads of vulnerable households (percentage distribution)
Site
Batangas
Palawan
Farmers, fishers,
hunter/gatherers,
foresters
55
73
Service-oriented workers,
trade and related workers,
plant and machine operators,
laborers and unskilled workers
25
13
Officials, managers and
business owners, professionals,
technicians, clerks, and special
occupations
10
4
Knowledge and information are crucial elements in ensuring that households are able to
withstand or minimize the impacts of climate change. In Batangas, majority of the vulnerable
households revealed that they have little or no knowledge about climate change and its
impacts (table 9). For these sites, it may be necessary for climate change adaptation programs
to include information dissemination activities. For Palawan, on the other hand, the trend is
quite different, with a significant proportion (38%) revealing that at the very least their
knowledge about climate change is adequate.
Table 9. Level of knowledge of vulnerable households about climate change (percentage
distribution).
Site
Batangas
Palawan
No information
47
14
A little bit of
knowledge
40
48
Adequate
knowledge
11
36
Fully
knowledgeable
2
2
In table 10, it is shown that a small proportion of the vulnerable households (63%) in
Batangas (22%) and Palawan (12%) consider themselves unprepared for future climate
change hazards. The proportion of households claiming that they are at least adequately
prepared is at 48% for Palawan while 34% in Batangas.
Table 10. Distribution of vulnerable households based on their preparedness to deal with
future impacts of climate change (in percentage)
Site
Batangas
Palawan
Not prepared
22
12
Somewhat
prepared
43
39
Adequately
prepared
23
35
Fully prepared
11
13
Looking at the impact of past hazards on vulnerable households can also serve as a guide to
the strategic formulation and targeting of adaptation programs. It is a means by which we can
roughly assess the adaptation needs of the communities living in the study site. Major impact
for vulnerable households in Batangas is income loss due to work stoppage, loss of fishing
income, damage to houses, and gastrointestinal illnesses. Again this highlights the need to
augment income sources of vulnerable households. This also means that healthcare provision
may be necessary to address their needs. For Palawan, impacts seem to be quite minimal
affecting only a small percentage of the vulnerable households. Among these, gastrointestinal
illness among household members had the highest incidence. The most significant impacts
that households reported are damage to house as well as household appliances. Since the
primary cause of these damages are erosion and sea level rise, it might be reasonable to
consider relocation of affected households away from the shoreline.
The role of gender still remains to be controversial. Some argue that women are more
vulnerable since majority of the world’s poor are women and most women are largely
dependent on livelihoods that rely heavily on the use of natural resources. The latter reason
makes women more susceptible because natural resource intensive livelihoods are very
sensitive to shocks. On the other hand, some contend that women play an important role in
adaptation which essentially reduces household’s vulnerability. Nonetheless, it is important
that adaptation programs should be gender sensitive. Table 11 shows the distribution of
vulnerable households based on gender of household head. For all sites, although majority of
the vulnerable households are male-headed. In terms of incidence of vulnerability, it can be
seen that it is higher for males in Batangas, at 43% but higher for females in Palawan at 74%
(Table 12).
Table 11. Distribution of vulnerable households based on gender of household head
(percentage share).
Site
Batangas
Palawan
Male
83
88
Female
17
12
Table 12. Incidence of vulnerability for male- and female-headed households (in percent).
Site
Batangas
Palawan
Male
43
55
Female
39
74
Valuation of Damages from Climate Change Hazards
Batangas
Since coastal population in San Juan is highly dense, they are likewise highly exposed to the
adverse impact of climate change emanating from the sea. Majority of the respondents (62%)
have been affected by approximately less than ten typhoons from year 2001-2010. These
typhoons inundated their houses as a result of typhoons with heavy rains and from heavy
rains coupled with typhoon plus high tide and storm surge. According to them, the highest
flood depth level they encountered was 5 feet which happened in 2010. Furthermore, they
revealed that it took them six (6) days before recovering from the financial impacts of the
worst flood, and 1-7 days to recover from the emotional distress and to go back to their
normal situation.
Flooding is generally associated to the overflow of the rivers in their town. The flooding was
not due to the extraordinary rise in sea level although they said that when the sea level if
extremely high, the waves would normally reach their houses, especially those living 5 to 10
meters away from the shore.
For coastal erosion/sea level rise, the respondents noticed that the sea is slowly moving
inland. Anecdotal reports would point to several houses being taken away by the sea and a
significant number of coconut trees being eroded away.
