UNEP/GEF Project: REVERSING ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION TRENDS IN THE SOUTH CHINA SEA AND GULF OF THAILAND

PHILIPPINES

NATIONAL REPORT ON WETLANDS

SPECIALIZED EXECUTING AGENCY: Department of Environment and Natural Resources PROTECTED AREAS AND WILDLIFE BUREAU

DENR-PAWB UNEP GEF Philippines National Report on Wetlands

First published in the Philippines by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources - Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau (DENR-PAWB).

Philippine Copyright Ó 2005, Department of Environment and Natural Resources – Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau

This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part and in any form for educational or non-profit purposes without special permission from the copyright holder provided acknowledgement of the source is made. DENR-PAWB would appreciate receiving a copy of any publication that uses this publication as a source.

No use of this publication may be made for resale or for any other commercial purpose without prior permission in writing from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources – Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau.

DENR-PAWB Ninoy Aquino Parks and Wildlife Center Compound Quezon Avenue, Diliman 1101 Quezon City, Philippines Tel. (+632) 924-6031 Fax. (+632) 925-0109; (+632) 925-8950 [email protected] http://www.pawb.gov.ph

Prepared for publication by: Perry S. Ong, Ma. Paz G. Luna, Rina Maria P. Rosales, Nathaniel C. Bantayan, Carlo C. Custodio, Danilo S. Balete, Ruth Grace B. Rosell-Ambal, John Francisco A. Pontillas, Renato D. Cruz, Renato T. Cruz and Marlynn M. Mendoza (National Focal Point – Philippine Wetlands)

Design and lay-out by: Joy M. Navarro

Photo credits: Front cover 1) Pansipit River, Batangas and 2) Malampaya Sound, Palawan (Joy M. Navarro); and 3) Saint Paul Subterranean River (DENR-PAWB)

DISCLAIMER: The contents of this report do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of UNEP or the GEF. The designations employed and the presentations do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever, on the part of UNEP, of the GEF, or of any cooperating organization concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, of its authorities, or of the delineation of its territories or boundaries.

For citation purposes this document may be cited as: Department of Environment and Natural Resources - Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau, 2005. UNEP/GEF Project: Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand – Philippines National Report on Wetlands. Quezon City, Philippines, 104 pp.

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Table of Contents

I. INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………………. 1 A. PROJECT BACKGROUND ………………………………………………………. 1 B. OVER-ALL GOALS, MAJOR COMPONENTS AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES………………………………………………………… 1 C. ROLES AND IMPORTANCE OF WETLANDS ECOSYSTEMS………………… 2

II. WETLANDS IN THE PHILIPPINES …………………………………..…………… 4 A. OVERVIEW………………………………………………………………………… 4 B. COUNTRY’S WETLANDS………………………………………………………… 5 C. LIMITATIONS OF PHILIPPINE WETLANDS IN THE CONTEXT OF THE SOUTH CHINA SEA PROJECT…………………………………………………… 6 D. PHILIPPINE WETLANDS OF INTERNATIONAL IMPORTANCE…………… 8 E. PRIORITIZATION OF PHILIPPINE WETLANDS FOR THE SOUTH CHINA SEA PROJECT………………………………………………………….… 8 F. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK: CAUSES OF LOSS OF WETLAND …………………………………………………………. 9 Direct Causes of Loss of Wetlands…………………………………………………………… 9 Indirect Causes of Loss of Wetlands………………………………………………………… 10 Society’s Response…………………………………………………………………………… 11

III. BASELINE DATA ASSESSMENT……………………………………...………... 12 A. REVIEW OF PAST AND CURRENT PROJECTS…………………………………… 12 A1. Implementation Period…………………………………………………………………. 13 A2. Characteristics of Project Sites………………………………………………………….. 14 A3. Thematic Focus of Past Projects………………………………………………………… 14 A4. Lead Roles in Project Implementation by Sectors………………………………………. 15 A5. Substantive Assessment………………………………………………………………….. 16 B. ECONOMIC VALUATION…………………………………………………………….. 16 B1. Proposed Methodology for Economic Valuation of Wetlands…………………………… 17 B2. Proposed Work for Further Research…………………………………………………… 20 C. LEGISLATION, INSTITUTIONAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE ARRANGEMENTS………………………………………………………………………. 20 C1. Legal provisions with direct impact on wetlands………………………………………… 21 C2. Access to the resources…………………………………………………………………. 21 C3. Management and conservation jurisdiction……………………………………………… 22 C4. Enforcement Problems…………………………………………………………………. 23 C5. Other General Laws that may apply to wetlands………………………………………… 24 C6. Local Policies…………………………………………………………………………… 24 C7. Strategies in reduction of degradation factors…………………………………………….. 26 D. REVIEW OF GIS DATA AND OTHER INFORMATION………………………… 28

IV. PROCESS OF SITES PRIORITIZATION………………………………………… 29 A. IDENTIFICATION PROCESS OF INITIAL LONG LIST…………………………. 29 B. SELECTION OF PRIORITY AREAS BASED ON THE TYPE OF REVERSING ACTIVITIES………………………………………………………… 33 B1. Restoration Activities …………………………………………………………………… 33 B2. Protection and/or Maintenance Activities………………………………………………. 33 B3. Final Site Selection for Investment……………………………………………………… 34

V. REFERENCES…………. ……………………………………………………… 35

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List of Figures

Figure 1. Projected extent of forest cover loss in the Philippines over the last 100 years 5

Figure 2. Conceptual framework for biodiversity conservation showing the link between the loss of biodiversity, the direct and indirect causes of biodiversity loss and how society responds to the loss of biodiversity 9

List of Annexes

Annex 1. Map of Wetlands Connected to the South China Sea 41

Annex 2. Site Description of Wetlands in the Philippines Directly Connected to the South China Sea. 43

Annex 3. A numbered list of past projects conducted in Philippine Wetlands from 1986-2001, as part of the review for the project “Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand”. 81

Annex 4. A numbered list of on-going projects conducted in Philippine Wetlands from 2002 onwards, as part of review for the project “Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand”. 91

Annex 5. Thematic focus of past and ongoing projects reviewed for “Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand”. The numbers refer to the number to the project documents reviewed in Annex 1 and 2. 100

Annex 6. Economic Valuation Studies Done for SCS Wetlands in the Philippines, as of Feb. 2003 101 Annex 7. List of National and Local Legislations Relevant to Philippine Wetlands 102

List of National Wetlands Committee Members

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The last two decades of the 20th century saw the South China Sea region experienced rapid economic development and an increase in population in its coastal areas. This led to the rapid degradation of its unique marine and coastal environments.

The countries bordering the South China Sea realized that past activities have exploited coastal resources far beyond their capacities and without positive intervention, the resources will be destroyed forever. Many countries share the South China Sea, and the environmental problems of the Sea are common and transboundary in nature with similar root causes, thus the solutions to address the problems require a regional and transboundary approach.

In this context, the countries that border the South China Sea recognized that urgent actions are needed to halt the degradation of the environment of the South China Sea. Assistance of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) was sought in the preparation of a Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis of issues and problems and their societal root causes as the basis for development of a Strategic Action Programme. The Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis and Strategic Action Programme resulted in the development and implementation of a regional programme called “Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and the Gulf of Thailand” or the “South China Sea Project” involving seven countries: Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.

The aims of the regional programme are: 1) to create an environment at the regional level that fosters and encourages collaboration and partnership in addressing environmental problems in the South China Sea; and, 2) to enhance the capacity of the participating governments to integrate environmental considerations into national development planning.

The major components of the regional programme were focused on: 1) habitat conversion and loss in (a) mangroves, (b) coral reefs, (c) seagrasses, and (d) wetlands; 2) over-exploitation of fisheries; and, 3) land-based pollution.

At the regional level, the major outcomes expected from the programme were: 1) an approved Strategic Action Programme for the Region; 2) guidelines for national management plans to maintain regionally significant habitats; 3) demonstration of management activities at sites of regional and global significance; 4) a regional management plan for the maintenance of transboundary fish stocks in the Gulf of Thailand; and, 5) pilot activities relating to alternative remedial actions to address priority transboundary pollutants and adopted water quality objectives.

At the country level, major outputs expected from the programme included: a) creation of a National Wetlands Committee; b) assemble a national meta-database and information database; c) preparation of investment proposals for priority sites; and, d) development of a national wetland action plan.

The Philippines, being an archipelagic nation, is endowed with extensive wetland areas that range from lakes, rivers, ponds, inland and coastal marshes and swamps,

v Philippines National Report on Wetlands estuaries and mangrove swamps. Despite this diversity of wetlands, very few studies about the biodiversity of Philippine wetlands and their functions were undertaken, compared to those made for forest and marine ecosystems; consequently very limited information about Philippine wetlands are available.

The generally accepted definition of wetlands, as adopted by the Ramsar Convention, include but are not limited to coral reefs, mangroves, seagrasses, seaweeds and fisheries. As delimited by the scope of the South China Sea project, these habitats and ecosystems were accorded special attention on their own and considered as stand- alone projects.

The wetlands types not given initial primary attention were the coastal lagoons, estuaries and tidal flats and mudflats. Historically, these were the least studied areas. Hence the amount of information available was subsequently also limited. This was the greatest limitation of the report. This lack of information remained the biggest hindrance to the sustainable management of these fragile habitats and ecosystems. The watershed approach was used to establish the links between the offsite sources of the degradation, such as deforestation, to wetlands that are connected to the South China Sea. To make sense of the issues that threaten wetlands and cause the loss of wetlands, the conceptual framework for biodiversity conservation that described the state of biodiversity (species, population, ecosystems, cultural diversity) and differentiated between the threats to biodiversity and the direct and indirect causes to biodiversity loss, was used. With this relationship established, society’s response to improve the state of biodiversity could be undertaken at three levels: a) towards the ecosystem, species, population and cultural diversity levels; b) towards direct causes of biodiversity loss; and, c) towards the indirect causes of biodiversity loss. While the framework distinguished between direct and indirect causes, it did not preclude the interaction of individual causes depending on the issue at hand.

A baseline data assessment was made of the following: past and current projects; economic valuation; legislation, institutional and administrative arrangements; and, review of GIS data and other information. The review of the past and current projects was conducted to get a snapshot of the environment protection-related activities undertaken in Philippine wetlands in response to environmental degradation, particularly the loss of biodiversity, of areas that are physically connected to the South China Seas. Of the 78 projects reviewed, less than half were properly documented. Considering that a lot of these projects were continuing projects, unavailability of project reports had been a major concern. To guide future project interventions, there is an urgent need to undertake an impact assessment of selected projects to determine how the project interventions had been incorporated into the regular activities of the Local Government Units and local communities.

Studies on the economic valuation of environmental services were not readily available in general and for wetlands in the Philippines in particular. Several economic valuation studies were conducted for some important uses in selected priority wetlands, some of which are protected areas. The main purpose of most of these studies was for the economic values to be translated into economic instruments, which in turn would regulate current use and at the same time generate revenues.

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Laws that directly apply to wetlands were found to be few and those that were applicable to wetlands were encountered in other general laws that regulate access to natural resources, jurisdictions over territory and management, and prohibition of certain acts. Legislations by themselves might not have had an impact on wetlands unless implemented. The common observation is that laws were generally not enforced. The problem of non-enforcement of laws might not be the problem itself but this could be a failure on the part of legislators and policy-makers, who fail to consider the realistic capacity of the implementing agency to enforce them at the time the policy was being crafted and by failing to provide the appropriate resources, e.g., funding, for its enforcement

The Philippine Constitution and the Water Code of the Philippines are both clear in declaring wetlands as part of the public domain and not for alienation, except for wetlands that are part of ancestral waters, which became susceptible to open access and the tragedy of the commons. The problem of open access was dealt with by a provision that large-scale exploitation of all natural resources in the public domain will only be undertaken by the State directly or in joint venture, production sharing and co- production while small-scale utilization by Filipino citizens could still be allowed by Congress through law. This small-scale utilization specifically included "cooperative fish farming, with priority to subsistence fishermen and fish workers in rivers, lakes, bays and lagoons" . Such provision requiring democratization of access and equity in resource distribution is directly relevant to the utilization of wetlands.

The Public Land Act provides for foreshore leases. The foreshore includes tidal flats and estuaries, which shall be disposed of to private parties only by lease and not otherwise. The Civil Code of the Philippines provides for easements on coasts of agricultural lands and coasts of forestlands. Apart from regulating the use and disposition of foreshore areas, the Water Code also identifies state ownership of rivers and their natural beds, continuous or intermittent waters of springs and brooks running in their natural beds, and the beds themselves; natural lakes, lagoons and seawater. The Clean Water Act has provisions that prohibit dumping of waste in, and provisions directing the establishment of water quality management areas, a national sewerage and septic waste management program, and the imposition of wastewater discharge charges.

Wetlands of the public domain include inland waters and tidal flats, which may either be municipal waters or protected areas. Local government units have jurisdiction over municipal waters while Protected Area Management Boards have jurisdiction over areas designated as protected areas under the National Integrated Protected Areas System Act.

Other agencies have specialized jurisdictions over wetlands such as the Philippine Ports Authority which oversees tidal flats where it has facilities and the Philippine Estates Authority which has jurisdiction over reclamation projects. The Philippine National Police-Maritime Command of the Department of Interior and Local Government enforces the law within municipal waters.

There are existing and applicable laws to protect specific wetlands but due to the many different overlaps in jurisdiction, inconsistencies and the necessity to harmonize many different laws governing the same resources, it had been difficult for many enforcement agencies to be updated on the latest legal interpretation.

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Strategies identified to reduce wetland degradation factors include community initiatives and meta-legal strategies, which were found to be important so that other laws with indirect impact could be used whenever a wetland area is threatened by particular activities, such as industrial development proposals. Based on the experience and general capacity to enforce, many available options are recognized for the protection of wetlands and the reduction of degrading factors thereon. In general, management of many wetlands were still apparently tied up with the management of the associated ecosystems for tidal flats, and for lakes and rivers, in integrated ways or integrated local ordinances of the towns with territory on the coasts of the lakes or lagoons. It was noted that the best policies could only see proper implementation with a management structure: (a) locally based but nationally endorsed; (b) flexible in policy application thereby having the ability to focus on certain regulations with the greatest impact, and, (c) based on consensus building mechanism and participation processes among the multiple users of the resource.

As part of the data review process, information regarding the GIS and other databases of wetlands linked to the South China Sea were identified, located and secured whenever possible. The characterization of the landscape and consequent prioritization of sites made use of the appropriate watershed and sub-watershed boundaries. Thus, prioritization of sites was based in general to specific ecological boundary delineation through the watersheds.

The Philippines implemented the Philippine Biodiversity Conservation Priority- setting Program (PBCPP), a priority-setting process that identified 170 integrated terrestrial and inland waters and 36 integrated marine priority areas for biodiversity conservation. Twenty-eight of these priority areas were initially identified as meeting the requirements of being a Philippine wetland and at the same time directly linked to the South China Sea. The list of priority wetlands was increased to thirty-three (33) based on data from other sources. In the process of selecting the areas for consideration as an investment area for the next phase of the South China Sea project, it was agreed that the site should address the issue of reversing environmental degradation trends. Environmental degradation, in turn was measured in terms of: (1) loss of biodiversity; (2) pollution; and, (3) decrease in fish productivity. The number of sites was narrowed to those sites that need either restoration, or protection and maintenance activities. Malampaya Sound in Palawan was found to be in the early stages of degradation and thus it would take less effort and resources to have it restored to good condition. Hence it was considered a model demonstration site for restoration since the size of the area under consideration was found to be manageable and the level of awareness and participation of stakeholders involved were comparatively high than in other areas.

The Taal Lake-Pansipit River-Balayan Bay-Batangas Bay was selected as a priority for protection and maintenance activities because if the degradation trends continue, then it would likely go the way of Manila Bay. Hence intervention was found to be urgently needed to ensure that the degradation trends are reversed as soon as possible. Other factors such as local government unit interest and local community participation were taken into consideration in the final selection of the area for restoration and the area for protection and/or maintenance activities.

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Philippine Wetlands in the South China Sea

I. Introduction

A. Project Background

In the last two decades of the 20th century, the South China Sea region has experienced rapid economic development and an increase in population in its coastal areas. This has led to the rapid degradation of its unique marine and coastal environments.

The countries bordering the South China Sea have realized that past activities have exploited coastal resources far beyond their capacities and without positive intervention, the resources will be destroyed forever. Many countries share the South China Sea, and the environmental problems of the Sea are common and transboundary in nature with similar root causes, thus the solutions to address the problems require a regional and transboundary approach.

The South China Sea is bordered by the People’s Republic of China to the north, the Republic of the Philippines to the east; Malaysia, the Republic of Singapore, the Republic of Indonesia and the Sultanate of Brunei to the south; the Kingdom of Thailand, the Kingdom of Cambodia and Vietnam to the west.

In this context, the countries that border the South China Sea recognize that urgent actions are needed to halt the degradation of the environment of the South China Sea. Assistance of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) was sought in the preparation of a Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis of issues and problems and their societal root causes as the basis for development of a Strategic Action Programme. This proposal was approved during the 12th intergovernmental meeting of the Coordinating Body for the Seas of East Asia in December 1996, which in turn endorsed the proposal to the GEF. The GEF then provided a project preparation and development facility grant to enable countries to prepare the necessary analyses and reviews. The Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis and Strategic Action Programme resulted in the development and implementation of a regional programme called “Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and the Gulf of Thailand” or the “South China Sea Project” involving seven countries: Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.

B. Overall Goals, Major Components and Expected Outcomes

The aims of the regional programme are: 1) to create an environment at the regional level that fosters and encourages collaboration and partnership in addressing environmental problems in the South China Sea; and 2) to enhance the capacity of the participating governments to integrate environmental considerations into national development planning.

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The major components of the regional programme are focused on: 1) habitat conversion and loss in (a) mangroves, (b) coral reefs, (c) seagrasses, and (d) wetlands; 2) over- exploitation of fisheries; and, 3) land-based pollution.

At the regional level, the major outcomes expected from the programme are: 1) an approved Strategic Action Programme for the Region; 2) guidelines for national management plans to maintain regionally significant habitats; 3) demonstration of management activities at sites of regional and global significance; 4) a regional management plan for the maintenance of transboundary fish stocks in the Gulf of Thailand; and, 5) pilot activities relating to alternative remedial actions to address priority transboundary pollutants and adopted water quality objectives.

At the country level, major outputs expected from the programme include: a) creation of a National Wetlands Committee; b) assemble a national meta-database and information database; c) preparation of investment proposals for priority sites; and, d) development of a national wetland action plan.

In the Philippines, the Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau-Department of Environment and Natural Resources (PAWB-DENR) is one of the specialized executing agencies of the programme. The primary role of the PAWB-DENR is to provide on a national level scientific and technical information regarding the state of wetlands ecosystem specifically the tidal flats and mudflats, coastal lagoons, estuaries, peat swamps and non-peat swamps in coastal areas in the country and threats to their continued management on a sustainable basis.

C. Roles and Importance of Wetlands Ecosystems

The Convention on Wetlands (popularly known as the Ramsar Convention), is an intergovernmental treaty whose mission is the conservation and wise use of wetlands by national action and international cooperation as a means to achieving sustainable development throughout the world. Presently, 142 nations have joined the Convention as contracting parties, and more than 1,397 wetlands around the world have been designated for inclusion in the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance (http://www.ramsar.org, 2004). The Philippines has been a member of Ramsar since November 08, 1994.

Based on the definition of the Ramsar Convention, wetlands are “areas of marsh, fen, peatland or water, whether natural or artificial, permanent or temporary, with water that is static, flowing, fresh, brackish or salt, including areas of marine, the depth of which at low tide does not exceed six meters. Wetlands may include riparian and coastal zones adjacent to wetlands and islands or bodies of water deeper than six meters at low tide lying within the wetlands”. Broadly, wetlands include a wide variety of habitats such as marshes, peatlands, floodplains, rivers and lakes, and coastal areas such as saltmarshes, mangroves, and seagrass beds, but also coral reefs and other marine areas no deeper than six meters at low tide, as well as manmade wetlands such as wastewater treatment ponds and reservoirs (http://www.ramsar.org, 2004).

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Wetlands provide many benefits to humanity. Among these are (Davies and Claridge 1993; Chan et al. 2001; Dugan 1990):

1) Goods or products directly harvested from wetlands a. Energy resources b. Forest resources c. Water supply d. Forage resources for livestock e. Wildlife resources and fisheries

2) Functions or services wetlands perform a. Recharge and discharge of groundwater b. Flood control c. Shoreline stabilization/erosion control d. Storm protection e. Retention of sediments f. Nutrient retention and retention of pollutants g. Biomass export h. Microclimate stabilization i. Transportation j. Recreation and tourism

3) Ecosystem scale attributes of wetlands a. Biological diversity b. Uniqueness to culture and heritage

With the above list of benefits that wetlands provide and considering that wetlands are among the most productive ecosystems in the world, it is incomprehensible why wetlands globally are still under constant threat of being transformed, destroyed and irreversibly changed. One possible reason is that people generally regard wetlands as a free resource and consequently the benefits wetlands provide are undervalued.

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II. Wetlands in the Philippines

A. Overview

The Philippines, the second largest archipelago in the world after Indonesia, is comprised of more than 7,100 islands that cover an estimated land area of 300,000 km2 and an estimated 2.2 million km2 of archipelagic waters. The Philippines Archipelago extends from latitudes 04°23’ and 21°25’N and between longitudes 116°00 and 127’E. It is divided into three major island groupings, namely Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. It is bounded in the north by the Bashi Channel, in the east by the Pacific Ocean, in the south by the Celebes Sea and in the west by the South China Sea.

The Philippines is part of the “Pacific Ring of Fire”, a region of frequent volcanic activity; it also lies in the Western Pacific earthquake belt, a region of frequent land movements (Scott, 1989). Recent geological studies had shown that the Philippines is of volcanic origin and had been separated from its neighbors by deep-sea channels for millions of years (Hall, 1998). Its biodiversity has evolved distinctly and separately from its neighbors, resulting from very limited colonization from Mainland Asia in the northwest, from Taiwan in the north, and from Borneo and Sulawesi to the south. Thus, it is considered a separate biological region in its own right (Mallari et al., 2001). These partly explain the rich biodiversity in the country, including its unique patterns and assemblages.

With its rich biodiversity, the Philippines is included as one of the 17- megadiversity countries, that between themselves contain 75% of global biodiversity (Heaney and Mittermeier, 1997). However, it is also considered as one of 25 global biodiversity hotspots, wherein to qualify, an area should have lost more than 75% of its original habitats, (Myers, et al., 2000; Heaney et al., 1999). The Philippines has less than seven percent of its primary forest left (ESSC, 1999; see Figure 1). This is translated into the loss of more than 14 million hectares of primary forests in the last fifty years of the 20th century, which is much more than the 12 million hectares of forests lost during the combined 400 years of Colonial rule (Ong, 2004). During the same period, the marine environment suffered a similar fate, wherein less than 24% of the country’s mangroves remain and between 30% and 50% of seagrass beds were lost (Calumpong, 1994; Fortes, 1994; Primavera 2002). The Philippines was also identified as the top marine biodiversity hotspot based on the diversity of coral reefs and its threatened condition (Gomez et al., 1994; Roberts et al., 2002).

In light of these findings about the dire situation of the Philippine’s biodiversity, the Philippines, through the PAWB-DENR, Biodiversity Conservation Program of the University of the Philippines’ Center for Integrative and Development Studies and Conservation International-Philippines, implemented and completed the Philippine Biodiversity Conservation Priority-setting Program (PBCPP) (Ong et al., 2002). This was the second iteration of the country’s National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) in 2002. The PBCPP updated the first iteration of the NBSAP, which was completed and published in 1997 by the DENR.

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Figure 1. Projected extent of forest cover loss in the Philippines over the last 100 years (Source: Environmental Science for Social Change, 1999).

The PBCPP identified a total of 206 priority areas: 170 terrestrial and inland waters priority areas and 36 marine priority areas. Five strategic actions needed for implementation in the chosen priority areas were also identified, if these priority areas are to be conserved for future generations. For wetlands, the Inland Waters Working Group of the PBCPP reviewed a total of 211 lakes, 18 major rivers, and 22 marshes, swamps and reservoirs, of which 34 priority areas for research and conservation were identified (Santos-Borja, 2002).

B. Country’s Wetlands

The Philippines is endowed with extensive wetland areas that range from lakes, rivers, ponds, inland and coastal marshes and swamps, estuaries and mangrove swamps. The total area of Philippine wetlands is broken down as follows: a) freshwater lakes are estimated to be about 1,140 km2; (b) swamps and estuaries at about 5,270 km2; (c) brackish ponds at about 1,760 km2; and (d) manmade reservoirs at 1,300 km2 (Scott, 1989; Davies et al, 1990). Despite these impressive numbers, there have been very few studies about the biodiversity of Philippine wetlands and their functions compared to those available for forest and marine ecosystems, consequently very limited information about Philippine wetlands is available.

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The total biodiversity of Philippine wetlands is comprised of 1,616 species of aquatic flora and 3,675 species of aquatic fauna (DENR, 1997). But these numbers include those species that originate in marine and brackish waters. The amount and extent of biological data available for inland waters are not commensurate to the physical extent of inland waters, and where available, there is uneven representation of data (e. g., some areas are more studied than others are). Most information about Philippine wetlands consists of inventories with very limited ecological assessments and analysis (Santos- Borja, 2002).

C. Limitations of Philippine Wetlands in the Context of the South China Sea Project

The generally accepted definition of wetlands as adopted by the Ramsar Convention encompasses a wide range of ecosystems that have been relatively well- studied and in which data are available. These include but are not limited to coral reefs, mangroves, seagrasses, seaweeds and fisheries. As delimited by the scope of the South China Sea project, these habitats and ecosystems were accorded special attention on their own and considered stand alone projects.

The ecosystems and habitats that remained are the coastal lagoons, estuaries and tidal flats and mudflats. Historically, they have been the least studied areas, hence the amount of information available is subsequently also limited. While wetlands in general had been undervalued in the past, these three wetland types were at the bottom of the pile so to speak, the least valued and the most prone to conversion into other land uses because of their perceived “invisibility” if not “uselessness”. Thus, the limited amount of information on these four wetland types was the greatest limitation of this report.

Furthermore, whenever data about wetlands in general are discussed, the three wetland types are normally aggregated (if at all) with the more prominent ones like coral reefs, mangroves and fisheries. In the Philippines, to date, the only non-coral reef, non- mangrove data, non fisheries, non-seagrass and non-seaweed data that is available would be those that refer to habitats of migratory and wetland birds (Mallari et al 2001). A review of the key conservation sites that Mallari et al (2001) identified revealed that this was derived from the pioneering work of Davies et al (1990) in their Directory of Philippine Wetlands, which used the usual broad definition of wetlands, which in turn was based on data from the late 1980s. Unfortunately, not much new information had emerged since then, particularly for the three wetland types that are of interest to the South China Sea project.

To illustrate, the Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia (PEMSEA) and the Manila Bay Environment Management Project- Department of Environment and Natural Resources (MBEMP-DENR) in its 2004 report “Manila Bay: Refined Risk Assessment” , described and assessed the resources found in Manila Bay which include fisheries, shellfisheries, seaweed, and phytoplankton; and habitats such as mangroves, coral reefs, seagrass beds, softbottom, mudflats, sandflats, beaches and rocky shores. Very detailed information was described for all the above resources and habitats except for mudflats, sandflats, beaches and rocky shores (see

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Table 1, which is adapted from the said report). This information in turn was based on two reports, BFAR (1995) and PRRP (1999). The BFAR (1995) report was the result of the Resource and Ecological Assessment of Manila Bay conducted from July 1992 to October 1993 while the PRRP (1999) report was based on studies conducted between 1996 and 1998.

Table 1. Retrospective Risk Analysis for Soft-bottoms, Mudflats, Sandflats, Beaches and Rocky Shores in Manila Bay.*

Habitat Areal Findings Impact type Extent Observations Agents

Soft Large 1992-1993 (BFAR, 1995): Most likely: · Degradation or Bottoms Significant density between stations · Low DO loss of habitat - Corregidor-highest density · Sedimentation · Loss of benthic - Navotas-lowest density (reclamation organisms, Different dominant communities between activities) reduced diversity stations · Physical · Decline in fish Disturbance production 1996-1998 (PRRP, 1999): (fishing activity) · Loss of function Quantity: in regulation of - Decline in mean abundance of major Possibly: organic loading taxonomic groups (total/m2): 706 and · Pollution: 690 for Mar. and Sept./Oct. 1996, Oil and Grease respectively to 214 and 140 in Apr. and Heavy Metals Sept. 1997, resp., to 50 and 118 in Mar. Pesticides and Nov. 1998, resp. Other organics - Decline in mean abundance of major PAH taxonomic groups (g ww/m2): 22 and 98 TSS in Mar. and Sept./Oct. 1996, resp. to 8.2 and 9.5 I Apr. and Sept. 1997, resp., and 7.9 and 1.0 in Mar and Mar. and Nov. 1998, resp.

Quality: Community structure – dominated by polychaetes/low species diversity Mudflats Moderate Total Area: 4,600 ha Likely: Degradation and/or Bulacan: 2,457 ha · Reclamation loss of habitat Pampanga: 1,340 ha · Conversion Bataan: 903 ha

Sand flats Small Total Area: 1,500 ha Likely: Degradation and/or Bataan: 723 ha · Reclamation loss of habitat Cavite: 537 ha · Conversion Metro Manila: 240 ha · Pollution Beaches Small Total Area: no data Likely: Degradation and/or Location: Ternate, Cavite, southern part of · Reclamation loss of habitat Metropolitan Manila, and Cochinos Point, · Conversion Mariveles, Bataan · Physical Composite floral cover: herbs (61.20%), destruction trees (21.50%), and shrubs (9.50%), and vines 7.80%) Rocky Small No data on exact location and condition Likely: Degradation and/or shores · Reclamation loss of habitat · Conversion · Physical destruction

* Adapted from PEMSEA AND MBEMP TWG-RRA. 2004.

In its data gap analysis, the PEMSEA-MBEMP (2004) reported that “no available time series and spatial distribution data for seagrass, seaweed, coral reefs, mudflats, sandflats, beaches and rocky shores. No inf ormation on access and use of mudflats, sandflats, beaches and rocky shores were also available”.

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Thus the lack of information about the three wetland types: tidal flats and mudflats, estuaries and coastal lagoons, remains the biggest hindrance to the sustainable management of these fragile habitats and ecosystems. In the meantime, these continue to be transformed if not permanently destroyed due to continuing socio-economic pressures.

D. Philippine Wetlands of International Importance

Four Philippine wetlands of international importance are recognized under the Ramsar Convention. These are the Tubbataha Reef Marine National Park in Palawan, Olango Island Wildlife Sanctuary in Cebu, Naujan Lake National Park in Oriental Mindoro, and, Agusan Marsh Wildlife Sanctuary in Northeastern Mindanao. Additionally, there are several peat swamps, or more accurately freshwater swamps with peat, found in the Sab-a basin in southern Leyte, in Liguasan Marsh and Agusan Marsh in Mindanao (Professor Daniel Lagunzad and Victor Amoroso, personal communications). Unfortunately, none of these are linked to the South China Sea.

E. Prioritization of Philippine Wetlands for the South China Sea Project

The whole western Philippines is physically connected to the South China Sea that extends from the Batanes Group of Islands in the north, includes the whole stretch of Western Luzon, Western Mindoro, the Calamianes Group of Islands, the whole of Western Mainland Palawan and the Balabac Group of Islands. To narrow down specific Philippine wetlands directly linked to the South China Sea, the watershed approach was used to establish the links between the offsite sources of the degradation, such as deforestation, to wetlands that are connected to the South China Sea. Thus a number of mountains further inland were identified in this initial listing. As a result, the Philippine wetlands that met these criteria were divided into nine broad regions with 28 areas, which were shown and characterized in Annexes 1 and 2. The initial basis for inclusion of these identified priority wetlands was its rich biodiversity as it was identified during the PBCPP, but the biodiversity richness was based on the diversity of coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass and seaweeds. The nine regions and the number of sites per region indicated in parenthesis are as follows:

1. Northern Philippines (4) 2. Northwestern Philippines (2) 3. Northwest Manila Bay (3) 4. Southwest Manila Bay (1) 5. Taal Lake-Pansipit River-Balayan Bay (2) 6. Northern and Western Mindoro (5) 7. Calamianes Group of Islands (3) 8. Mainland Palawan (7) 9. Balabac Group of Islands (1)

Eventually this set was deemed too broad for the purpose of the programme. Further instructions from the regional programme management led to the identification of sites that directly contribute to the objectives of the program. The process of selection is discussed in more detail in section III.

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F. Conceptual Framework: Causes of Loss of Wetlands

To make sense of the gamut of issues that threaten wetlands and cause the loss of wetlands, the conceptual framework for biodiversity conservation was used (Figure 2). The framework describes the state of biodiversity (species, population, ecosystems, cultural diversity) and differentiates between the threats to biodiversity and the direct and indirect causes to biodiversity loss. With this relationship established, society’s response to improve the state of biodiversity can be undertaken at three levels: a) towards the species, population, ecosystem, and cultural diversity levels; b) towards direct causes of biodiversity loss; and, c) towards the indirect causes of biodiversity loss. While the framework distinguishes between direct and indirect causes, it does not preclude the interaction of individual causes within each box, depending on the issue on hand. Furthermore, the issues under each broad box are meant to be illustrative and not a definitive identification of the direct and indirect causes of biodiversity loss, including that of society’s response.

Figure 2. Conceptual framework for biodiversity conservation showing the link between the loss of biodiversity, the direct and indirect causes of biodiversity loss and how society responds to the loss of biodiversity. (Ong, 2004).

Direct Causes of Loss of Wetlands

With this framework as a guide, the different factors identified in previous assessments undertaken about the threats to wetlands and causes of wetlands loss, were reformulated as the major direct causes of wetland loss in the Philippines (DENR, 1997; Santos-Borja, 2002; Ong et al., 2002). However, these are again a broad identification

9 Philippines National Report on Wetlands and not specific to the three type of habitats and ecosystems in the South China Sea context:

1) Habitat Loss and Deterioration a) Conversion of wetlands into other land uses with perceived higher economic value such as aquaculture farms, resorts and reclamation areas, among others. The operations of these economic activities further exacerbate the destruction of wetlands by ensuring that the process becomes irreversible when this leads to further pollution due to the indiscriminate use of artificial feeds and overstocking.

b) Diversion of rivers for irrigation and the construction of dams that leads to - i. Drying up of riverbeds ii. Modification of the habitat of the riverine flora and fauna iii. Detrimental impacts on the movement of migratory fish species

2) Resource Use and Exploitation a) Over fishing b) Over harvesting of forest products c) Over harvesting of freshwater products

3) Pollution and Climate Change a) Pollution from domestic, industrial and agricultural sources that in turn lead to water quality problems like massive algal blooms and oxygen depletion.

4) Introduction of exotic species and disease a) Leads to the displacement if not extinction of endemic and native species through i. Predation ii. Competition for food and other resources iii. Proliferation due to lack of natural predators.

Indirect Causes of Loss of Wetlands

In turn, these direct causes have underlying causes as well. Some of these underlying causes are:

1) Socio-economic pressures a) Poverty b) Illiteracy c) Population d) National and local politics

2) Environmental Policy and Regulations a) Limited if not lack of enforcement b) Where present, it is biased towards development at all cost

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c) Subsidies provided to some economic activities such as the promotion of aquaculture in the 1970s and 1980s which led to the wholesale conversion of mangroves into fishponds

Society’s Response

In the light of the destruction and loss of wetlands, society responded in various ways. This can be broadly divided into the following (again, these are illustrative and not definitive):

1) Direct Conservation Actions a. Restoration of degraded habitats b. Reintroduction of local species c. Saving particular species and habitats in wetlands d. Coastal Clean-up conducted annually by the International Marinelife Alliance e. Prevention of projects which have implications and impacts on wetlands that are not thought through thoroughly

2) Scientific Information and Research a. Undertaking research activities to generate scientific information to serve as basis for sound management of wetlands

3) Environmental Policy and Legislation a. Crafting and passage of policies and legislation that will prevent further loss of wetlands and promote its wise use b. Development of appropriate protected areas system at local, regional and national level

4) Education and Capacity Building a. Development and dissemination of educational materials and conduct of training programs for various stakeholders and levels such as: i. Practitioners ii. Civil Society iii. General Public iv. Local communities v. Local Government Units vi. National Government Agencies

5) Advocacy a. Lobby work with policy makers at local and national levels, the general public, and, private sector

6) Funding a. Generate resources that will sustain these activities

The identification of the appropriate societal response is an iterative process of identification and implementation of what works and how to improve those that did not work. The first step is to scan the horizon on what had been done in the past, identification of gaps and development of new programs that will fill in these gaps.

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III. Baseline Data Assessment

A. Review of Past and Current Projects

The review was conducted to get a snapshot of the environment protection-related activities undertaken in Philippine wetlands in response to environmental degradation, particularly the loss of biodiversity, of areas that are physically connected to the South China Seas. Again, this review was undertaken with the limitations described above about data availability and the habitat and ecosystems included. Furthermore, in this review, the cut-off period for a project to be considered as a past project was project completion by end of December 2001. Projects from January 2002 to the present were considered as current projects. The farthest that could be reached in terms of institutional memory was the year 1986, when the DENR was reorganized to its current configuration. Also, regular activities of the DENR and other institutions that were initiated in the past but are continuing to the present were considered current projects.

An exhaustive search of project documents, both published and in the gray literature, was undertaken. Institutions were visited and people known to have been involved in projects related to the South China Sea were also interviewed. However, only those projects that had any form of documentation and where staff of projects were still available, although project documentation were incomplete, were included in the review. The list of past and continuing projects are summarized in Annexes 3 and 3, respectively.

From the period 1986-2001, only 34 completed projects were identified, while from January 2002 to the present, 49 projects were identified as still being implemented. Of these, 44 projects were continuing activities and only 5 were new activities initiated in 2002. Thus in a sense, the actual number of projects implemented over the 15-year period (1986-2001) was 78.