Based from the survey results, 30% of the respondents incurred damages to their livelihood
as a result of typhoon/flooding while 13% suffered damages due to coastal erosion. The
average damage per household amounts to PhP4,795.00 for those arising from
typhoon/flooding while those caused by coastal erosion amounts to an average of
PhP3,400.00/household.
Although there were no official reports on the exact damage to livelihood brought about by
typhoon, flooding and coastal erosion, survey reveals a total damage of PhP 441,290 per
occurrence. The damage to livelihood consists of loss from livestock production, loss of
fishing income, income loss due to work stoppage and loss of income from tourism-related
activities.
The respondents revealed that their livelihood is more vulnerable to the impacts of typhoon.
Since during a typhoon, most of the fishermen cannot go fishing, or for those who braved the
tumultuous waves of the sea, still did not have a good catch. Damages also account for
income loss due to work stoppage and also loss of business from tourism-related activities.
This means no income for the family for several days. According to the survey, most
respondents would normally have at least six days to recover from the financial stress brought
about by the typhoon.
In addition, damages to livelihood due to coastal erosion amount to PhP 134,430. This was
due to the inability of the households living near the shore to raise livestock since there is no
more space for them to build their pig pen. Coastal erosion also contributes to a loss of their
fishing income since they need to spend more on gasoline because the fishing area has
become farther away from the shore. Moreover, since they cannot dock their fishing boats
properly, maintenance costs for their boats have soared. For the beach resort owners, coastal
erosion affects their marketability. The respondents explained that when they needed to build
their private dike, they needed to minimize the intake of visitors, thus resulting to a loss in
income.
Survey shows that 9% of the respondents have suffered health problems due to
flooding/typhoon. They associated this to the efforts of the barangay health workers in
ensuring that the residents, especially the children and the elderly would be given adequate
health support.
In terms of damages to health, waterborne diseases which affected the respondents include
diarrhea, gastrointestinal problems, dengue and worms/helminths. Total damages amount to
PhP49,060.00 which translates to an average damage of PhP2,582.00 per household. These
costs were incurred mostly after a flooding/typhoon incident. On the contrary, coastal erosion
did not pose any health problems to the respondents.
Other than damages to livelihood and health, the occurrence of typhoon, flooding and coastal
erosion can also bring about damage to properties such as houses, boats and other assets.
Results show that 31% of the respondents have suffered other damages resulting from
typhoon/flooding and coastal erosion. The remaining majority revealed that they did not incur
any major damages to their properties for the past ten years.
Results showed that damages to houses and other properties are also significant amounting to
PhP525,450 as a result of typhoon and flooding while a total damage of PhP294,100 was
caused by coastal erosion. These other damages account for loss/damage to houses, boats,
cottages, appliances and other household assets.
Palawan
Climate-related events most notably typhoons, flooding, and storm surges can potentially
affect the livelihood of hundreds of residents in the flatter or plain and coastwise protected
regions of Barangay Babuyan more than the elevated, exposed sections of Barangay
Binduyan in Honda Bay. More livelihood opportunities are available in Barangay Babuyan
owing to more extensive plain areas that allow farming activities and fishpond production to
take place. Land-based livelihood opportunities in Barangay Binduyan are comparatively
lesser due to steep sloping and rugged terrain.
The data gathered in this study revealed, however, that while the residents were cognizant of
the impacts of climatic events on their livelihood, only a small segment of the population in
both barangays experience the negative impact of climate-related events to their livelihood.
Few households indicated the value of loss attributed to typhoons, flooding and storm surges.
Residents of Barangay Babuyan suffered the consequences of strong typhoons on their
fishing, farming (crops and livestock) an aquaculture activities from 2003 to 2008. Fishing
impacts include inability to fish due to strong gusts of wind because many of their boats
depend on wind power. Fish trading activities are affected. Strong wave action battered and
damaged their boats. Farming which consists mainly of rice and corn fall under heavy winds
and floods that result due to heavy rainfall. Grassfire occurred in 2003 that razed their
cropland. In 2009, the hot climate attributed to El Niño and increased incidence of pests in
2010 affected their crops. Also, the heavy rainfall associated with strong typhoons laid waste
the crops primarily affecting cashew plantations since the flowers are sensitive to moisture.