Of the 78 projects, only 38 (21/34 for past projects and 17/44 under current projects) had written reports in various forms. This means that less than half were properly documented. Considering that a lot of the current projects are continuing projects, unavailability of project reports is a major concern. This does not necessarily mean that reports were not made. It might be that the reports were not properly turned over or filed correctly, lost in the system so to speak. Also in some instances, the offices concerned were physically moved from one place to another, thereby messing up the filing system. Another related problem is on how institutional memory of projects is maintained within the system. There seems to be a tendency in most offices to lose institutional memory when the person concerned with a project leaves, retires or moves to another office. Some of the lessons learned from these experiences are as follows:

1) Key people involved in projects should be required to make written reports on a regular basis. This task of report writing should form part of one’s regular workload and assignment and not seen as something extra that is optional to comply with. This will ensure that institutional memories are kept and passed on. Some of the documentation that should be made standard

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practice includes submission of trip reports, keeping minutes of meetings and submission to a repository, among others.

2) Key people involved in projects should brief other members of institutions on a regular basis and minutes of these briefings should also be distributed and kept on file. Again, this activity should form part of the regular workload of institutional staff and not seen as something extra that is optional to comply with.

3) Systematic and proper documentation of projects should be undertaken. Some of the parameters includes: matching of outputs with inputs and with the objectives of the project, lessons learned, keeping track of increase in institutional capacity, etc.

A1. Implementation Period

Sixty seven percent (23/34) of past projects were short term, i.e., less than three years, 23% (8/34) were medium term, i.e., between four and seven years, and less than 10% (3/34) were long term, i.e., more than eight years or more. On the other hand, a little less than 50% (24/49) of the current projects are long term (more than eight years) since they are mostly continuing activities, more than one-third (17/49) are short term but were initiated in 1999 or later, and about 15% (8/49) are medium term. Given the lack of documentation of projects implemented, it is difficult to make an assessment of what the accomplishments are and what the impacts are. This also points to poor monitoring of project implementation.

Yet, a lot of investments were made on these projects but the lessons learned from these projects are seldom applied in new projects or in the way business is conducted by project implementers. There is a tendency to look at projects as discrete units that people fail to see how they are connected to their current work or on how new projects can be developed by building upon previous success or experience. The need for proper documentation might be one reason why such lessons are not transferred nor incorporated in new projects or new practices. Some recommendations on how to improve project documentation include:

1) Conduct site visits and undertake a properly designed monitoring;

2) Undertake a more intensive search for other people who were involved in project implementation in the past and attempt to reconstruct project history;

3) Review existing practices of continuing projects and develop systems that will ensure a proper reporting system, including record keeping and transfer of institutional memory;

4) Ensure that new project documents include reference to past projects where appropriate and demonstrate how the proposed project is building upon the lessons learned of past projects.

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A2. Characteristics of Project Sites

There are 12 provinces in the Western Philippines physically connected to the South China Sea, namely: Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, Pangasinan, Zambales, Bataan, Bulacan, Metro Manila, Cavite, Batangas, Mindoro and Palawan. Two other provinces have an indirect link: Pampanga has a swamp and a river that drains into the South China Sea, and Laguna, site of Laguna Lake that drains into Manila Bay through the Pasig River and eventually to the South China Sea.

While only 34 past projects were reviewed, eight of these projects were implemented at multiple sites, thus the enumerated total of project sites increased to 44. Of the 44 continuing projects, three were implemented at multiple sites, increasing the enumerated total to 51. Hence a total of 95 sites received projects over the last 15 years. Of the 95 projects, 26% (25/95) were implemented by national institutions. On a provincial scale, Palawan had the highest number of projects, with 20 projects, accounting for 21% of all projects, followed by Pangasinan with 10 projects (10%), Laguna Lake and Batangas with nine projects each (9% each). The number of projects implemented in the rest of the Western Philippines ranged from one to six. These seem to indicate that the selection of project sites was highly influenced by several factors such as perceptions of environmental quality (Palawan, being promoted as the last frontier and has a reputation for good local government unit governance); political considerations (Pangasinan, hometown of former President Fidel V. Ramos); physical closeness to the center of political power and the immediacy of issues (Laguna Lake); strong local non- government organization and community interest (World Wildlife Fund-Philippines and local communities in Batangas).

A3. Thematic Focus of Past Projects

Reports of 21 past projects and 17 current and continuing projects were reviewed. Most projects had more than one thematic focus. The following is the breakdown of projects by theme:

Alternative energy sources = 1 Alternative energy sources = 1 Alternative Livelihood = 5 Alternative Livelihood = 3 Capacity Building = 13 Capacity Building = 7 Community-based approaches = 7 Community-based approaches = 7 Environmental awareness = 11 Current and Continuing Projects=17 Management planning = 19 Enforcement = 4 Past Projects=21 Environmental awareness = 10 Rehabilitation/restoration = 3 Management planning = 12 Resource Inventory = 11 Rehabilitation/restoration = 2 Science and Policy Research = 15 Resource Inventory = 9 Species Conservation = 2 Science and Policy Research = 9 Species Conservation = 3

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However, based on the limited number of reports reviewed, the emerging patterns show that the thematic focus of past, current and continuing projects remain the same, they only differ in the emphasis. Both classes of projects were designed to improve management planning using science-based research and to develop policies. Built in into most projects are capacity building, resource inventory (knowing what to use and how much to use) and raising stakeholders’ awareness. Comparing the thematic focus of past and current projects, the emerging trend is the inclusion of enforcement as a key element in most of these projects.

A4. Lead Roles in Project Implementation by Sectors

When the projects implemented in the past and those that are continuing and/or are currently being implemented were considered together (n=83), the number of projects being implemented solely by non-government organizations (22 projects) was almost equal to that of the national government (23 projects). Between these two institutions, they implement more than half the projects listed (Annex 5). Partnerships are also on the rise with a variety of combinations being tried. The most important in project implementation by partnerships are those between the national government and international groups like International Center for Living Aquatic Resource Management (now the World Fish Center) and United Nations Organizations and those between national government and non-government organizations.

However, when the partnerships where national government is involved are also considered as part of national government implementation, the total zooms to more than 50% (47/83) of all projects implemented. When the same exercise is undertaken to look at non-government organization’s involvement in implementation that includes partnerships, the level rises to about 44% (37/83). While it is not possible to draw any conclusions as to which implementer did a better job because of the limited availability of project documents to review and at same time measure the impact of these projects, some important lessons that can be drawn from this review are:

1. National government driven projects are on the wane while other modes of implementation, particularly those led by non-government organizations are increasingly becoming important;

2. Different combinations of partnerships are also increasingly being “experimented” upon to find the perfect fit that will lead to successful implementation;

3. Because of the effects of devolution of central/national government powers to local government are increasingly becoming understood, and local government officials are able to use the powers vested in them under this law, local government implementation is also on the rise. Currently, local government involvement is around 10%. It would not be surprising if this level doubles within five years.

This should be one element of any project in the Western Philippines to be considered. A tripartite arrangement, wherein local government units partner with non-

15 Philippines National Report on Wetlands government organizations without neglecting the national government in project development and implementation, is developed as a cornerstone of investment proposals.

A5. Substantive Assessment

It was not possible at this stage to comment on the impact of these projects, as there was not enough resources to validate the accomplishments reported and to measure the impact of these projects, precious lessons learned have been referred to in this review that would be a valuable contribution in the formulation of investment proposals. There is an urgent need to undertake an impact assessment of selected project sites to see how the project interventions had been incorporated into the regular activities of the Local Government Units and local communities.

B. Economic Valuation

Studies on the economic valuation of environmental services are not readily available in general and for wetlands in the Philippines in particular, more so the three wetland types in the South China Sea project context. The information sheet on Ramsar Wetlands is an ideal instrument that can capture data for economic valuation purposes, but such information will have to be produced first before economic values can be estimated. This section is limited to providing a framework for undertaking economic valuation activities and incorporating past economic valuation studies done for some parts of the study area, and identifying where future work can be focused. A comprehensive list of the various goods and services provided by wetlands are presented below:

USE VALUES NON-USE VALUES

Option and Direct Use Indirect Use Existence Quasi-Option Bequest Value Value Value Value Value

- fish - nutrient retention - potential future - biodiversity - heritage - agriculture - flood control uses (as per - Inter-generational - fuel wood - storm protection direct and indirect -culture, heritage equity - recreation - groundwater recharge uses) - transport - external ecosystem - wildlife support - future value of harvesting - micro-climatic information - peat/ energy stabilization - shoreline stabilization, etc.

Source: (Barbier, et al. 1997)

Save for some direct use values, estimating components of use- and non-use values is not straightforward, given that they are not being traded in the market, hence they do not possess market prices. Economic techniques have been developed to approximate such values. In the case of measuring the values of non-market goods and services, particularly for recreation and non-use values, one technique available is the contingent valuation method that involves a primary survey of the relevant population. Respondents are asked the maximum amount they are willing to pay to avail of the good or service being valued. In other words, the value imputed is contingent on the situation

16 Philippines National Report on Wetlands being presented to the sample, such that if it were actually being sold, at what price would they “buy” such a service. The survey makes use of a structured questionnaire, which contains: (a) A description of the hypothetical situation; (b) A description of the method of payment; (c) A description of the constructed market; and, (d) Questions assessing the validity of the stated values.

One important feature of economic valuation is that values are usually resource- and site-specific. For instance, the recreational value of one wetland does not necessarily coincide with that of another area. They may have different aspects of recreation that they offer, such as amenities in the area, natural resources that provide aesthetic value, access to the area, etc. The profiles of the two sets of tourists may also be vastly different from each other, which greatly affect willingness to pay. Hence, it is strongly advised that separate valuation exercises be conducted for each site and for each type of use. In cases where financial and time constraints prohibit a full valuation exercise for one particular wetland, caution should be applied in using values derived from other studies to approximate the values for the site in question.

Based on the various uses of wetlands, most do not have market prices attached to them. In making decisions on managing wetlands, policy makers are often confronted with potential earnings from conversion or continuous extraction on one hand, and arguments for preservation and conservation on the other. The problem with the latter is that such arguments are based on benefits that are usually not quantified, hence cannot compete with arguments for increase in incomes and employment generation. To make wise decisions, pros and cons have to be weighed against each other, and to do so, they have to be in similar units of measurement. This is what is called Cost-Benefit Analysis. Economic valuation calls for translation into units that will allow comparison. Monetary terms are the most convenient and the only universal measurement that allows benefits and costs to be aggregated and compared with each other. Thus, to perform comprehensive Cost-Benefit Analysis for development projects, economic valuation is used.

Economic values can further be used as the basis for certain policy instruments, such as the imposition of user fees or charges against users of natural resources and the environment. For instance, entrance fees to protected areas should be based on how much tourists are willing to pay to recreate in that area. This ensures the maximization of welfare of the users, and provides a means for raising revenues for the protected area managers. They can also be used to determine the penalties that could be imposed on would-be violators of environmental rules and regulations. If the penalties are based on economic values, they can work as deterrents and can induce wise use of the environment and its natural resources.

B1. Proposed Methodology for Economic Valuation of Wetlands

A framework for assessing wetlands was proposed in the document “Economic Valuati on of Wetlands: A Guide for Policy Makers and Planners ” (Barbier et al., 1997). This is summarized as follows: (1) Define the problem and choose the appropriate economic assessment approach; (2) Define the scope and limits of the analysis and the information required for the chosen assessment approach; (3) Define data collection methods and

17 Philippines National Report on Wetlands valuation techniques required for the economic appraisal, including analysis of distributional impacts.

In determining how to manage a particular wetland, there may be no need for economic valuation to be conducted. Political or moral reasons may dictate certain uses of wetlands even without the need for a Cost-Benefit Analysis, such as the presence of an endangered species in the area. Nevertheless, it would be ideal if valuation can still be conducted, if only to present a numerical justification for doing so. This will depend on the availability of resources of the decision makers for the wetland.

Another important point is the need for a multi-disciplinary team in conducting resource valuation. Depending on the wetland use being valued, inputs from other scientific fields will be required, such as hydrologists, ecologists, marine biologists, engineers, etc. In particular, valuing indirect use values will necessitate expertise directly related to the function of the wetland. For instance, valuing nutrient retention will require specifications of the biological relationships involved, i.e. a biologist; groundwater recharge values will necessitate the help of a hydrologist; and external ecosystem support values will need the help of an ecologist.

From the framework presented above, the first step is to identify which resources and uses are most significant for each of these wetlands. From the initial list of 29 sites linked to the South China Sea, half of the areas have a general description of their natural resources, the various uses by humans, and threats to their existence. However, the profiles were compiled more than ten years ago (i.e., 1990), and it is highly possible that significant changes have occurred, particularly with the current state of resources and uses of the wetlands to humans. Thus, there is a need to update the profiles as a first step to the valuation process.

A number of economic valuation studies were conducted for some important uses in selected priority wetlands. Some studies focused on the natural services of the environment that were being threatened by overuse, while some focused on recreation. Some studies were translated into user fee systems via policy ordinances, while others contained recommendations on what type of user fee system to implement. Furthermore, many of the areas covered were protected areas under the National Integrated Protected Area System (NIPAS), and were done in collaboration with either international donors or non-government organizations. The main purpose of most of these studies was for the economic values to be translated into economic instruments, which in turn would regulate current use and at the same time generate revenues for the protected area management bodies.

Some form of economic valuation studies had been conducted on five wetlands linked to the South China Sea (Annex 6). Even from such a small sample size, data gaps were very wide, and valuation exercises were still wanting. The very first thing to do is to update the profiles of the wetlands, using the 1990 (Davies et al., 1990) profiles as a starting point. For wetlands that have not been covered by any profiling exercise, there is a need to start doing so. It is imperative that the current uses and resources of wetlands be identified prior to the conduct of any economic valuation work.

Lingayen Gulf appears to be well studied in terms of valuing the various direct uses of the water body. However, there are hardly any legal instruments that have been

18 Philippines National Report on Wetlands implemented for its conservation. The creation of the Lingayen Gulf Coastal Area Management Program (LGCAMP) was supposed to have taken care of the institutional requirements for its sound management. However, it does not seem to have taken off from the time it was created. It appears it is not a priority of the current government anymore, and it lacks the financial capability of operating on its own. There should be a review on how to revive the LGCAMP, and make it autonomous and independent from the national government. One important value that is not yet covered is the use of the Gulf by the University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute (UP-MSI) for educational and research purposes. This may be estimated using the amounts or budgets of all programs of UP-MSI in the area.

El Nido has likewise received a number of grants from various internationally funded projects. There are a number of studies done on its recreational value and the value of its resources to the tourism industry, which is one of the main uses of the area. These can already be used as basis for estimating the area’s total recreational value, along with the total number of visitors in a year.

Balayan Bay was subjected to user fees studies from scuba diving activities, which is its main use. Hence, whatever total recreational value is estimated from the study will constitute a major part of the area’s direct use values. Subsistence and commercial fishing are the other main components, albeit these have not been valued. If Balayan Bay is considered a priority area for valuation, these activities should be included in the future studies.

The study of Laguna de Bay is comprehensive enough to cover all the major uses of the wetland for humans. It covered all users of water from Laguna Lake, including domestic use, industrial use that includes aquaculture activities, use for hydropower, irrigation, and recreational use. The figures derived can approximate the total direct use values of the area, once the total number of users per type is updated.

Finally, a framework has been developed for setting a wastewater permit fee system in the country, for all types of water bodies being used as waste receptacles by both domestic and industrial sources. The case studies focused on river systems; hence the framework is relevant to estimating wetland values. This can be used to estimate waste disposal services of wetlands being used for such purposes. The data specific for each wetland will have to be generated though, such as pollution loadings per site.

There has only been one study that tries to estimate the value of an indirect use of a wetland, namely the study on estimating erosion costs for the Agno River Watershed. There is much to be desired in this type of economic valuation. Many scientists have emphasized the importance of wetlands for various uses, which are not being reflected in the way wetlands have been converted and degraded. As pointed out earlier, the problem lies in the lack of appreciation for such uses, due to their characteristic of being non-market goods and services. There seems to be a gap between identifying such uses and actually putting economic values on them. For areas that are deemed important by those in the natural science field, this gap should be addressed.

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B2. Proposed Work for Further Research

Much work needs to be done estimating the total economic value of wetlands in the Philippines, particularly for those that are connected to the South China Sea. Even for those that have some values estimated, translation of the results into economic instruments still has some way to go. Following are the recommendations for further work on economic valuation for Philippine wetlands draining into the South China Sea:

1. Update all profiles of wetlands, starting from the 1990 profiles, information sheets on Ramsar Wetlands, and all other secondary sources of information.

2. To develop criteria for a priority ranking of wetlands that can be subjected to economic valuation, it is strongly recommended that at least one economist be tapped for determining the criteria and performing the ranking exercise; the criteria should include presence of resource use conflicts, number of users, current or potential on-site and off-site impacts of uses, among others

3. There should be a good reason for undertaking economic valuation, not just for the sake of coming up with numerical values that will not necessarily be used for any further decision-making, such as a cost-benefit analysis of conflicting uses of the wetland, or wetland conversion.

4. Determine the uses of these priority wetlands that will be valued, using the typology of the various types of economic uses outlined earlier.

5. Identify the data needs and valuation techniques to be employed for the identified uses to be valued; for those uses that have been studied, estimate the value using the study results and the relevant population.

6. Set-up the economic valuation teams, to include specialists or scientists relevant to the type of use being valued; the economist should be able to coordinate the team, aside from being able to identify and conduct valuation techniques.

7. Conduct valuation exercises.

C. Legislation, Institutional and Administrative Arrangements

Laws that directly apply to wetlands are few (only 6 out of 26 statutes listed in Annex 6) and are more frequently encountered in other general laws that regulate access to natural resources, jurisdictions over territory and management, and prohibition of certain acts. Examples are:

1. Water code 2. Regulations granting tenure 3. Foreshore regulations 4. Resource access provisions of the Philippine Constitution, 5. Congressional acts dealing with water bodies that comprise wetlands,

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6. A myriad of environmental regulations that affect wetlands by licensing or restricting actions that eventually impact many ecosystems as well but without referring to wetlands specifically.

Any one or more of these regulations address broader issues with wide-ranging implications on the use of resources including in these areas, such as the water code. Examples are laws requiring environmental impact assessments, building permits, sanitation code, wildlife act, cave act and many other environmental laws.

C1. Legal Provisions with Direct Impact on Wetlands

Legal provisions by themselves may not have an impact on wetlands unless implemented. These are a potential backbone for any advocacy to protect and conserve wetlands. Due to their breadth of scope and lack of enforcement, however, enforcement agencies have had a great deal of discretion in choosing which areas and which acts to enforce. This exercise of discretion can be seen in two ways - agencies can strategize to make maximum use of their enforcement resources, or they can act only on the basis of complaints or personal preferences. As such, the identification of gaps may be difficult since there are many laws that remain unenforced but do not quite constitute a gap in the legislation. What needs to be studied is whether these laws do, indeed, constitute gaps simply because they are impossible to fully implement. It is not, therefore, sufficient to say that there are laws and implementation is lacking, when the very deliberation of the law itself did not consider the realistic capacity to enforce.

C2. Access to the Resources

Ownership of wetlands is necessarily the primary factor in assessing whether degradation can be arrested. The Philippine Constitution and the Water Code of the Philippines are both clear in declaring wetlands as part of the public domain and incapable of alienation, except for wetlands that are part of ancestral waters, which became susceptible to open access and the tragedy of the commons. Lakes and rivers were especially vulnerable as accelerated population growth put pressure on the drainage and sewerage systems built for much lower numbers, and rivers began to double as sewer systems in highly urbanized areas.

The problem of open access was dealt with by a provision that large-scale exploitation of all natural resources in the public domain will only be undertaken by the State directly or in joint venture, production sharing and co-production while small-scale utilization by Filipino citizens could still be allowed by Congress through law. This small-scale utilization specifically included "cooperative fish farming, with priority to subsistence fishermen and fish workers in rivers, lakes, bays and lagoons" . Such provision requiring democratization of access and equity in resource distribution was directly relevant to the utilization of wetlands.

Among such laws that can be used to give flesh to this mandate of the Constitution are the Local Government Code and the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998. The Local Government Code allows the local council, or Sangguniang Bayan, to grant fishery privileges to erect fish corrals, oyster, mussels or other aquatic beds or bangus

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(milkfish) fry areas, within a definite zone of the municipal waters, as determined by it. The Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998 also prioritizes qualified fishing cooperatives and/or associations as well as small and medium enterprises as defined under Republic Act No. 8289, in the section governing the disposition of lands for fishery purposes.

Other legislation that has great impact on wetlands, specifically tidal flats, is the Public Land Act that provides for foreshore leases. The foreshore includes tidal flats and estuaries, which shall be disposed of to private parties only by lease and not otherwise and only upon a declaration by the President, upon recommendation by the Secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, that such foreshore land is not necessary for public service. The lease contract must contain a provision that easements reserved by existing law or by laws enacted shall be respected.

The Civil Code of the Philippines provides for easements of five meters from the high water line on coasts of agricultural lands and twenty meters on coasts of forestlands that must be respected. Foreshore areas are also dealt with in the Water Code and the Forestry Decree of 1975. Apart from regulating the use and disposition of foreshore areas, the Water Code also has wide-ranging implications if religiously enforced. It identifies state ownership of rivers and their natural beds, continuous or intermittent waters of springs and brooks running in their natural beds, and the beds themselves; natural lakes, lagoons and seawater.

From this enumeration, virtually all wetlands are already covered. All uses of these state properties would require a water permit to be legal with very few exceptions that refer to domestic, small-scale usage. However, the law was not accompanied by the resources needed to undertake such massive regulatory infrastructure, especially considering a very long and broken up coastline as that of the Philippines.

The recently passed Clean Water Act may also be of use in wetland protection. Specifically the provisions that prohibit dumping of waste in, and the provisions directing the establishment of water quality management areas, a national sewerage and septic waste management program, and the imposition of wastewater discharge charges.

C3. Management and Conservation Jurisdiction

The Philippine Fisheries Code defines municipal waters to include wetlands but exempts areas falling under the National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) from the definition. As such, wetlands of the public domain may either be municipal waters or protected areas. Inland waters and tidal flats that are not NIPAS areas are municipal waters under the first part of the definition while lagoons fall under the second part, whether the lagoon be part of a NIPAS area or not. For NIPAS areas that are inland waters or tidal flats, jurisdiction over management is vested in the Protected Area Management Board with specific mandates to the DENR. Both local government authorities who retain jurisdiction over them in the exercise of their general welfare functions, and the Protected Area Management Boards (PAMBs) who are responsible for biodiversity conservation and sustainable development, can be seen to have different jurisdictional coverage over the same territory.

Due to lack of appropriation for the implementation of the NIPAS Act, however, many PAMBs of wetland areas are hardly equipped with the technical and

22 Philippines National Report on Wetlands financial capacity for hard-nosed management. Under the Clean Water Act, a four- person body called a governing board is mandated to be established for designated Water Quality Management Areas. Apart from these, self-reporting, permitting and other monitoring requirements can be used to pinpoint urgent problems with respect to important wetlands. Certain government agencies are vested with jurisdiction over wetlands, but by the nature of their function, view them not in terms of habitat and biodiversity, but in terms of their value as real estate and economic commodity. These are the Public Estates Authority that have jurisdiction over all reclamation projects, and as such has disposition of these prime properties, and the Philippine Port Authority, which by its nature operates facilities in tidal flats. These are both attached agencies of the Department of Public Works and Highways, which is accountable for these jurisdictions in terms of environmental impact only in the Environmental Impact Assessment process. Management and conservation by municipal authorities range from very good management to neglectful, unregulated and permissive exploitation. Because of the demonstration of hugely successful local government management in many areas, the likelihood of successful management of wetlands may lie in local government units hands, particularly since these areas are not contiguous and should be seen as integral to the entire territory of the local government units rather than isolated patches of water bodies.

Other agencies have specialized jurisdictions over wetlands. Those involved in scientific research include the Philippine Council for Aquatic and Marine Resources Development - Department of Science and Technology and the state universities. On the other hand, agencies involved in enforcement include the Philippine National Police (PNP) Maritime Command -Department of Interior and Local Government, that took over the police functions of the Philippine Coast Guard over municipal waters; and, the Philippine Coast Guard, which enforces fisheries laws in the high seas, ensures maritime safety, and marine pollution laws. Agencies involved in institutional coordination on aspects relating to fisheries and coastal resources management include the Presidential Commission on Anti-Illegal Fishing and Marine Conservation, the Inter-Agency Task Force on Coastal Environment Protection, and the Marine and Ocean Affairs- Department of Foreign Affairs.

C4. Enforcement Problems

Public interest lawyers, local governments and other concerned citizens and groups may use existing and applicable laws to protect specific wetlands that are deemed important, but their total enforcement to protect most wetlands as habitats is limited. This is not only due to lack of resources but a failure in the lawmaking process to identify prohibitions that are realistic and which will remain in the books. Nevertheless, the Civil Code does state that laws are only repealed by subsequent ones, and their violation or non-observance shall not be excused by disuse, or custom or practice to the contrary. As such, while it is frustrating to hear about unimplemented laws, the opportunity they present is much better than not having them at all.

The Civil Code enumerates all the officers and agencies that the law deputizes to enforce it along with other fishery regulations. Other competent government officials and employees, barangay leaders and officers and members of fishing associations who have undergone training on law enforcement may be designated in writing by the Department of Agriculture as deputy fish wardens in the enforcement of this Code and

23 Philippines National Report on Wetlands other fishery laws, rules and regulations. Furthermore, the law mandates that the Department of Justice embark on a program to strengthen the prosecution and conviction aspects of fishery law enforcement though augmentation of the current complement of state prosecutors and through their continuous training and reorientation on fishery laws, rules and regulations.

Enforcement depends on a strong awareness among enforcers as to what the law provides along with a strong belief that it is a law that will be beneficial to people. Due to the many different overlaps in jurisdiction, inconsistencies and the necessity to harmonize many different laws governing the same resources, enforcement agencies have not been updated on the latest legal interpretation.

C5. Other General Laws that May Apply to Wetlands

Seen from the perspective of reducing the degradation factors of wetlands, a great deal of attention needs to be paid to land based causes of degradation. As such, the forestry code, the Philippine Mining Act of 1995, easement provisions under various laws including the Civil Code, the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act and the Environmental Impact Assessment System are only a few that effect in wetlands. These effects are felt especially where solid waste, effluents and tailings are allowed to collect and damage tidal flats, estuaries, and lagoons. These are laws useful to local implementers and managers, but the processes involved in the licensing, permitting and planning in each area and project are tedious to use on a countrywide scale to protect wetlands. Also, a general enforcement of good laws such as the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act will no doubt have an incidental, but nevertheless gargantuan, impact on wetlands. Those wetlands to which urbanized and populated areas drain into including tidal flats, which, by the nature of wind and wave patterns tend to gather more solid waste, will necessarily benefit from a strict implementation of the law.

C6. Local Policies

The Manila Bay, Laguna Lake and the Pasig River are three bodies of water that have been under several local policies and policy disputes, and the variety of their experiences is instructive of what can work. The major problems confronting these connected wetlands are drainage, run-off and sewerage from the surrounding areas, notably the Metropolitan Manila area. The Laguna Lake Development Authority has a basin-wide mandate for it to exercise the functions required to affect the lake. It has full authority to issue permits for the use of the lake and for developments in the whole catchment area of the lake. Its multiple uses had already been subjected to economic valuation studies and innovative policies such as user fee systems and permits for the release of effluents have been initiated with favorable results. The Pasig River and Manila Bay continue to act as the sewerage system of metro Manila, and the projects for clean up, have failed to take this major contributing factor into consideration. A closed season for commercial fisheries was declared in the entire Manila Bay in the 1990s and fully lapsed after five years without having been enforced. Despite the state of its waters, though, other uses such as recreational, navigational and fishing still remain.

The Lingayen Gulf Coastal Area Management Program is a program that operated over a period of six (6) years and covered twenty (20) municipalities. It generated a database for planning, with data on fisheries, and attempted to establish

24 Philippines National Report on Wetlands regulations based on catch per unit effort and maximum sustainable yields. The program later directed efforts towards education and the generation of local political will when the first plans proved too difficult. The National Economic Development Authority uses the Lingayen Gulf Coastal Area Management Program experience as a model since it created an institutional arrangement to coordinate planning and implementation resulting in policy directives to reduce and eliminate commercial fishing within the Gulf, improved law enforcement and reduced levels of illegal fishing, a detailed integrated management plan for the municipal waters and coastal resources of Bolinao, guidelines for improved aquaculture development and mangrove reforestation projects.

As a result of being a prime diving destination, Balayan Bay has had several marine sanctuaries declared in the municipalities of Bauan, Mabini and Tingloy. While the sanctuaries themselves cover areas further at sea than the tidal flats, regulations usually also affect the tidal flat. Some of these sanctuaries are covered by private and non-governmental agreements among resource users. These agreements serve as the management regime and regulatory scheme for the sites. Some such examples are the resource management agreement under the sanctuary ordinance granted to peoples’ organizations, clam stewardship agreements between non-government organizations seeding giant clams and the resort owners, and other such private initiatives. To date, no user fee system has been established for the lucrative diving industry as the dive sites are scattered over several municipalities and the resorts are concentrated on the mainland, thereby risking an unequal benefit for sanctuary managers in outlying islands. A more integrated approach, however, is crucial at this stage when rapid industrialization is taking place on the other side of the bay from the sanctuaries. It would seem that massive development of heavy industries such as cement plants, power plants and other manufacturing factories are slated to be constructed facing the bay. The lack of coordination between the small fishermen on the western side and those employed by the diving industry and the resorts on the eastern side might result in long-term degradation of the resource base. Batangas province has an integrated Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Council created in pursuit of the Fisheries Code, but no other bay-wide entity has the mandate or authority to specifically address these problems.

The degradation of resources in Taal Lake galvanized local community action in pressing for more regulation. The early 90s saw the enactment of Provincial Ordinance No. 4 that regulates fishing on the lake as well as other uses such as fishcage development and the dismantling of fishpens on the Pansipit River in 1997 and 2001. These dismantlings were also in consonance with the Master Plan for Development prepared for the lake by the defunct Presidential Commission on Tagaytay-Taal. The management plan, therefore, has no official imprimatur. The lake area was proclaimed a protected landscape in 1997. Currently, management jurisdiction rests with the PAMB with the province retaining ordinance and local taxation power to promote its general welfare. The nine towns and two cities also create similar ordinances, such as the garbage ordinance and the ordinance prohibiting jet skis.

Palawan is the ideal example of delegation of management powers over wetlands to the local government. In 1993, the DENR entered into a Memorandum of Agreement with the City of Puerto Prinsesa over what was then 3,900 hectares of the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park (PPSRNP). The agreement worked, with the City underwriting a third of the cost of park operations while park revenues covered the rest. This is a good example of national government support for local

25 Philippines National Report on Wetlands management that has resulted in conservation. The PPSRNP has also increased considerably in size from 3,900 hectares to approximately 22,000 hectares. Most of the area of expansion is already covered by Certificates of Ancestral Domain Claims (CADC) where Ancestral Domain Management Plans have been approved by the DENR, recognized by the City and are in full force and effect. Here, then, is a situation where management is apportioned among the City for the most part, the indigenous peoples, and the DENR for enforcement in the expansion areas not covered by CADC. The clarity and consensus among the groups as to the jurisdiction and authority of each and the representativeness of community, local government and national government stakeholders in the management seems to be working.

C7. Strategies in Reduction of Degradation Factors

Considering a long history of distrust of the law and the legal system among those primarily dependent on wetland resources, there is a need for creative, appropriate and practicable policies as well as strategic application of existing law. As can be seen from the above analyses, the applicable laws are either too broad to be practicably enforced or too strict to be implemented. Community initiatives and meta-legal strategies are important so that other laws with indirect impact can be used whenever a wetland area is threatened by particular activities, such as the industrial development proposals. Apart from communities, composite teams have been proven to work in proper implementation of fishery laws in marine areas. Based on the experience and general capacity to enforce, there are many available options for the protection of wetlands and the reduction of degrading factors thereon. Projects that threaten wetlands directly can be questioned under any number of regulatory laws from the Environmental Impact Assessment System to the water code, local government requirements and many other laws.

The Philippines is a Contracting Party to the Convention, Convention on Biological Diversity, the Basel Convention, and the Convention on Migratory Species, among the many international agreements the country has entered into. In line with the country’s obligations under the Ramsar Convention, four sites have been designated as wetlands of international importance, with two of these having a peripheral impact at best on the South China Sea, particularly Lake Naujan in Mindoro and Tubattaha Reefs in Palawan.

Pursuant to Department Administrative Order 97-17 prescribing the criteria for selection of wetlands critical to biodiversity, 133 sites have been selected. As with any government agency, the PAWB-DENR has limited resources to spread out to as many as 133 sites, despite their importance. As such, it may be well to prioritize those sites to determine interventions that would be strategic and highly selective. An example, for waterbirds, would be to assess topographical maps for potential nesting and roosting sites and mark off only a small part of some wetlands for on-the-ground protection activities. Without substantial infusions of funding, the designation of these sites critical to biodiversity is in danger of remaining paper declarations. These identified habitats can then be endorsed to local governments or even local volunteer groups with merely the guidance of the national level agencies as to their importance and means of protection.

In general, management of many wetlands still seems to be tied up with management of the associated ecosystems for tidal flats, and for lakes and rivers, in

26 Philippines National Report on Wetlands integrated ways such as Fisheries and Aquatic Resource Management Councils, or integrated local ordinances of the towns with territory on the coasts of the lakes or lagoons. With rivers, catchment area management seems to be the most effective management solution so that the policies that have general application can be applied not only with respect to the wetland itself but to activities in the catchment area affecting the wetland. One prime example is the catchment area management of the Puerto Princesa Subterranean National Park.

In all these instances, it bears noting that the best policies can only see proper implementation with a management structure: (a) that is locally based but nationally endorsed; (b) that understands the flexibility required in policy application thereby having the ability to focus on certain regulations with the greatest impact, and, (c) that has a consensus building mechanism and participation processes among the multiple users of the resource.

Another important part of a workable implementation strategy would be to send a message that breaking the law would no longer be tolerated and would be met with punishment. Choosing a solid law, fully enforcing it and sustaining enforcement would focus efforts of the multi-sectoral teams instead of dissipate energies on the breadth of regulations. In choosing the law to fully implement, one must be reminded that the implementation should be fair and consistent, that observance of the law should bear visible results, and that it is realistic. Implementation of this one law could serve as the lynch pin for other violations and destructive activities. In the country, one such law that sees consistent implementation and observance is the vehicle registration requirements. In the way that smoke-belching regulation was tied up with this requirement, the government hopes to use the registration process to arrest smoke belching. If boat licensing would be implemented the same way, and boats can be checked while near shore or docked, a good number of fishery violations could be prevented. It may well be that such a lynch pin law would be the provisions of the water code which make the obstruction of waterways a criminal act. The same obstruction is also penalized in the Fisheries Code.

A National Wetlands Policy will surely help rationalize laws and policies on access to wetland resources, management jurisdictions and enforcement, but it should also consider a menu of options for institutions as close to the ground as possible, which can be used appropriately and in a timely manner; in order to protect specific wetland areas and their associated ecosystems.

A National Wetlands Action Plan had been developed by PAWB-DENR, however this has not been subjected to a wider stakeholder consultation, thus had remained unimplemented in general. This will be part of the work of the newly created National Wetlands Committee that the South China Sea project has established.

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D. Review of GIS data and Other Information

As part of the data review process, information regarding the GIS and other databases of wetlands linked to the South China Sea were identified, located and secured whenever possible.

The characterization of the landscape and consequent prioritization of sites made use of the appropriate watershed and sub-watershed boundaries. Thus, prioritization of sites was based on general to specific ecological boundary delineation through the watersheds. On the basis of the topography and drainage characteristics of each site, all waters in the country that drain into the South China Seas were identified. A second iteration specified the immediate sub-watershed that embraces each of the 28 identified wetlands cum watersheds.

By definition, a watershed is a topographically delineated area of land from which rainwater can drain as surface runoff, via a specific stream or river system to a common outlet point which may be a dam, irrigation system or municipal water supply take off point, or where the stream/river discharges into a larger river, lake or the sea, such as the South China Sea (PCARRD-DOST-DENR-FMB-DA-UPLB-CFNR-FCD/ENFOR, 1999). It is a discrete geographical unit that is capable of providing water, timber and non-timber products including food, fiber, minerals, medicine and many intangible goods such as aesthetics and a wholesome environment with solar radiation, precipitation, land, labor and capital as major inputs. As opposed to common misconceptions, a watershed is not necessarily an upland or mountainous landform. Thus, a watershed occurs in all landforms as exemplified in the watershed continuum below:

Figure 2. Cross-section of a watershed continuum with three environments delimited: Mountain environment; Lowland environment; and Sea environment In addition, major land-uses like residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, educational, experimental, environmental and forests may occur within a watershed. In this context, a watershed is a major source of nutrients as well as pollutants and these consequently affect the integrity of the lakes, coastal areas, lowland plains and river systems. Watersheds are hierarchical in nature. A watershed may be divided into component sub-watersheds. In the same manner, a sub-watershed will have its own sub- sub-watershed, and so on until one encounters the last tributary upstream. Thus, for this study, the minimum record unit of analysis shall be the watershed.

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IV. Process of Sites Prioritization

Based on a review of past, current and continuing projects, studies on economic valuation, legislation, institutional and administrative arrangements and the GIS database and other information, it appears that a lot of information resources are available. However, the quality and reliability of this information remains to be validated. Some of the information is old (e.g., directory of Philippine wetlands from 1990) while some is simply absent (e.g., data on half of the wetlands in the directory are not available). In the initial listing of Philippine wetlands, 63 sites were identified, of which 11 sites were directly or indirectly connected to the South China Sea. The most recent validated data would be from the PBCPP (Ong et al. 2002) where the 28 sites were identified. This was supplemented by information from Key Conservation Areas identified by Mallari et al. (2001), where threatened birds occupy wetlands connected to the South China Sea, and by Scott (1989), Davies et al., 1990 and Talaue-McManus (2000).