Fishponds overflow leading to the loss of cultured milkfish and tilapia. Overall, the
livelihood activities of residents in Barangay Babuyan are resource dependent, thus are
vulnerable to climatic changes.
In terms of value of damages to livelihood, agricultural production is the most affected
livelihood due to flooding in Babuyan. Affected households indicated a range of agricultural
production loss from PhP100 to PhP10,000 pesos. Notably, while only one fishpond owner
indicated loss due to flooding, the value of loss is high at PhP20,000.
Households in Binduyan indicated climate-related damages including flooding, grassfire,
erosion, landslide and drought. These events affected their sources of income like cashew and
banana plantations and subsistence activities like gleaning due primarily to episodes of hot
temperature in 1998 and 2009. Target species like squid and octopus declined in abundance.
Recently, the residents noted that there were more rainy days than hot days which affected
the flowering of cashew trees. Loss in fishing income stands out as the main impact of
flooding in Binduyan ranging from PhP200 to PhP21,000 across survey respondents.
Damages to health in Babuyan are associated with the onset of the rainy season. Among these
are malaria, typhoid fever, loose bowel movement, flu, dengue, pruritus, cough and colds.
The residents are aware that these sicknesses can be attributed to their lack of sanitary
comfort rooms, sound waste management practices and high coliform due to pigpens
constructed near the sea. In Binduyan, residents noted the incidence of sickness like malaria,
flu, hypertension, fever, and malnutrition especially among children.
Autonomous Adaptation to Major Climate Change Hazards
Having substantial knowledge on autonomous adaptation practices is vital in determining
complementary planned adaptation strategies that can reduce, or best, eliminate the damages
to households. The tables below initially reviewed the common practices against flooding of
households in barangays Catmon and Hugom in Batangas (Table 13), and Binduyan and
Babuyan in Palawan (Table 14) and against coastal erosion (Table 15) based on the results of
the household survey conducted.
Table 13. Autonomous adaptation and expenditures (in PhP) before and during/after flooding,
Catmon and Hugom, Batangas, 2002-2011
Autonomous Adaptation
Strategies
Catmon
(# of community/house floods : 15/91)
Before
During/After
no. of
no. of
expense
expense
adaptors
adaptors
Hugom
(# of community/house floods : 10/7)
Before
During/After
no. of
no. of
expense
expense
adaptors
adaptors
Undertook improvements
(repairs) to make house
74
59,100
56
59,100
26
43,600
more resilient to flooding
Evacuated to a safe place
22
9,000
20
6,000
7
1,500
Reinforced ponds/ fish
7
2,300
3
0
0
0
cages/ animal pens
Joined savings-credit
4
20
4
200
1
3,000
group/ cooperative
Pursued other means to
generate additional
15
1,680
12
500
1
0
income
Undertook other
6
0
107
0
0
0
preparations (activities)
Borrowed money
0
0
12
15,300
0
0
Saved money
0
0
81
0
0
0
TOTAL*
75,470
81,300
48,150
*totals may not add up based on the table items due to omission of small expense items
14
5,000
7
1,000
0
0
2
50,000
1
0
103
50
1
96
0
0
56,050
Table 14. Autonomous adaptation and expenditures (in PhP) before and during/after flooding,
Binduyan and Babuyan, Palawan, 2002-2011
Autonomous Adaptation
Strategies
Undertook improvements
(repairs) to make house
more resilient to flooding
Harvested (replanted)
crops or harvested
(replaced) fish early
Reinforced ponds/ fish
cages/ animal pens
Moved fishing or
farming equipment to
safe place
Pursued other means to
generate additional
income
Undertook other
preparations (activities)
Borrowed money
Saved money
Binduyan
(# of community/house floods : 10/13)
Before
During/After
no. of
no. of
expense
expense
adaptors
adaptors
Babuyan
(# of community/house floods : 10/54)
Before
During/After
no. of
no. of
expense
expense
adaptors
adaptors
5
950
3
850
8
27,300
9
18,400
3
5,000
1
2,000
0
0
3
2,500
0
0
0
0
1
2,000
2
32,000
0
0
0
0
1
10,000
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
2,000
6
2,000
0
0
50
0
0
0
182
0
0
0
0
0
1
39
3,000
0
0
0
0
0
2
175
1,400
0
TOTAL*
6,050
5,950
49,550
*totals may not add up based on the table items due to omission of small expense items
59,900
Table 15. Autonomous adaptation and expenditures (in PhP) for coastal erosion and SLR,
Catmon and Hugom, Batangas, and Binduyan and Babuyan, Palawan, 2002-2011
Autonomous Adaptation
Strategies
Catmon (# of
erosions affecting
community/hh :
11/109)
no. of
expense
adaptors
Hugom (# of
erosions affecting
community/hh :
4/16)
no. of
expense
adaptors
Binduyan (# of
erosions affecting
community/hh : 3/3)
no. of
adaptors
expense
Installed permanent
5
30,300
2
45,000
1
4,000
protective structures
Installed temporary and
semi-permanent protective
4
30,000
1
20,000
5
2,550
structures
Prepared for evacuation
18
2,260
4
0
1
500
but did not evacuate
Evacuated/ migrated to a
9
300
2
0
1
2,000
safe place temporarily
Evacuated/ migrated to a
4
3,000
0
0
0
0
safe place permanently
Planted mangrove trees
11
0
0
0
1
0
along the shoreline
Reinforced ponds/ fish
3
1,000
0
0
0
0
cages/ animal pens
Pursued other means to
7
2,500
2
0
3
1,000
generate added income
Availed crop insurance
2
5,000
0
0
0
0
Joined savings-credit
4
7,900
1
200
0
0
group/ cooperative
TOTAL*
85,860
65,200
10,050
*totals may not add up based on the table items due to omission of small expense items
Babuyan (# of
erosions affecting
community/hh :
7/1)
no. of
Expense
adaptors
2
7,000
0
0
1
300
0
0
0
0
1
5,000
1
10,000
0
0
0
0
0
0
22.300
With regard to the household adaptation strategies in the barangays studied in Batangas,
majority of the respondents improve their houses to make it more resilient to flooding and
typhoon. In order to cope with the adverse effects of coastal erosion, the respondents prefer to
undertake mangrove reforestation activities. Another interesting finding was that when the
respondents were asked what they will do in the future to cope with the impacts of flooding
and typhoon, they entertained the possibility of relocating permanently to a safer place.
Although firm to stay in the current place for as long as possible, majority revealed that if
their resources will just go to continuously improving and rehabilitating their houses after
every flooding or typhoon or when the sea further reach their place, it would be better to just
relocate somewhere else.
Similarly for the studied barangays in Palawan, house improvement was among the top
adaptation strategies done by the households against flooding. While there were only a very
small percentage of the residents who undertook coping mechanisms or adaptation in
response to flooding or typhoon in Babuyan, it is worth noting that among those affected,
house improvement for resiliency to flooding or typhoon was made is on top of the list. This
was followed by digging canals to facilitate water flow. None of these coping mechanisms
indicate that they are leaving their place of abode. In Binduyan, improvements to make the
house more resilient to flooding ranked second. Foremost in their list of coping mechanisms
is the planting of trees along the periphery of their property. Considering that more than a
fifth of the residents indicated so, this means that the residents put premium on trees as buffer
against typhoon or flooding.
While only a few responded to the threat of coastal erosion, temporary and semi-permanent
protective structures were installed by the residents of to reduce the impact of coastal erosion.
Many of them could not afford permanent protective structures as only one said so. However,
for fishpond owners, they are reinforcing and increasing the height of fishpond dikes to make
it resilient to erosion and high tide incidents to prevent losing the fishpond stocks. Another
adaptation considered by the owners is to place nets around the pond areas to also prevent
losing the stocks when the dike is breached and there is overflow of water.
Based on the estimated associated expenses for these adaptation practices presented above,
the following observations were made: (1) though it is obvious that households in the
barangays that experience flooding more frequently would more likely undertake adaptation
strategies during/after the incident, more households in these barangays also tend to
undertake preparations to protect them before a flooding event, (2) households in barangays
that invested greater amount in home improvements before flooding incurred less expenses
on the aftermath of the event (particularly in Batangas), (3) households tend to save money
after a flooding event in preparation for a possible recurrence, (4) household adaptations are
more common in areas where coastal erosion is prevalent, as households with more
experiences tend to adapt and prepare for such incidence, (5) the implication on the
damage(s) from climate change hazards for households undertaking autonomous adaptation
strategies is ambiguous as these same households usually receive the greater extent of
damage and, (6) household adaptation to climate change impacts in coastal areas are still
diverse with some becoming proactive, while others continue to be reactive.