Furthermore, as discussed earlier regarding the level and quality of information on Philippine wetlands; as exemplified by most recent data on Manila Bay where it is at least six- years-old and referred to wetland types other than those that are of immediate concern to the South China Sea project. This is a recurring theme throughout the search for data on the three wetland habitats and ecosystems. Thus the subsequent discussions are still based mainly on the biodiversity of coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass and seaweeds.

A. Identification Process of Initial Long List

The Philippines implemented the Philippine Biodiversity Conservation Priority- setting Program (PBCPP), a priority-setting process that identified 170 integrated terrestrial and inland waters and 36 integrated marine priority areas for biodiversity conservation (Ong et al., 2002). On top of this, another 206 sites were identified by the thematic working groups, which later formed the basis of the integrated priority areas. This was a second iteration of the country’s National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP). The Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (PAWB-DENR) spearheaded the PBCPP, with technical assistance from the Biodiversity Conservation Program of the UP Center for Integrative and Development Studies (BCP-UPCIDS) and the Philippine Program of Conservation International (CI Phil).

The consensus building process of the PBCPP began in January 2000 and culminated in December 2000 during an international workshop attended by more than 200 local and international natural and social scientists from more than 100 institutions. The results of this workshop were further refined and the output released to the public in September 2002. The PBCPP used published information and experts’ opinion to determine priority areas according to taxa (plants, arthropods, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals) and themes (inland waters, marine and socio-economic). A total of 206 thematic and taxa-based priority areas were identified. These thematic and taxa-based priority areas were then overlaid to produce polygons of areas that encompassed themes and taxa, thereby producing the 206 national level priority areas

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(170 terrestrial and inland waters and 36 marine priority areas). Detailed information about the methodology used in setting the priorities is available at Ong et al. (2002).

Twenty-eight of these priority areas were initially identified as meeting the requirements of being a Philippine wetland and at the same time directly linked to the South China Sea (SCS). This initial list was further supplemented by information about additional areas identified in the Key Conservation Sites by Haribon Philippines and Birdlife International (Mallari et al., 2001), the Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (Talaue-MacManus 2000) and the Directory of Philippine Wetlands prepared by the Davies et al. (1990) and Scott (1989), bringing the list to a total number to 33 areas as part of the initial l list. From the 33 areas short-listed for consideration as an investment priority by the South China Sea project, these were grouped based on their regional locations. Nine regional groupings, with the number of specific sites indicated in parenthesis, were identified:

1) Northern Philippines (4) - Batanes and Babuyanes Group of Islands, Buguey Wetlands, Palui Island and Kalbario Patapat National Park 2) Northwestern Philippines (2) - Agno River-Pangasinan Wetlands-Lingayen Gulf, Bataan Natural Park -Subic Bay Forest Reserve 3) Northwest Manila Bay (3) - Candaba Swamp, Mariveles Mountains, Manila Bay 4) Southwest Manila Bay (1) - Laguna Lake 5) Taal Lake-Pansipit River-Balayan Bay-Batangas Bay (2) - Taal Lake-Pansipit River and Balayan Bay-Calatagan Peninsula 6) Northern and Western Mindoro (5) - Mt. Calavite, Mt. Iglit-Baco, Mt. Halcon-Sablayan, Malpalon, Mt. Hinunduang, 7) Calamianes Group of Islands (3) - Caluit Island, Busuanga Island and Culion 8) Mainland Palawan (7) - Bacuit Bay-El Nido, Malampaya Sound, San Vicente- Taytay-Roxas forests, Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park, Ulugan Bay, Anapalan-Victoria Ranges, Mt. Mantalingahan 9) Balabac Group of Islands (1) - Balabac

Site characterizations of these sites covering all aspects according to regional agreed outline are presented as Annex 2. The information included the following:

1. Name 2. Type 3. Size 4. Geographical location 5. Wetland biodiversity 6. Uses and socio-economic values 7. Threats and causes 8. Wetland management aspects

In the process of selecting the areas for consideration as an investment area for the next phase of the South China Sea project, the following steps were undertaken to narrow down the priority areas. The first step was to go back to the title of the project, “Reversing Environmental Degradation of the South China Seas and the Gulf of Thailand,” to guide the selection process. The National Wetlands Committee agreed that reversing environmental degradation trends include:

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1. Maintenance and protection of remaining pristine environment, which encompass on-site interventions to protect existing biodiversity.

2. Restoration of degraded environment, which encompasses on-site interventions to restore lost biodiversity. Restoration activities refer to activities that will lead to the recovery and rehabilitation of degraded areas and the delisting of threatened species from the threatened category because their population level has increased to a level that ensures their survival.

3. Prevention of degradation by removing and reducing the cause of degradation that encompass off-site interventions to remove/reduce cause of loss of biodiversity to maintain the good condition of the site. Prevention activities remove factors that threaten the population of priority species. Prevention activities involve off-site activities, dealing with factors outside of the areas and species being protected.

It was also agreed that based on the above definitions, prevention activities should form part and parcel of any restoration or protection and maintenance activities, since investments made in restoration or protection and maintenance will be negated if no prevention activities are undertaken simultaneously, i.e. factors that contribute to the degradation of good sites, and those that further degrade degraded areas are not removed.

Furthermore, the National Wetland Committee also agreed that environmental degradation is measured in terms of:

1. Pollution 2. Loss of biodiversity 3. Decrease in fish productivity

For this element of the selection, loss of biodiversity is the primary determinant in the selection of an area while the pollution and decrease in fish productivity were secondary considerations. Loss of biodiversity includes the loss of habitat in terms of the area of such habitats (quantity), the status of the habitat (quality), the number of threatened species found in the said areas (quantity), and the level of diversity of species found in the said areas, particularly of endemic species (quality). Philippine wetlands that qualify under the South China Sea project are those wetlands that that directly contribute to the environmental degradation of the South China Sea. Areas that are recipient of South China Sea effects s were excluded in the selection process.

Once the National Wetland Committee agreed upon these parameters, the 33 short-listed areas were reviewed again. Immediately, the Buguey wetlands, Palaui Island and the Batanes and Babuyan Islands in Northern Luzon were dropped off the list as they were determined to be affected by the South China Sea rather than contributing to the environmental degradation of the South China Sea. The fourth area, the Kalbario- Patapat National Park was more an offsite source of degradation and its relationship to the South China Sea was several steps removed. This had the effect of removing the Northern Philippines as a region for consideration.

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The six sites from Northern and Western Mindoro were also removed from the list, as five were forests on mountains and several steps removed from the South China Sea. This also had the effect of removing Mindoro from the next level of analysis.

The forests in the mountains of mainland Palawan (San Vicente-Taytay-Roxas, the Anapalan-Victoria Ranges and Mount Mantalingahan) were also excluded from the next level of selection as these were more offsite sources of degradation and their relationship to the South China Sea was several steps removed.

Balabac was also excluded from the next level of selection as very little information is available about the site compared to the other candidate sites, thus more energy would be required before a decision can be made regarding Balabac.

The remaining areas in the six regions were then classified if they require restoration activities, protection, and/or maintenance activities.

Restoration: 1. Northwest Manila Bay Candaba Swamp-Pampanga River-Mariveles Mountains-Manila Bay 2. Southwest Manila Bay: Laguna Lake-Pasig River-Manila Bay-Northwest Cavite 3. Northwestern Philippines Pangasinan Wetlands-Lingayen Gulf-Agno River 4. Mainland Palawan Malampaya Sound

Maintenance: 1) Northwestern Philippines Zambales Coast-Subic Bay-Bataan National Park 2) Taal Lake-Pansipit River-Balayan Bay-Batangas Bay 3) Calamianes 4) Mainland Palawan El Nido PPSRNP/Ulugan Bay

Prevention: 1) Northwestern Philippines Amburayan-Abra Rivers draining into the Ilocos Coast Pangasinan Wetlands-Lingayen Gulf-Agno River Zambales Coast-Subic Bay-Bataan National Park 2) Northwest Manila Bay Candaba Swamp-Pampanga River-Mariveles Mountains-Manila Bay 3) Southwest Manila Bay: Laguna Lake-Pasig River-Manila Bay-Northwest Cavite 4) Taal Lake-Pansipit River-Balayan Bay-Batangas Bay 5) Calamianes

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6) Mainland Palawan Areas El Nido Malampaya Sound Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park/Ulugan Bay

B. Selection of Priority Areas Based on the Type of Reversing Activities

The rationale for the grouping was to make the selection fairer by comparing apples with apples, i.e., by comparing areas that require similar primary activities whether restoration, or for protection and maintenance.

B1. Restoration Activities

From the medium list of six regions, four were identified as priority for restoration, of which two areas were selected as priority areas for investment for different reasons. One is the Southwest Manila Bay while the other is the Malampaya Sound. Southwest Manila Bay was selected as a model problem area. From a biodiversity point of view, Manila Bay would seem dead if its current biodiversity status were assessed. However, it is an important biodiversity area historically and data from the PEMSEA and MBEMP-DENR report (2004) indicates that Manila Bay still contains remarkable biodiversity and performs critical environmental services. It is also the type locality for the Olive Ridley Turtle. It is a model problem area because of the onslaught of unplanned development, the multitude of stakeholders with competing vested interests in the sub-region and the scale of the area that needs to be covered, among others.

Furthermore, the National Wetland Committee firmly believes that if Manila Bay can be successfully restored, then there is no place else in the South China Sea and the Gulf of Thailand where restoration work cannot be done. Lessons learned from the restoration efforts in Manila Bay could be invaluable to the rest of the South China Sea and the Gulf of Thailand where similar conditions exist.

On the other hand, comparatively speaking, Malampaya Sound is in the early stages of degradation and thus it would take less effort and resources to restore it back to good condition, than Manila Bay. Hence it is considered to be a model demonstration site since the size of the area under consideration is manageable, the level of awareness and participation of stakeholders involved are comparatively high than in other areas.

B2. Protection and/or Maintenance Activities

From the medium list of six sub-regions, four were identified as priority for protection and/or maintenance activities, of which three areas were selected as priority areas for investment, again for different reasons. These areas are: 1) Taal Lake-Pansipit River-Balayan Bay-Batangas Bay, 2) Calamianes, and, 3) PPSRNP-Ulugan Bay.

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Taal Lake-Pansipit River-Balayan Bay-Batangas Bay was selected as a priority for protection and maintenance activities because if present degradation trends continue, then it is likely to go the way of Manila Bay. Hence intervention is urgently needed to ensure that the degradation trends are reversed as soon as possible.

On the other hand, the biodiversity of the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park (PPSRNP)/Ulugan Bay, and the Calamianes in Palawan are in better shape than the other regions, and thus would require less effort and resources to maintain in their current condition. Between the PPSRNP/Ulugan Bay and the Calamianes, PPSRNP has the advantage of being declared a World Heritage Site, and Ulugan Bay is proposed to be included as part of expanded PPSRNP, and consequently as part of the World Heritage Site.

B3. Final Site Selection for Investment

In the final selection of sites for the development of investment proposals, the choices were narrowed down to two areas, the Malampaya Sound for restoration, and the Taal Lake-Pansipit River-Balayan Bay-Batangas Bay was selected as a priority for protection and maintenance. Other factors such as local government unit interest and local community participation were taken into consideration in the final selection.

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V. References

Asian Wetlands Symposium. 2001. Bridging partnerships into good wetland practices. 27-30 August, 2001, Penang, Malaysia. Barbier, E. B., M. Acreman and D. Knowler. 1997. Economic Valuation of Wetlands: A Guide for Policy Makers and Planners . Ramsar Convention Bureau, Gland, Switzerland. Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR). 1995. Fisheries Sector Program-Resource and Ecological Assessment of the Manila Bay, Final Report. Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Department of Agriculture, Quezon City, Philippines. Calumpong, H. P. 1994. Status of mangrove resources in the Philippines. pp. 215-228. In: C. R., Wilkinson, S. Sudara, L.M. Chow (eds.). Proceedings of the Third ASEAN -Australia Symposium on Living Coastal Resources, May 16 -20, 1994 , Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. Consultative Forum. Living Coastal Resources of Southeast Asia: Status and Management Report. Chan, S., Benstead, P., Davies, J. and Grubh, R. 2001. The Wetland Management Handbook for South East Asia . Ministry of the Environment, Japan. Davies, J. and C. F. Claridge (eds.). 1993. Wetland Benefits, The Potential for Wetlands Support and Maintain Development . Asian Wetland Bureau Publications No. 87. IWRB Special Publication No. 27. Wetlands for the Americas Publication No. 11. Davies, J., P.M. Magsalay, R. Rigor, A. Mapalo and H. Gonzales. 1990. A Directory of Philippine Wetlands: A preliminary compilation of information on wetlands of the Philippines. Cebu City: Asian Wetlands Bureau Philippines and Haribon Foundation. Department of Environment and Natural Resources. 2004. ArcDev: A Framework of Sustainable Philippine Archipelagic Development. Revaluing our Maritime Heritage and affirming the Unity of Land and Sea. Foreign-Assisted and Special Projects Office, DENR, Quezon City, Philippines. DENR. 1997. National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan/Philippine Biodiversity: An Assessment and Action Plan. Bookmark, Inc. Makati, Philippines. 298 pp. Dugan, P. J. (ed.). 1990. Wetland Conservation: A Review of Current Issues and Required Actions. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland. Edra, R. B., E. V. Manalili and L. C. Darvin. (eds.) 1998. Riverine resources in the Philippines. (Proceedings of the National Symposium Workshop on Riverine Resources R&D, November 24-25, 1994. Dept of Science and Technology Lounge, Bicutan, Taguig), Metro Manila. Philippine Council for Aquatic and Marine Research and Development. 141pp. (PCMARD Book Series No. 22/1998)

Environment Science for Social Change. 1999. Decline of Philippine Forest. The Bookmark, Inc., Makati City.

Fernando. E. S. 1990. The Vegetation of the Philippines and the situation of the Flowering Plants’, Paper presented at the Fourth International Congress of Systematic and Evolutionary Biology, 01-07 July 1990, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, U.S.A. Fortes, M. D. 1994. Status of seagrass beds in ASEAN. pp. 106-109. In: C. R. Wilkinson (ed) Proceedings of ASEAN -Australia Symposium on Living Coastal Resources. 3rd October 1994, Bangkok, Thailand. Consultative Forum. Living Coastal Resources of Southeast Asia: Status and Management Report. Gomez, E. D., P. M. Aliño, W. Y. Licuanan, H. P. Yap. 1994. Status report of the coral reef of the Philippines. pp. 57-76. In: C. R., Wilkinson, S. Sudara, L. M. Chow (eds). Proceedings of the 3 rd ASEAN -Australia Symposium on Living Coastal Resources , May 16 -20, 1994 ,

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Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. Consultative Forum. Living Coastal Resources of Southeast Asia: Status and Management Report. Hall, R. 1998. The Plate tectonics of Cenozoic Southeast Asia and the distribution of land and sea. Pp. 99-132. In: R. Hall and J. D. Holloway (eds.) Biogeography and Geological Evolution of Southeast Asia . Backhuys Publishers, Leiden, The Netherlands. Heaney, L. R., and P. S. Ong., R. A. Mittermeier and C. G. Mittermeier. 1999. The Philippines . Pp. 308-315. In: R. A. Mittermeier, C. G. Mittermeier and N. Myers (eds). Hotspots: Earth’s biologically richest and most endangered terrestrial ecoregions. Conservation International and Cemex, Mexico City. Mallari, N. A. D., B. R. Jr. Tabaranza, and M. J. Crosby. 2001. Key Conservation Sites in the Philippines: A Haribon Foundation and Birdlife International Directory of Important Bird Areas . Bookmark, Inc., Makati City, Philippines. Myers, N., R. A. Mittermeier, C. G. Mittermeier, G.A. B. Fonseca and J. Kent. 2000. Hotspots: Earth’s biologically richest and most endangered terrestrial ecoregions. Nature: 403: 853- 858 Ong, P. S. 2004. The State of Philippine biodiversity: Changing mindsets amidst the crisis. Paper presented at the 7th International Conference on Philippine Studies, June 16-19, 2004, Leiden, The Netherlands. Ong, P. S., L. E. Afuang and R. G. Rosell-Ambal (eds.). 2002. Philippine Biodiversity Conservation Priorities: A Second Iteration of the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan. Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau, Conservation International Philippines. Biodiversity Conservation Program University of the Philippines Center for Integrative and Development Studies and Foundation for the Philippine Environment. Quezon City, Philippines. PCARRD-DOST-DENR-FMB-DA-UPLB-CFNR-FCD/ENFOR. 1999. Guidelines for watershed management and development in the Philippines. Los Banos, Laguna: PCARRD-DOST-DENR-FMB-DA-UPLB-CFNR-FCD/ENFOR. 241 pp. PEMSEA AND MBEMP TWG-RRA. 2004. Manila Bay: Refined Risk Assessment. PEMSEA Technical Report No. 9. 168 pp. Global Environment Facility/United Nations Development Programme/International Maritime Organization Regional Programme on Building Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia (PEMSEA) and the Manila Bay Environmental Management Project (MBEMP) Technical Working Group for Refined Risk Assessment (TWG-RRA), Quezon City, Philippines. Ramsar Convention Bureau. 2000. Ramsar handbooks for the wise use of wetlands. Ramsar Convention Bureau, Gland, Switzerland. Roberts, C. M., C. J. McClean, J. E. N. Veron, J. P. Hawkins, G. R. Allen, D. E. McAllister, C. G. Mittermeier, F. W. Schueler, M. Spalding, F. Wells, C. Vynne, T. B. Werner. 2002. Marine biodiversity hotspots and conservation priorities for tropical reefs. Science 295: 1280-1284. Santos-Borja, A. C. 2002. Inland Waters Group. pp. 47-48. In: P. S. Ong, L. E. Afuang and R. G. Rosell-Amball (eds.) 2002. Philippine Biodiversity Conservation Priorities: A Second Iteration of the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan. Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau, Conservation International Philippines. Biodiversity Conservation Program University of the Philippines Center for Integrative and Development Studies and Foundation for the Philippine Environment. Quezon City, Philippines. Saplaco, S. R., N. C. Bantayan and R. V. O. Cruz. 2001. GIS-based watershed Atlas of selected watersheds in the Philippines. PCARRD-DOST. 358 pp.

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Scott, D. A. (ed.) 1989. A Directory of Asian Wetlands . Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, U. K.: International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Talaue-McManus, L. 2000. Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis for the South China Sea. EAS/RCU Technical Report Series No. 14. UNEP, Bangkok, Thailand. University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute, Asian Bureau for Conservation, ASEAN Regional Centre for Biodiversity Conservation, Department of Environment and Natural Resources and Association of South East Asian Nations. 2002. Marine Protected Areas in Southeast Asia. ASEAN Regional Centre for Biodiversity Conservation, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines. 142 pp. 10 maps.