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Planned Adaptation Options
The planned adaptation strategies were selected through consultation with the residents, key
individuals and officials of the community. After identifying the list of planned adaptation
strategies in the study areas, the options were evaluated using cost-effectiveness analysis.
Tables 16 and 17 presents the CEA conducted for each of the site.
Table 16: CEA for Batangas
Objectives
Protect the
coastline from
eroding
Increase the
number of
households
saved from
typhoon/flooding
(combination of
objectives 2 & 3)
Planned Adaptation
Strategies
Construction of a sea wall
Mangrove reforestation
Zoning provisions
according to revised and
updated CLUP
Improvement of typhoon
early warning system and
provision of emergency
evacuation and shelter
Integrated drainage and
flood control system and
diversification of livelihood
CE
Ratio
0.16M USD/linear
km of erosion
prevented
0.01M USD/
linear km of
erosion prevented
0.07M USD/HH
saved
0.04M USD/HH
saved
0.10M USD/HH
saved
Result
Mangrove reforestation is not only
more cost effective, but also offers
other co-benefits like additional
sources of income, and preservation of
marine biodiversity
Although the improvement of typhoon
early warning system with provision
of emergency evacuation is the most
cost effective, the construction of an
integrated drainage and flood control
system with livelihood diversification
is highly acceptable among the
stakeholders
Table 17: CEA for Palawan
Site
Objectives
Planned Adaptation
Strategies
CE Ratio
Result
Babuyan
To protect the household
from storm surges and
Breakwater Construction
0.276M
USD/HH
Mangrove reforestation is
cost effective in protecting
loss of property, and
minimize sand erosion
To prevent river
overflow and minimize
siltation that cause
damages to coconut
plantations and
fishponds
Dike/ levee Construction
0.032M
USD/HH
Mangrove Reforestation
0.019M
USD/HH
Riverbank rehabilitation
using vetiver grass
Riverbank rehabilitation
using vetiver grass
combined with
mechanical method
Dike construction
River dredging
Upland reforestation
To protect household
from inland flooding.
IEC/Establish early
warning system and
provision of temporary
evacuation center
Relocate affected
households to safer place
Breakwater Construction
Binduyan
To protect households
from strong waves and
storm surges.
Mangrove Reforestation
Seawall Construction
Relocation of affected
households
0.004M
USD/Ha
0.034M
USD/Ha
0.032M
USD/Ha
0.002M
USD/Ha
926
USD/HH
120
USD/HH
the households and
properties, and in
minimizing sand erosion
where mangrove has seen to
thrive well
The discussion on the
planned options and CE
ratios focused on prioritizing
Riverbed Dredging at the
same time also undertake
Riverbank Rehabilitation
using Vetiver Grass alone
The IEC is cost effective but
success depends on the
maturity of the residents to
react accordingly
2,234
USD/HH
0.277M
USD/HH
0.009M
USD/HH
0.00089M
USD/HH
0.0012
USD/HH
Officials agreed to prioritize
seawall construction but at
the same time, pursue
mangrove reforestation
appropriate for the area
Various planned adaptation options, which communities and local governments can
implement, were analyzed using cost effectiveness analysis. A consistent and common result
across three sites is that ecosystem based approaches are more cost effective than hard
infrastructure investments. This is true for the case of mangrove reforestation (whenever they
are applicable) when compared with sea walls, embankments, and breakwaters. In Batangas,
where livelihood diversification was considered for CEA, it was found that this intervention
which can augment the income-earning capacities of households is a cost-effective planned
adaptation option. As explained, the options considered for cost-effectiveness analysis were
identified by the stakeholders, which include the local government. There seem to be a
preponderance of protective measures as seen in the table when in fact, the main impact or
risks from these hazards is really on the livelihoods of coastal-based communities. There is
somewhat a disjoint in policy here. It is not to say that these initiatives are not needed. The
results merely point to the fact that for coastal communities any public initiative should
incorporate a livelihood diversification component.
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
This paper generally aims to understand public (planned) and private (autonomous)
adaptation of coastal communities against multiple climate related hazards by validating and
assessing climate change impacts, identifying the vulnerabilities and adaptation strategies of
households and communities, and evaluating the cost-effectiveness of planned adaptation
strategies to climate change in selected coastal areas in the Philippines. The focus was on
assessing the impacts from three climate hazards besetting coastal communities namely:
typhoon/ flooding and coastal erosion. It also analyzed planned adaptation options, which
communities and local governments can implement as well as the autonomous response of
households to protect and insure themselves from these hazards.