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ANNEX 2.

Site Description of Wetlands in the Philippines Directly Connected to the South China Sea

Philippine wetlands that are directly linked to the South China Sea were identified using the watershed approach; the sources of the degradation that affect the South China Sea were also considered. This process proved too broad for the purposes of the project, resulting in several mountains included in the initial listing. This was eventually narrowed down to include only 28 sites that directly contribute to the objectives of the program. The sites were grouped into nine broad regions, with the number of sites per region indicated in parenthesis, namely:

1) Northern Philippines (4) 2) Northwestern Philippines (2) 3) Northwest Manila Bay (3) 4) Southwest Manila Bay (1) 5) Taal Lake-Pansipit River-Balayan Bay (2) 6) Northern and Western Mindoro (5) 7) Calamianes Group of Islands (3) 8) Mainland Palawan (7) 9) Balabac Group of Islands (1)

I. Northern Philippines

1. Batanes and Babuyanes Island Groups Coordinates: 19°20'N 121°27'E Area: 20,084 ha (Batanes Group) 60,340 ha (Babuyanes Group) Altitude: 0 – 1,085 masl

The Batanes and Babuyan Island groups are at the northern tip of the Philippines, between Luzon and Taiwan, and extend for more than 200 km from north to south. The main islands in the Batanes group are Itbayat, Batan and Sabtang, while the main islands in the Babuyan group are Calayan, Camiguin Norte, Fuga, Babuyan and Dalupiri.

Batanes, home of the Ivatan people and famous for its distinctive culture and architecture, has attractive coastal sceneries that are popular destinations for tourists. The eastern side of Batan and Itbayat has broad U-shaped valleys, including wave-cut cliffs, sea caves and secluded white sandy beaches.

The Batanes Group of Islands was proclaimed as the Batanes Islands Protected Landscape and Seascape (BIPLS) under Proclamation No. 335 on February 28, 1994 with a total area of 213,578 ha, including 20,323 ha of land and 193,255 ha of marine areas. It was a recipient of the World Bank-GEF funded Conservation of Priority Protected Areas Program (CPPAP) from 1995-2002.

About 64% of the land area of the Batanes Islands is classified as forest, but most has been converted to agricultural land or grassland. A few fragmented primary forests remain, and secondary forests are found in old kaingin clearings. Habitat types include beach forest, secondary forest, lowland evergreen rainforest and montane forest.

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Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Plants At least 47 species are endemic to the Batanes and Babuyan Islands. Lilium philippinensis T Podocarpus costalis , T Podocarpus polystachyus T Sixteen (16) species of vascular plants are endemic to the Batanes Islands,

Reptiles An undescribed species of snake, Lycodon sp., Batanes En Batan narrow-disked gecko Gekko porosus , Batanes En Batan smooth-scaled gecko Lepidodactylus balioburius Batanes En Green turtle Chelonia mydas T Hawksbill turtle Eretmochelys imbricata T Jareck’s flying lizard Draco jackeri (newly described) Batanes En Olive ridley turtle Lepidochelys olivacea T

Birds Chinese Egret Egretta eulophotes T Elegant Scops-owl Otus elegans calayensis Restricted Range Endemic subspecies Short-crested Monarch Hypothymis helenae personata Restricted Range Endemic subspecies Whistling Green-pigeon Treron formosae filipina Restricted Range Endemic subspecies Yellow Bunting Emberiza sulphurata T

Mammals Poorly known Indochinese shrew Crocidura attenuata Only known site of Philippine distribution Ryukyu Flying Fox Pteropus dasymallus T

The Batanes and Babuyan Island Groups are important flyways for migratory birds moving between Japan, Taiwan and the Philippine Archipelago. These Islands support three restricted-range species that are also endemic subspecies, reported to be common or uncommon on one or more of the islands in the past, but little recent information about their status is available. Twenty-one (21) subspecies (including the three given above) are endemic to this region, several of which are known from just one or two of the islands. Remaining forest areas maybe under localized pressure from clearance for cattle grazing and agricultural crops. Some kaingin and over-exploitation of forest products occur, but widespread agricultural intensification is unlikely. The greatest threats are probably from future commercial development, especially for the tourist market.

Hunting of wildlife occurs, including for a striking variety of yellow and white viper that is sought after by enthusiasts for its supposed medicinal value. Coconut crabs and fruitbats are both exported as a delicacy, and migrating Grey-faced Buzzards Butastur indicus are captured for local consumption and the pet trade. Local people complain that Taiwanese fishermen are damaging the fish resources by using such techniques as dynamite fishing.

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2. Palaui Island Coordinates: 18º33’N, 122º08’ Area: 1320 hectares Wetland type: intertidal flats

Found in the town of Santa Ana, Cagayan, off the extreme northeastern tip of Luzon, it is an area of Intertidal mudflats and sand flats with offshore coral reefs around a small island off the northern tip of Luzon. The island is 10 km long and up to 4.5 km wide and has a maximum elevation of 307m. It has a humid tropical climate with rainfall more or less evenly distributed throughout the year (Type IV).

It is an important staging area for migratory shorebirds, particularly during the autumn migration. The island provides the first significant area of mudflats for shorebirds crossing the Bashi Channel and the Luzon Strait from Taiwan. Preliminary shorebird surveys were conducted by Alonzo-Pascicolan (1987).

3. Buguey Wetlands Coordinates: 18°17'N, 121°50'E Area: c. 14,400 ha Wetland types: intertidal flats; mangrove; saline lagoons and marshes,

Buguey Wetlands are on the North coast of Luzon, east of the mouth of the Cagayan River, and cover about 80% of Buguey Municipality. It is a complex of coastal lagoons, freshwater marshes, brackish and saline marshes, mangrove swamps and intertidal mudflats, with some fish ponds and shrimp ponds and a very large area of rice paddies, making it an important area for rice and fish production. The aquatic vegetation includes Nypa fruticans , mangrove species and Ipomea reptans . Plant communities in adjacent areas include Pandanus sp., and plantation of coconuts. It has a humid tropical climate with the rainfall of about 2,200 mm, more or less evenly distributed throughout the year (Type IV).

The Buguey Wetlands are important staging and wintering areas for migratory waterfowl, notably ducks, and shorebirds. Some 3,000-5,000 ducks were recorded in November, mostly the threatened Philippine Duck and tree-ducks Dendrocygna sp. Up to 3,000 other waterfowls and more than 1,000 shorebirds are regularly recorded there during Annual Waterfowl Census (AWC) counts (Alonzo-Pascicolan, 1987).

The Buguey Wetlands are threatened by conversion of mangroves and marsh to other uses. Mangroves have been greatly reduced by the creation of shrimp and fishponds, and this destruction continues. Waterfowl hunting, although illegal, is widespread, and there is extensive use of pesticides by the rice farmers. Ducks and egrets frequently feed in the rice paddies, and birds have died from poisoning.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Birds Asian Dowitcher Limnodromus semipalmatus C Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis C Cinnamon Bittern Ixobrychus cinnamomeus C Great Egret Casmerodius albus C Greater Painted-snipe Rostratula benghalensis C Grey-tailed Tattler Tringa brevipes C Intermediate Egret Mesophoyx intermedia C Little Egret Egretta garzetta C Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius C Little Tern Sterna albifrons C

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Mongolian Plover Charadrius mongolus C Pacific Golden-plover Pluvialis fulva C Philippine Duck Anas luzonica CT Philippine Hawk-eagle Spizaetus philippensis T Schrenck's Bittern Ixobrychus eurhythmus C Terek Sandpiper Tringa cinerea C Watercock Gallicrex cinerea C Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus C Yellow Bittern Ixobrychus sinensis C

4. Kalbario-Patapat National Park (KPNP) Coordinates: 18°32'N 120°55'E Area: 3,616 ha Altitude: up to 1,294 masl.

Kalbario-Patapat National Park (KPNP) is found in the towns of Adams and Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte, on Pasaleng Bay, about 72 km northwest of Laoag City, and 185 km west of Aparri. It is easily accessible, as it is adjacent to a national highway. Its topography is generally mountainous with rugged, steep terrain. Along the coast there are white sandy beaches, sand dunes, rock formations and good diving sites. Very little is known about its wetlands. This area has considerable potential for tourism, given the variety of natural features and the relatively easy access.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Birds Blackish Cuckoo-shrike Coracina coerulescens R Blue-breasted Flycatcher Cyornis herioti R Flame-breasted Fruit-dove Ptilinopus marchei RT Golden-crowned Babbler Stachyris dennistouni R Green-faced Parrotfinch Erythrura viridifacies RT Luzon Bleeding-heart Gallicolumba luzonica R Luzon Hornbill Penelopides manillae R Luzon Scops-owl Otus longicornis R Philippine Eagle-owl Bubo philippensis T Rabor's Wren-babbler Napothera rabori R Red-crested Malkoha Phaenicophaeus superciliosus R Rufous Coucal Centropus unirufus R Scale-feathered Malkoha Phaenicophaeus cumingi R Short-crested Monarch Hypothymis helenae R Spotted Buttonquail Turnix ocellata R Spotted Imperial-pigeon Ducula carola T Whiskered Pitta Pitta kochi RT Yellow Bunting Emberiza sulphurata R

Upland farming is not as prevalent compared to further south in the Mountain Province or Benguet province. High demand for fuel wood in Ilocos Norte has led to serious degradation of remaining forest stands. Collection of forest products and hunting are problems in the proposed Natural Park with some encroachment into the forests for kaingin.

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II. Northwestern Philippines

5. Agno River-Pangasinan Wetlands-Lingayen Gulf Coordinates: 16º2' to 16º34'N: 119º58', 120º 25'E Area: about 200,000 ha (Lingayen Gulf) 16º02'N, 120º05'E to120º20'E Altitude: 0-5 masl Area: about 3,000 ha (Pangasinan) Wetland types: estuary, intertidal flats mangrove (Lingayen Gulf) intertidal flats (Pangasinan wetlands)

Lingayen Gulf is found on the West Coast of Central Luzon, in Pangasinan and La Union provinces while the Pangasinan Wetlands are found on the coastal plain between Dagupan City and Binmaley Municipality in Pangasinan, Central Luzon. It has a humid tropical climate characterized by two pronounced seasons; a dry season from November to April and a wet season from May to October (Type 1). The mean annual temperature is 27.5ºC and the mean annual humidity is 78.5%

Agno River is the largest of the seven major rivers that drains into the Lingayen Gulf located in the northwestern part of the Philippines. Over ten rivers and creeks of the Agno River run through the Pangasinan Wetlands in Central Luzon, an area of fishpond and rice paddies with adjacent intertidal mudflats before draining into the Gulf. A large area of privately owned fishponds and rice paddies with adjacent intertidal mudflats extends for about 25 km along the south shore of Lingayen Gulf, west of Dagupan City. The fishponds and mudflats cover 1,969 ha; the waterways 664 ha. Extensive mangrove swamps once occurred in the area, but these have been almost completely cleared for the construction of fishponds. The wetland lies at the northern edge of the alluvial plains of Central Luzon, which have been extensively flooded by the monsoon rains in recent years. A few remnants of mangroves and cultivated areas with rice, sugar cane, corn and other crops still exist. This site is an important staging and wintering area for about 20 species of migratory shorebirds (Alonzo-Pascicolan, 1987).

The wetlands support an important fishery. The main species raised in the fishponds and other water impoundments include mullet Mugil sp., common carp Cyprinus carpio , Soraderondon sp., milkfish Chanos chanos, and mudfish Ophiocephalus striatus . The low-lying alluvial plain extending south from Lingayen Gulf is a major rice-growing area. Destruction of mangroves for the construction of fishponds has proceeded to the point at which almost no mangrove is left. The DENR has launched a Mangrove Revegetation Program to replant areas denuded of mangroves.

The Lingayen Gulf forms a large inlet of the South China Sea that indents the western coast of Central Luzon. Lingayen Gulf is an extensive coastal gulf whose waters can be divided into three parts: i) the West Coast, characterized by coral reefs and sea grass beds; ii) the inner part of the Gulf with mangroves and nipa stands; and, iii) the East Coast, with intertidal mudflats. Brackishwater and freshwater fishponds are found further landwards. Several Islands found at the mouth of the Gulf are fringed with coral reefs. There are extensive sea grass beds and large areas of algal flats, the main species being Acanthophora spicifera: Caulerpa spp., Gracilaria verrucosa, and Laurencia spp. Mangroves are present in strips along the coast and HY-Ra fruticans is common where there is some freshwater influence. The Gulf is considered a common resource, with fishpond areas leased to private individuals by the government. Fish include true reef-dwellers such as groupers, snappers, siganids, surgeon fish and butterfly fish, and transient types such as fusiliers, threadfin bream, flathead and rainbow runners. Offshore fish include slipmouths, anchovies, yellowfin and skipjack tuna. There is little information on shorebirds.

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Lingayen Gulf is vital for the subsistence of coastal communities - approximately 15,000 fishermen operate in the Gulf. Activities include:

a) Brackish and freshwater aquaculture b) Fish collection for the aquarium industry c) Subsistence fishing of grouper, snapper and siganid. d) Gathering of seaweed, sea cucumbers and sea urchins (for consumption) and gathering of molluscs (for consumption and shell-craft).

Inland of the Gulf, the area is important for rice growing. Rice production accounts for up to 90% of all agricultural production in the area.

Drastic over-exploitation of the gulf's resources is evident. There are too many people for the available resources, leading to increasing competition for decreasing resources. The stocks of fish, invertebrates and seaweed are decreasing. Blast fishing and fish poisoning are rampant. There is pollution caused by upland-based mining operations, which also cause serious siltation in the rice paddies and fishponds. The pollution threat is very great - cadmium and mercury from mine tailings enter the Gulf. As of 1979, the level of cadmium in waters off the gulf was five times the maximum NPCC standard. The level for mercury was just below the permissible level.

The Gulf was the pilot site of the ongoing Philippine component of the ASEAN- USAID Coastal Resources Management Project (CRMP), the aim of which was to develop a community-based management program for the resources to help raise the low socio- economic conditions of the coastal communities. Continuing research on socio-economics and resource evaluation is being undertaken by the University of the Philippines (Institute of Social Work and Community Development, Marine Sciences Institute); UP Visayas (College of Fisheries) and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR).

6. Zambales Coast-Bataan Natural Park (BNP)-Subic Bay Forest Reserve (SBFR) Coordinates: 14°41'N 120°25'E Area: 23,688 ha (BNP) 24,415 ha (SBFR) Altitude: 30 – 1,253 masl (BNP); 400– 500 masl (SBFR)

Located at the western coast of Central Luzon, the Zambales Coastline stretches from Lingayen Gulf and down south towards Subic Bay. It is characterized by extensive intertidal sandflats and coral reefs with pockets of mangrove in the smaller bays, with several offshore islands fringed with coral reefs.

The Bataan National Park (BNP) was declared as a national park in 1945, covering 31,365 ha but was reduced to 23,688 ha in 1980 through Proclamation No. 1956. It is proposed as a natural park under the NIPAS. The Subic Bay Forest Reserve (SBFR) was established primarily to zone the area into different portions for management and development under the jurisdiction of the Philippine government through the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA in 1993. BNP and SBFR were recipients of the World Bank GEF-funded CPPAP and one of the three sites provided with technical assistance to improve biodiversity conservation bythe Nordic Agency for Development and Ecology (NORDECO).

The BNP covers the towns of Hermosa, Orani, Samal, Abucay, Balanga, Pilar, Bagac, Morong in Bataan province while the SBFR covers the towns of Subic and Olongapo City in Zambales province.

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Located within the Subic Bay-Bataan National Park are the few remaining undisturbed and surviving forests on Luzon that face the South China Sea. The forest, a vital watershed for the communities living around the park, surrounds Subic Bay, a small sea bay with offshore coral reefs, mangrove swamps, intertidal sandflats and mudflats.

Together, the BNP and the SBFR are contiguous and its forests extend from Subic Bay National Park up the northwestern slope of Mt. Natib in Bataan National Park, the highest point at 1,253m. These are one of the few remaining undisturbed forests in the Zambales biogeographic zone, and some of the few surviving forests on Luzon that face the South China Sea (those in the Sierra Madre to the northeast facing the Pacific Ocean are different in character). The lowlands around Subic Bay National Park are now predominantly agricultural land and human settlements. The lower slopes of the mountains are covered by grassland, cropland and secondary growth. Old growth forest is mainly confined to the steep slopes and gullies at higher altitudes. Lowland dipterocarp forest is found at c.100-900 m and montane forest above about 900 m. Between 3,000 to 5,000 ha of primary lowland dipterocarp forest is estimated to remain in the watershed, although much of this was damaged by the Mt. Pinatubo eruption in 1992.

Much of this forest was formerly included in the Subic Military Reservation, which was under U.S. Navy control until 1993 when it was turned over to the Philippine Government and became Subic Bay National Park. The portion of the Subic Military Reservation under the control of the U.S. Navy was well protected, but the lowland forests here are of great commercial value and the land is under considerable pressure from a variety of economic developments. Under a new administration, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, there was a boom of new industries within the reservation. The former military base has been transformed into a center for trade and industry. The forests of this Important Bird Areas (IBA) are a vital watershed for the communities living around the park. They are the home of indigenous communities of Aetas and Negritos, who survive within the boundaries of Subic Bay National Park.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Birds Blackish Cuckoo-shrike Coracina coerulescens R Green Racquet-tail Prioniturus luconensis RT Green-faced Parrotfinch Erythrura viridifacies RT Luzon Scops-owl Otus longicornis R Philippine Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia T Philippine Duck Anas luzonica T Philippine Eagle-owl Bubo philippensis T Philippine Hawk-eagle Spizaetus philippensis T Red-crested Malkoha Phaenicophaeus superciliosus R Rufous Coucal Centropus unirufus R Scale-feathered Malkoha Phaenicophaeus cumingi R Spotted Buttonquail Turnix ocellata R White-fronted Tit Parus semilarvatus R White-lored Oriole Oriolus albiloris R

Mammals Golden-crowned flying fox Acerodon jubatus Northern Luzon giant cloud rat Phloeomys pallidus Philippine brown deer Cervus mariannus Philippine warty pig Sus philippensis

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One of the largest recent counts of Philippine Duck was in SBFR. The lowland tropical rainforest in SBFR and the BNP is very vulnerable to exploitation because it harbors tree species of high commercial value. The migration of settlers into the unguarded forestland is leading to conversion of forests into agricultural land and kaingin. Firewood gathering, charcoal making, illegal logging, illegal grazing, hunting and gathering, and natural threats like typhoons, fires and volcanic eruptions are degrading the forests and their wildlife. Much of the forest in this IBA was badly damaged by ashfall from the Mt. Pinatubo eruption in 1992.

A new road was recently constructed eastward from Morong. Further development of this road could lead to the destruction of the closed canopy forest that currently extends from the shoreline up to the peak of Mt. Natib. Both sides of the piloted road have already been logged. Earth-moving work has caused tremendous erosion, silting the rivers and ricelands below. The road is reportedly used to haul logs to the sea at night via Mabayo Point, and local people use the road to reach the Bataan National Park in order to carry out timber clearing activities.

Between 1997 to 1999, a faunal inventory and assessment of the biodiversity of SBFR was conducted by the University of the Philippines Diliman (UPD) with funding provided by the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources, Research and Development (PCARRD), Department of Science and Technology (DOST). A baseline biodiversity inventory of Bataan Natural Park was also conducted in 1996 by the Nordic Agency for Development and Ecology (NORDECO). As part of the technical assistance provided by NORDECO to improve biodiversity conservation in Bataan Natural Park, information, education and communication materials (e.g. flip charts, field guides, comics, slides, etc.) have been developed and distributed.

III. Northwest Manila Bay (includes the Candaba Swamp-Pampanga River-Southern Bulacan-Southeastern Bataan-Manila Bay)

Manila Bay is a large enclosed sea bay fringed by shallow intertidal mudflats and sandflats. Most of the Mangroves in the area have been converted to large areas of aquaculture ponds and saltpans. The Bay includes to the north the extensive intertidal areas from the Municipality of Balanga in Bataan province. It is also influenced by the Pampanga River that flows through the Candaba Swamp: a complex of freshwater ponds, swamps and marshes with seasonally flooded grasslands that acts as a natural flood retention basin holding wet season overflow and is also an important staging and wintering area for migratory birds. The River breaks into numerous small tidal channels that have been developed extensively into brackish fishponds before flowing out into Manila Bay.

7. Candaba Swamp Coordinates: 15°05'N 120°53'E Area: 32,000 ha Altitude: 11 masl Wetland types: complex of freshwater ponds, swamps and marshes

Candaba Swamp is listed as a Ramsar site but not as a protected area. It is near the towns of Candaba, Pampanga; and San Miguel and San Ildefonso, Bulacan, about50 km north-northwest of Metro Manila. It acts as a natural flood retention basin holding wet season overflow from the Maasim, San Miguel, Garlang, Bulu and Penaranda Rivers, and draining into the Pampanga River, but most of it dries out during the dry season from late November to May and a pronounced wet season from June to October (Type 1) and is converted into rice fields and plantations of watermelons.

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It is a complex of freshwater ponds, swamps and marshes with surrounding areas of seasonally flooded grassland, arable land and palm savanna on a vast alluvial flood plain. Candaba Swamp was formerly an extremely important staging and wintering area for ducks, especially in October and November when the swamp regularly supported between 5,000 and 10,000 birds. In 1982, about 100,000 ducks were observed in a single day. No other site in the Philippines has been known to support such large concentrations of Anatidae, but the number of wintering wildfowl has recently declined dramatically. Several threatened waterbirds occurred here in the past, although the populations of some of these have presumably declined or disappeared. However, it still supports the only known regular wintering population of Streaked Reed-warbler in the world. The main area for waterfowl is an impoundment of about 300 ha, with a mixture of open shallow water, small islands, and rafts of floating vegetation, adjacent to the Pampanga River about nine kilometers north of Baliuag. The natural retention capacity is estimated at approximately 1.5 billion cubic meters. The average depth of water is 1-2 m and the maximum about 5 m.

A small part of the swamp is state owned and has been classified as “alienable and disposable”; the remainder is privately owned by many individuals.

The main threats are conversion of marshland to agricultural purposes, and changes in agricultural practices. Local people began growing rice instead of watermelons in the surrounding area, which entails draining the marshes in December or January instead of March or April. Water levels may be controlled further for crops to be grown all year round. Other threats to the wetlands and their biodiversity include siltation and the introduction of exotic fish species. Illegal hunting of waterbirds for food and recreation continues to be a problem. It is also a favorite spot for bird-watchers and naturalists, and has some potential for nature-oriented outdoor recreation and conservation education.

In 1994, an action plan for the conservation of the swamp and its waterbirds was developed with the participation of the local government of Pampanga, community leaders, the DENR, the Haribon Foundation and the Wild Bird Society of Japan.

No information is available on the aquatic vegetation as most of the flood plain is under cultivation for rice and other crops. Some patches of Nypa fruticans and mangroves in surrounding areas still exist.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Birds Baer's Pochard Aythya baeri CT Common Pochard Aythya ferina C Eurasian Wigeon Anas penelope C Garganey Anas querquedula C Great Egret Casmerodius albus Northern Pintail Anas acuta C Northern Shoveler Anas clypeata C Philippine Duck Anas luzoni ca CT Purple Swamphen Porphyrio porphyrio C Spot-billed Pelican Pelecanus philippensis CT Streaked Reed-warbler Acrocephalus sorghophilus T Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula C Wandering Whistling-duck Dendrocygna arcuata C

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8. Mariveles Mountains Coordinates: 14°31'N 120°29'E Area: 23,688 ha Altitude: 1,420 masl (maximum)

The Mariveles Watershed Forest Reserve was established through R.A. 3092 in July 1996. It is proposed as a Natural Park under the NIPAS. The Mariveles Mountains are in Mariveles and Limay, in southern Bataan, near the entrance to Manila Bay, and rise steeply from sea level to 1,420 m. An area of forest is shown on recent forest cover maps, which is reported to include both lowland and montane forest, including mossy forest. This includes old reforestation plantations in the former Lamao Arsenal and old growth forest at the peak of Mt. Mariveles.

Potential threats to this area include exploration for mining, should current applications be approved.

Surveys are required to investigate both the extent and quality of the remaining habitats, mammalian fauna and herpetofauna, the current status of the threatened and restricted-range birds and other biodiversity.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Birds Blackish Cuckoo-shrike Coracina coerulescens R Celestial Monarch Stachyris striata RT Golden-crowned Babbler Stachyris dennistouni R Green Racquet-tail Prioniturus luconensis RT Ijima's Leaf-warbler Phylloscopus ijimae T Isabela Oriole Oriolus isabellae RT Luzon Bleeding-heart Gallicolumba luzonica R Luzon Striped-babbler Stachyris striata R Philippine Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia T Philippine Hawk-eagle Spizaetus philippensi s T Philippine Kingfisher Ceyx melanurus T Red-crested Malkoha Phaenicophaeus superciliosus R Rufous Coucal Centropus unirufus R Scale-feathered Malkoha Phaenicophaeus cumingi R Spotted Buttonquail Turnix ocellata R White-fronted Tit Parus semilarvatus R White-lored Oriole Oriolus albiloris R

9. Manila Bay Coordinates: 14°40'N, 120°46'E Area: 130,000 ha (Cavite and Bataan portions); 465 ha (Cities of Manila, Pasay and Parañaque) Wetland types: shallow sea bay, intertidal flats, estuaries, mangrove

Manila Bay encompasses the following towns of Orani, Samal, Abucay, Pilar, Orion, Limay, Mariveles and Balanga of Bataan province; Masantol and Sexmoan of Pampanga; Obando, Bulacan, Paombong, Malolos, and Hagonoy of Bulacan; Bacoor, Cavite City, Kawit, Noveleta, Rosario, Tanza, Naic, and Ternate of Cavite; and the cities of Caloocan, Manila, Pasay, Parañaque, and Las Piñas of the National Capital Region. Specifically, it includes the extensive intertidal areas from the Balanga round the north and east shores of Manila Bay to Cavite City, south of Metro Manila. This large, enclosed sea bay is fringed by shallow intertidal mudflats and sand flats. Relicts of mangrove swamp survive, particularly in the Bataan area, but most have been converted to large areas of aquaculture ponds and salt pans. Plant communities in adjacent areas include coconut plantations and denuded hill vegetation.

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The city and port of Metro Manila is situated on the eastern side of the Bay and directly connected to the South China Sea. The site is very important for its fish production that supports a large urban population along the periphery of the Bay. There are high concentrations of fish traps and extensive mariculture within the open sea area, and aquaculture schemes cover about 70 km of the coastline. A salt pan industry at Cavite lies in the southeast, and there are several areas of shantytown development on the shores of the Bay.

Large numbers of migratory shorebirds, including several threatened species, use the intertidal mudflats, fishponds and salt pans in Manila Bay in winter and during the migration seasons. Monthly counts at a high tide roost in Metro Manila in 1979-1982 revealed a maximum of about 32,000 shorebirds in January 1980, and in early April 1987, about 8,000 shorebirds of 20 species were recorded at seven sites, mainly drained fish ponds and areas of intertidal mudflat. It has consistently registered the highest numbers of waterbirds at any site in the Philippines during the Asian Wetland Counts in 1990-1994.

The many threats to Manila Bay include the destruction of the remaining patches of mangroves for aquaculture, reclamation of intertidal areas for housing development, road construction and salt pans, continuous dredging and pollution (solid waste, domestic sewerage, industrial waste, and oil spills). There is continued denudation of the natural vegetation in the water catchment area. The heavily polluted and silted Pasig River drains into the Bay.

Shooting of shorebirds at fishponds and dynamite fishing are additional threats to the bay’s biodiversity. Construction along the shoreline, especially in the Roxas Boulevard area, has disturbed the roosting areas of shorebirds, which have been forced to use alternative roosting places, such as the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Complex.

Manila Bay is an ideal area for research on fisheries, wildlife, biomass and marine pollution because of its close proximity to major research agencies. The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources has carried out some studies, and the Forest Research Institute (now the Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau) and Asian Wetland Bureau (now Wetlands International) have conducted shorebird studies. The small pockets of mangrove swamp remaining in Pampanga Bay are of considerable value for research and conservation education.

A Presidental Task Force for the rehabilitation of Manila Bay was created in October 1993 to provide a mechanism for the management of the bay. A comprehensive management plan was submitted to the Office of the President in 1994.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Birds Black-faced Spoonbill Platalea minor CT Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis C Chinese Crested-tern Sterna bernsteini CT Chinese Egret Egretta eulophotes CT Common Sandpiper Tringa hypoleucos C Common Tern Sterna hirundo C Curlew Sandpiper Calidris ferruginea C Great Egret Casmerodius albus T Grey Heron Ardea cinerea C Gull-billed Tern Sterna nilotica C

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Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus C Little Egret Egretta garzetta C Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius C Marsh Sandpiper Tringa stagnatilis C Mongolian Plover Charadrius mongolus C Nordmann's Greenshank Tringa guttifer CT Pacific Golden-plover Pluvialis fulva C Philippine Duck Anas luzonica CT Purple Heron Ardea purpurea C Rufous Night-heron Nycticorax caledonicus C Rufous-necked Stint Calidris ruficollis C Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybridus C White-winged Tern Chlidonias leucopterus C Worcester's Buttonquail Turnix worcesteri RT

IV. Southwest Manila Bay (includes Laguna [Lake] de Bay-Pasig River-Manila Bay- Northwest Cavite)

The Southwest Shores of Manila Bay extend from the city and port of Manila situated on the eastern side of the Bay to Cavite City, south of Metro Manila. This part of the Bay is very important for its fisheries production that supports a large urban population along its periphery. High concentrations of fish traps and extensive mariculture within the open sea area, and aquaculture schemes cover about 70 km of the coastline. Large numbers of migratory shorebirds use the intertidal mudflats, fishponds and saltpans in the Bay in winter and during the migration seasons. It is also influenced by Laguna de Bay, the largest lake in the Philippines, and the most important freshwater wetland in the country in terms of support to local communities, which flows into the Pasig River before eventually discharging into Manila Bay.

10. Laguna de Bay (6) Coordinates: 14º11'-14º32'N; 121º03' - 121º29'E; Area: 91,136 ha Altitude: 2 masl Wetland types: rivers, streams – slow flowing; freshwater lake and associated marshes

Laguna de Bay is located 10 km southeast of Manila, bounded in the north and east by Rizal province and in the south by Laguna province, Luzon. Most of the lake has a tropical climate with a pronounced dry season from November to April and a pronounced wet season for the remainder of the year (Type I), except in the extreme east, where the rainfall is more evenly distributed throughout the year (Type IV). The average annual rainfall varies from about 1600 mm in the west to 3200 mm in the mountainous northeastern part of the watershed. The mean annual temperature is 27ºC; mean monthly temperature range from 25ºC to 29.5ºC, and the extremes are 16ºC and 40ºC. The mean annual relative humidity is 76%.

It is the largest lake in the Philippines with a shoreline of 220 km and a total volume of 3.2 billion cubic meters. A shallow freshwater lake, it is thought to have previously been an extension of Manila Bay that was cut off at its northern end by tectonic movements (slight arching that took place along the eastern shore of the lake). The lake is naturally eutrophic and highly productive. Increasing enrichment in terms of plant nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous has been caused by human activities in the watershed. Low-lying alluvial plains with a watershed catchment area of 382,000 ha surround the lake (excluding the lake). Only one outlet, the Napindan Channel, is found at its northwest end that joins the Marikina

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River 7 km from the lake to form the Pasig River, which flows through Metro Manila and discharges into Manila Bay.

Main inflows are situated in the south and east. The lake is shallow, with a mean depth of 2.5-3.0m and a maximum of 6.5m, although this varies greatly between the wet and dry seasons. Its maximum level is reached between September and November, just before the end of the wet season and then falls by an average of 1.7m to its lowest level at the end of the dry season in May. The residence time of the water in the lake is approximately one year. At the end of the dry season, the lake level may fall below the level of Manila Bay and so seawater may flow into the lake via reverse flow in the Pasig River. Although the lake is eutrophic with regard to the levels of nutrients entering it, there is heavy turbidity due to wind-induced sediment suspension, cutting down drastically the light available for photosynthesis. In some areas of the lake, primary production is at critically low levels due to this inorganic turbidity. If seawater flows into the lake, the sodium ions can flocculate some of the suspended particles, allowing greater light penetration and greater primary production. Large blue-green algae blooms can cause heavy fish kills after calm weather. The average pH is 8.5 and the oxygen concentrations are normally high due to the lake's shallow depth and large surface area. The north and western shores of the lake are highly industrialized and urbanized. Intensive agriculture, particularly for rice, leads to heavy nutrient inflows into the lake, particularly of nitrogen.

Recently, two flood control structures have been built to control flooding and the Pasig River backflow. The first of these is the Napindan Hydraulic Control Structure (NHCS), constructed on the Napindan Channel just upstream of its confluence with the Marikina River to stop polluted saline water from entering the lake when the Pasig River reverses its flow and to protect Manila from flooding due to overbanking off the Pasig River. The second structure, the Manggahan Floodway (MF) links the Marikina River to Laguna de Bay and is used for diverting excess Marikina flood waters into the lake to reduce the chance of overbanking of the Pasig River in Manila.

The turbidity of the lake prevents extensive growth of submerged macrophytes, although some Hydrilla verticillata is present. Eichornia crassipes forms large floating mats that drift across the lake according to wind direction. Some emergents such as Phragmites and Typha are present along the southeastern shores. Other macrophytes include Nymphaea sp . and Ipomoea reptans . Blue-green algal blooms of Anabaena and Nostoc occur.

The lake is state owned (public water) and a common resource while surrounding areas are privately owned. Fishpens cover a very large area of the lake (up to one- third) and the Sierra Madre Mountains to the east of the lake are heavily deforested. Other uses of the lake include irrigation of rice land, especially to the southwest, navigation and water supply for industry.

A major threat to the lake is pollution - industrial, domestic and agricultural. About 900 industries are located in the lake basin, 90% of which are classified as highly polluting. Only 20% of these have any kind of wastewater treatment facilities. The lakeshores, particularly in the north and west are very highly populated but have no sewage treatment facilities. In the south and parts of the west, the lake is contaminated by nitrates from fertilizers, and by pesticides from ricefields.

Another threat is from the closure of the NHCS. It seems that the entry of seawater into the lake has a beneficial effect in that it clears the water, allowing higher primary production. Fish growth during this period is the fastest for the whole year. It is thought that the permanent closure of the NHCS will reduce the primary production and hence fish production.

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Siltation in the lake caused by the deforestation of the Sierra Madre Mountains to the east of the lake is an extremely serious problem. The lake may have become shallower and more turbid, again cutting down primary production. Primary production levels are close to zero at certain times of the year.

Another problem associated with deforestation on the Sierra Madre and the Marikina River upper catchment is the increased frequency of flooding around the lakeshore towns, especially the Metro Manila municipalities of Tagig, Pateros and Pasig. Severe and prolonged flooding has occurred frequently in the last two decades.

Prolonged flooding may be partly due to the operation of the NHCS and MF. Originally, three flood control structures were envisioned - the above two, together with the Paranaque Spillway (PS) which would have discharged excess water from the lake directly into Manila Bay and would thus serve as a second outlet from the lake avoiding Manila. However, the construction of the PS was deemed too expensive, so a provision for reverse flow was built into the MF that theoretically would allow water to drain out of the lake into the Marikina River after the river level had fallen to below that of the lake. However, it seems that this option may not be working as well as had been expected.

The main plan for the lake is the possibility of using it as a source of Manila's domestic water supply early in the next century. This was one of the reasons why the NHCS was built; to stop the entry of saline water into the lake to render it suitable for human consumption. However, along with this there must be a strict pollution control program that will be very difficult to implement.

Since 1986, extensive media campaigns have been launched to highlight the problems of the lake and the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) held numerous dialogues with Non-Government Oranizations (NGOs), fishing associations and other users of the lake in order to draft some conservation measures. There are signs that there is greater control of factories discharging wastes into the lake as part of the DENR's & LLDA's pollution control programs.

Laguna de Bay is the most extensively studied lake in the Philippines, particularly for water quality and techniques of pen and cage culture. Studies have been carried out by LLDA, Southeast Asia Fisheries Development Center – Aquatic Development (SEAFDEC- AQD), University of the Philippines - Diliman and University of the Philippines - Los Banos. There is a freshwater research station of SEAFDEC-AQD at Binangonan, Rizal and a limnological laboratory of UP Los Banos. The LLDA laboratory is a short distance from the lake in Pasig.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Invertebrates Ampulla ria luzonica Corbicula manilensis Macrobrachium sp. Vivipara angularis Giant golden apple snail or kuhol was introduced.

Fish At least 23 native species of fish belonging to sixteen families and a lot of introduced species. Catfish/Hito Clarias batrach us Common Carp/Karpa Cyprinus carpio Grunt/Ayungin Leiopotherapon plumbeus (maybe an endemic)

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Manila Sea Catfish/Kanduli Arius manilensis Milkfish/Bangus Chanos chanos Mudfish/Dalag Ophicephalus striatus Pasalit/Gourami Trichogaster rectoralis Tilapia Oreochrornis mossambicus Tilapia Oreochrornis nilotica White Goby/Biyang Puti Glossogobius giurus

Birds Black Coot Fulica atra Black Winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus Cinnamon Bittern Ixobrychus cinnamomeus C Grey Heron Ardea cinerea C Little Tern Sterna albifrons C Purple Swamphen Porphyrio porphyrio C Rail Rallus mirificust En Yellow Bittern Ixobrychus sinensis C

V. Taal Lake-Pansipit River-Balayan Bay and Batangas Bay

Taal Lake, situated in the Southern Luzon, is the deepest lake in the Philippines and has one of the highest levels of diversity of migratory fishes of any lake in the country. It is a large caldera lake fed by a number of streams rising on the Tagaytay ridge. It drains into the Pansipit River, the lake’s only outflow, which flows out to Balayan Bay. The Bay is characterized by rocky shores and supports a diverse range of coastal ecosystems that includes seagrass beds, fringing reef and extensive mudflats.