It utilized a variety of methodologies to gain a clearer picture of the interrelated issues in four
project sites in the Philippines. Methodologies ranged from community based approaches
such as community hazard mapping and focus group discussions to quantitative and
econometric methods. These approaches provided information for further activities in the
project. Specifically, the results of these community-based approaches were fed into a
household survey. The results of the household survey were analyzed using various
regression techniques.
The results show that indeed households in the coastal communities face a confluence of risks
and often adapt simultaneously to these risks. These risks have most impacts on the
livelihoods of households. Foregone income due to these risks is often twice as high as the
value of damages from loss of assets including the house. Both the household survey and the
FGDs lend evidence to this claim. We find this not surprising because households in these
communities are often poor and the value of their assets is often low. These eventually have
effects on their consumption. VEP or vulnerability measures show that the mean vulnerability
estimate for all households was highest for Palawan at 0.51. This means that, on average,
there is a 51% probability that households in Palawan will fall below the minimum
consumption threshold of USD1.25 per capita per day given shocks, including those that are
climate-related. The mean vulnerability estimate for all households in Batangas is at 0.38.
Accordingly, the incidence of vulnerability (or percentage of all households considered
vulnerable) is at 56% in Palawan (56%) and 42% in Batangas.
In terms of hazards and damages, the barangays studied in Batangas were found to be
exposed to the impacts of typhoon, flooding, and coastal erosion. The sectors highly
vulnerable to typhoon are fishing, tourism and housing while those highly vulnerable to the
impacts of flooding include housing and tourism. Similarly, fishing, housing and tourism are
highly vulnerable to the impacts of coastal erosion. Much of the damages to the livelihood are
brought by typhoon and flooding which amounts to PhP 306,860 while those arising from the
impacts of coastal erosion amounts to PhP 134,430. Damages to health amount to PhP
49,060. Other damages to properties like boats, houses, resorts are higher at PhP 525,450
caused by flooding/typhoon while those arising from coastal erosion amount to PhP 294,100.
As for autonomous and planned adaptation strategies in Batangas, majority of the
respondents improve their houses to make it more resilient to flooding and typhoon. In order
to cope with the adverse effects of coastal erosion, the respondents prefer to undertake
mangrove reforestation activities. Another interesting finding was that when the respondents
were asked what they will do in the future to cope with the impacts of flooding and typhoon,
they entertained the possibility of relocating permanently to a safer place. Based from the
cost effectiveness analysis, the more cost effective adaptation strategies include mangrove
reforestation, integrated drainage and flood control system and diversification of livelihood
options.
For Palawan, the major climate change impact experienced by the studied barangays is
flooding due to sea level rise, with agriculture and fishing as the most vulnerable sectors. In
terms of value of damages to livelihood, agricultural production is the most affected
livelihood with loss from PhP100 to PhP10,000 pesos during flooding. Loss in fishing
income also stands out as an impact of flooding ranging from a minimum of PhP200 to
PhP21,000. As for autonomous and planned adaptation strategies, house improvement was
among the top adaptation strategies done by the households against flooding. Planting of trees
was initiated by some households to minimize impacts of flooding while temporary and semipermanent protective structures were installed by the residents of to reduce the impact of
coastal erosion. Collectively, the community identified mangrove reforestation as the most
cost effective strategy in protecting the households and properties as well as in minimizing
sand erosion in areas where mangroves can grow well. Hard adaptation options like
breakwater and dike construction may be opted by a few officials of the two barangays
provided that adequate funds are available. Basically, resource availability is one of the major
considerations in identifying the adaptation options that can be done in the community in
order to elevate their resilience to the impact of climate change particularly to sea level rise.
The planned adaptation options were identified through consultations with the community
and local government officials. Over-all, there seems to be a preponderance of protective
measures when in fact, the main impact or risks from these hazards is really on the
livelihoods of coastal-based communities. A consistent and common result across the sites in
the Philippines is that ecosystem based approaches are more cost effective than hard
infrastructure investments. This is true for the case of mangrove reforestation (whenever they
are applicable) when compared with sea walls, embankments, and breakwaters.
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