11. Taal Lake Coordinates: 14o00'N; 121o19'E Area: 23424 ha Altitude: 2.5 masl Wetland type: freshwater lake and associated marshes

Taal Lake, the third largest lake in the country, is located 60 km south of Manila, in Batangas province, Luzon. Formerly known as Bombon Lake, it is one of the lowest volcanoes in the world and one of the most beautiful places in the Philippines, with a high value as a tourist attraction.

It is a caldera lake and was formed, at least partly, by the collapse of a large volcanic caldera. It is a very deep lake, one of the deepest in the country, with a maximun depth of 200 m. The deepest portions are in the southeast and northeast, while the shallowest portions (down to 50 m) are found across the middle, either side of Volcano Island. Inflows to the lake are many small rivers originating from the Tagaytay Ridge reaching 641 m ASL which runs northwest of the lake, while there is only one outflow, the Pansipit River which leaves the southwest region of the lake and empties, 17 km later, into Balayan Bay. Volcano Island, in the middle of the lake, has an area of 4537 ha and a highest point of 311 m ASL. It contains a recent crater lake (Yellow Lake) that resulted from an eruption in 1911.

Surface water temperatures range from 25oC in the cool months of December to February to 31oC in the warmest months (April/ May). It seems that the lake stratifies, probably in the period April to December, with the thermocline being found at around 50 m. Dissolved oxygen concentrations are very high down to a depth of about 50 m, with very little remaining at 75 m. Chloride values are high, probably as a result of volcanic activity, with values of 380-390 ppm. This high level of chloride has led to high conductivity readings of 1000 - 1400 micro siemens/em. The pH values recorded are mostly noticeably alkaline, the

57 Philippines National Report on Wetlands range being 7.3 to 9.6. The lake has a high transparency, with Secchi disc readings between 3.8 and 6.5m. Substantial volcanic activity is always a possibility and will affect the limnological characteristics of the lake, especially in the region of Volcano Island.

In the late 1930s, 47 species of fish were recorded. Currently, this number has changed with the eradication of some species and the introduction of others. Many of these 47 species of fish were catadromous, migrating from the coastal areas to the lake via the Pansipit River when still larvae, and migrating back to the sea when about to attain sexual maturity.

The lake is very important for fisheries. The Tawilis fishery is particularly important, as is the fishery for migratory fish such as maliputo (Caranx ignobilis ) due to their high market value. But little information on the present status of these populations is available. Crustaceans such as crabs of the family Girapsidae (talangka) and small Atyid shrimps are also gathered, as are some of the molluscs such as Corbicula manilensis (tulya). Cage culture for Oreochromis nilotica has increased through the years. The introduction of exotic fish seems to have had a negative impact on the native fish, particularly the endemic Harengula tawilis.

Cage culture may become more important in the lake, though the local fishermen seem to be suspicious of any aquaculture development due to the negative experiences of the small fishermen on the nearby Laguna de Bay. Soil erosion in the catchment area of the lake is potentially high, with 32% of the land classified as highly susceptible to erosion. Over-fishing with fish corrals on the Pansipit River has prevented the migration of many of the commercially important fish such as maliputo (Caranx ignobilis ).

The Taal Volcano National Park was established in 1967, but has been transformed into the Taal Volcano Protected Landscape and Seascape (TVPLS) with a Protected Areas Management Board (PAMB) led by the Dept. of Environment and Natural Resources under NIPAS.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology (PHIVOLCS) has a station at Talisay on the northern edge of the lake, and also a monitoring station on the north shore of Volcano Island. A BFAR station is located near the Pansipit River. A considerable amount of research carried out in the 1930's by Villadolid on the commercial fish of the lake and these papers still remain the best and most informative of all the work done on the lake. There has also been an investigation of the Tawilis fishery in 1976 and an extensive study on the bathymetry, temperature and oxygen regime in the lake, also in 1976.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Invertebrates A migratory crab of family Grapsidae (talangka) of commercial importance small freshwater shrimps of the family Atyidae (apta) commercial importance

The molluscan fauna includes Melania blatta, M. laterita, M. pantherina, M. craba, V ivipara angularis and Corbicula manilensis

Plants Hydrilla verticillata Imperata cylindrica (cogon) dominates surrounding landscape Vallisneria sp.

Fish Asohos Sillago sihama Migratory Bambangin/Mangrove Snapper Lutjanus argentimaculatus Migratory

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Banak/Mullet Mugil macrolepis Migratory Banak/Mullet Mugil melinopterus Migratory Bangus/Milkfish Chanos chanos Migratory Biya/White Goby Glossogobius giuris Resident Buan-buan/Ox-eyed Tarpan Megalops cvprinoides Migratory Commerson's Glassy Perchlet Ambassi s commersionii Migratory Dalag/Mudfish Ophicephalus striatus Resident Freshwater sardine, Harengula tawilis En Gagaong/Convex-lined Therapon Therapon jarbua Migratory Goby Rhinogobius flavoventris En Gossaner Blenny Omobranchus ferox En Grunt/Ayungin Leiopotherapon plumbeus Resident (maybe an endemic) Igat/Palos/Eel Anguilla mauritiana Migratory Kataba/Archer fish Toxotes jaculatrix Resident Maliputo/yellow-fin jack C. ignobilis Migratory Manipis/Jack Caranx sp. Migratory Mionorus bombonensis En Nile Tilapia Oreochromis niloticus niloticus Introduced Palowon/Mud Gudgeon Ophieleotri aporos Resident Ritang/Spadefish Scatophagus argus Migratory Rock Flagtail Kuhlia rupestris Migratory Talakitok/Big-eye trevally Caranx sexfasciatus Migratory

12. Balayan Bay and Calatagan Peninsula Coordinates: 13049'-130 50'N: 1200 37'-1200 3S'E. Area: 75,000 ha Wetland types: shallow sea bay, rocky seacoast, beaches, intertidal flats, mangroves, coastal lagoons and marshes

Balayan Bay and Calatagan Peninsula is 80 km South-Southwest of Manila, Batangas, Luzon. It is a large sea bay with intertidal flats and mangrove forest (Balayan Bay), adjacent areas of fish and shrimp ponds, and the coastal wetlands of the Calatagan Peninsula to the west, including Pagapas Bay. In Balayan Bay and the adjacent smaller Pagapas Bay, the substrate is generally muddy but there are some small areas of sandy flats. The tidal range is high, and at low tide the mudflats extend outward for about 900 meters. Approximately 50% of the original mangrove forest has been cleared for the construction of fish and shrimp ponds. The West Coast of Calatagan Peninsula faces the South China Sea and is bordered by a broad and well-developed fringing reef about 13km long and 900 meters wide. The outer edge of the reef is characterized by an intensive coral growth that is usually exposed at low tide. The reef flats are sandy with an abundant growth of seagrasses, and the inner reef near the lagoon is sandy and rocky.

Mangrove forests are dominated by Avicennia marina , Rhizophora mucronata and Sonneratia alba species. Beds of seagrasses and algae are also found. Grassland, coconut plantations, rice paddies and cornfields surround the adjacent areas.

The Bay is state-owned while the Calatagan coastal wetlands are privately owned. The Bay supports a very important fishery. Local communities are dependent on the coastal resources for their livelihood - 30% of the population are fishermen and shrimp gatherers. Aquaculture (both fish and shrimp) and commercial farming of seaweed are also important. Cattle raising and the cultivation of rice, corn and coconuts are carried out in adjacent areas.

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The clearing of mangroves to make room for aquaculture ponds and the cutting of mangroves for firewood continues. A geothermal plant has been constructed in the Municipality of Balayan and its waste is dumped into Balayan Bay.

No protected areas have been established but a private landowner has taken measures to protect the mangroves fringing his property in Balayan Bay, and some efforts, have been made to improve environmental awareness among other local residents. There is now a Bay-wide alliance of local government units working together as the Bay had been developed into a major tourism dive site and became a major earner as well.

The area was used as a major bird-banding site by the MAPS Program in 1972, and in recent years, the Forest Research Institute (now the Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau) and Asian Wetland Bureau have carried out studies on the migratory shorebirds.

Balayan Bay and the Calatagan Peninsula are important for migratory shorebirds and many different types of coastal ecosystems are represented within the bay.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Fish Milkfish Chanos chanos

Birds Asiatic Dowithchers Limnodromus semipalmatus Common Redshank Tringa totanus Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos Grey Tailed Tattler Heteroscel us brevipes Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius Mongolian Plover Charadrius mongolus Pacific Golden Plover Pluvialis fulva Rufous-Necked Stint Calidris ruficollis Terek Sandpiper Xenus cinereus Western Curlew Numenius arquata

VI. Northern and Western Mindoro

13. Mt. Calavite to the northwestern coast of Mindoro Coordinates: 13°29'N 120°24'E Area: Not estimated Altitude: 1,515 masl (maximum)

Mt. Calavite is located on the northwestern tip of Mindoro Island. The north and northwest sides of the mountainous headland, until recently, were forested extending to the beach. However, much of the forest has already been cleared for agriculture. The area has still some value as a watershed and water source for the communities. Mt. Calavite and FB Harrison were declared together as a game refuge and bird sanctuary by virtue of Executive Order No. 9 on 28 January 1920. They are now proposed as a wildlife sanctuary under the NIPAS. Mt. Calavite National Park (17,000 ha) was declared by Executive Order No. 9 on 26 January 1925.

Mt. Calavite is on a mountainous headland at the northwestern tip of Mindoro Island. Until recently the area was a wilderness, with the north and northwest sides forested

60 Philippines National Report on Wetlands to the beach, but much of the forest has been cleared for agriculture. There are now large tracts of cogonal grassland, with second growth lowland forest patches confined to gullies and very steep slopes.

Several hundred families reside inside Mt. Calavite National Park, and most are engaged in farming. The area also has some value as a watershed and water source for the small town of Paluan.

Recent sightings of the Tamaraw Bubalus mindorensis in Mt. Calavite National Park were reported.

A number of potential threats to the forests occur. On the occidental side of Mindoro, perennial fires in the grasslands adjoining forests have eroded the buffer zones of open canopy second growth forest or brush around them. Most of the grasslands are being used as pasture, and regular burning is the conventional practice used to encourage the growth of young grass shoots, which often are left to spread into the forest, and are slowly decimating remaining forests.

14. Mt. Iglit-Baco on the southwestern coast of Mindoro Coordinates: 12°51'N 121°10'E Area: <75,445 ha Altitude: 2,487 masl (maximum)

Situated in the High Mountains of Central Mindoro is Mt. Iglit-Baco, popularly known as the home of the tamaraw (Mindoro endemic pygmy water buffalo). Several rivers flow from the mountain range including the Lamintao and Anahawin Rivers to the South China Sea.

Mt. Iglit-Baco National Park (MIBNP) is home to four Philippine cultural groups (Batangan, Hinunuo, Mayan and Bangan), who practice traditional agriculture and depend on the park for game and food gathering. MIBNP was declared under Republic Act No. 6148 on 9 November 1970. The MIBNP was the recipient of the DENR-EU-NIPAP conservation program. It straddles the towns of Sablayan and Calintaan in Mindoro Occidental and Bongabong and Bansud, in Mindoro Oriental. MIBNP is mostly grassland, with one area of forest close to Mt. Iglit, a few other small patches, and an extensive block on steep slopes in the Mindoro Oriental sector of the park. These are mainly montane forests on very steep slopes, with some areas of lowland dipterocarp forest. There is a about 367 ha stand of acacia Samanea saman woodland at 50-100 m in the southern part of the park close to Lamintao River, and an area of agoho Casuarina equisetifolia forest at the Tamaraw Gene Pool Area, along the Anahawin River. Most of the mountains and plateaus in the east of the park are covered in grassland or heavily degraded forest.

The mountains north of the national park still hold extensive forests, but most of these are montane forests on the higher slopes. However, there are some areas of lowland forest, for example on Mts. Katmuran-Kiblatoy, where sizeable tracts of such habitat are reported to be present. A survey in the 1990s found patches of forest as low as 300 m in this range (as seen from Villa Cervesa, Victoria), but there were signs of human encroachment as represented by burning and the presence of agricultural tracts near the slopes.

Mt. Iglit-Baco National Park is most famous for the conservation of the tamaraw Bubalus mindorensis , a Mindoro endemic, and its grassland habitat. Much of this grassland is excluded from this IBA, it is still likely to be extremely important for this species. Significant numbers of deer and wild pigs are also reported to occur there. Mt. Iglit-Baco is the type locality for the Mindoro pallid flying fox Pteropus sp. a , which is believed to have very small and fragmented populations, and is probably highly endangered.

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Threats to this area include cattle ranching, upland farming and firewood gathering, which have led to rapid deforestation both inside and outside the Mt. Iglit-Baco National Park. The unpredictable law and order situation in the immediate vicinity of the park has made it difficult to prevent these disturbances. However, some of the remaining forests are very remote, and therefore relatively safe.

Most of the grasslands are used as pasture, and regular burning is the conventional practice to encourage the growth of young grass shoots. In many cases, these are left to spread into the forest, which are slowly being eroded. The stand of acacia woodland near to the Lamintao River is threatened by over-harvesting for furniture making. There are ecotourism activities in the lower parts of the park near the Anahawin River, the impacts of which are not known.

Hunting and poaching of the resources of the national park are also reported to be problems. The main hunting pressure is caused by trophy hunters from outside the park, but it is also caused to some extent by the traditional hunting of the Mangyans, whose numbers have increased quite substantially. The tamaraw, although protected by law, is still hunted in this area, especially in the remote parts.

The provincial government of Mindoro Occidental has developed a conservation education campaign for local schools in the vicinity of the national park, with the local DENR and the Toyota Corporation.

15. Mt. Halcon-Sablayan areas to the central western coast of Mindoro Siburan Coordinates: 12°48'N 120°55'E Area: 25,000 ha Altitude: 50-400 masl Mt. Halcon Coordinates: 13°15'N 120°59' E Area: 60,000 ha Altitude: 2,580 masl (maximum)

Mt. Halcon straddles the towns of San Teodoro, Baco, Calapan, Naujan, Victoria, Socorro, Pinamalayan, Gloria and Bansud in Mindoro Oriental and Sablayan and Santa Cruz, Mindoro Occidental. Mt. Halcon rises to 2,580 m, and is the third highest mountain in the Philippines. With its associated peaks, it includes the northernmost portion of the mountainous spine of the island of Mindoro. The Mt. Halcon IBA extends for almost 60 km along the border between Mindoro Occidental and Mindoro Oriental. The western slopes of the mountains have a seasonal climate with wet and dry seasons, whereas the eastern slopes have an evenly distributed rainfall, leading to a large diversity of natural vegetation types. In the east, the lower slopes support dipterocarp forests, with lower montane forest between about 1,000 and 1,700 m, in places with large areas of bamboo thicket and landslides with herbaceous cover. Mossy forest is found from c.1,700 to 2,200 m, and alpine shrubs and heath above this around the peaks of the mountains. On the western slopes are “parang” vegetation with patches of dipterocarp forest and stands of Mindoro pine.

In places the forest is naturally stunted (only c.10-12 m tall) with a highly uneven canopy and many needle-leaved trees, for example around Ilong Ridge. However, very large areas have been cleared and in 1991 kaingin (shifting cultivation) was found to be penetrating far up the most accessible valleys. In the area on Mt. Ilong visited in that year, the lower edge of forest was at around 750 m. It descended somewhat lower on ridges and valley sides to the north and south, but was broken-canopied there. Between 750 and 850 m, logging by pit-saw was intensive and the forest very open, with trees up to 20 m tall and a dense scrub layer. Only above 850 m did a natural primary forest of the lowland/lower montane transition type exist, extending up to 1,000 m with a canopy around 15 m tall.

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These mountains are a tribal territory of both the Iraya Mangyan and Alangan tribes, who have ancestral land claims on the area. Mt. Halcon and its secondary peak and slopes are the watersheds of important riverine systems on the island, vital for agricultural productivity in the lowlands of northern Mindoro. The spectacular mountains in this IBA are popular with mountaineering clubs.

Most of the Halcon range is difficult of access and hence difficult to patrol. Because of remoteness of the area, much of the forest cover is still in fairly good condition. However, illegal pit-saw logging has severely damaged the forest below 850 m on Mt. Ilong, and extensive logging was underway at up to 700 m on the north slopes of Mt. Baco (near Mt. Halcon) in 1992. Kaingin encroachment was following close behind this logging, and rattan, canes and vines were being harvested. Regeneration of forest may not be possible in many areas, as the catchments here appear extremely vulnerable to erosion, judging from the number of visible landslides.

Mt. Halcon, the third highest peak in the country, has the potential to be a tourist attraction to the large numbers of foreign and Filipino tourists staying at the nearby town of Puerto Galera. It is already a regular mountaineering destination in the dry season. The forests of Mt. Halcon are the watersheds of important riverine systems on the island flowing to the South China Sea and are vital for the agricultural production in the area. The Sablayan Coast and the adjacent islands and islets are characterized by intertidal sandflats, fringing coral reefs and mangrove swamps.

Siburan is the largest tract of lowland forest known on Mindoro. It is adjacent to the large Sablayan penal colony, which restricts access to the forest and therefore provides some degree of protection. The forest is about 30 km southeast of Sablayan, with forest on the south and east edge of the penal colony. This forest is contiguous with the patchy forests on the limestone ridge running north from Malpalon (PH043). In 1991, it was estimated that about 1,500 ha of lowland forest remain, with a similar area of unvisited montane forest further east. The lowland forest is a generally closed canopy with trees of up to 25 m or more and a relatively open forest floor. There are fewer limestone outcrops causing less disruption to the canopy than at Malpalon. The small Lake Lubao borders the forest.

Most threatened and restricted-range lowland forest birds of the Mindoro Endemic Bird Area were recorded recently at Siburan. It is almost certainly the largest and most important lowland forest site on Mindoro, particularly given the current relatively low level of disturbance there. The protection of this IBA probably represents the best opportunity to prevent the extinction of the highly threatened Mindoro Bleeding-heart, Black-hooded Coucal and Mindoro Hornbill. Lake Lubao, bordering the forest, holds a few waterbirds.

The future of Siburan is not secure, although there is presumably some degree of protection afforded by the proximity of the penal colony. The prisoners have some impact on the forest, as they use it for the collection of firewood, rattan and bamboo, and for snaring birds. Species such as Black-hooded Coucal may be confined to undisturbed areas of forest where dense tangles of vines and rattans are found, and this is being slowly cleared away from the forest nearest to the prison, due to the collection of rattan for furniture production by the prisoners. A large tree felled at this location was being milled on site for either furniture or building purposes. However, in general there are minimal signs of human activity in the forest, with very few paths and no logging reported.

A serious threat is posed to Siburan by encroaching slash-and-burn cultivation (kaingin) by local people and refugees. The influence of the penal colony has kept deforestation to a minimum, but the forest has no formal protection and is likely to come under increasing pressure in the future.

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The Sablayan forest is under the jurisdiction of the Department of Justice, and an integrated social forestry project is running in the region.

The forests of Siburan had been proposed as a new protected area, and it has been suggested that the increasing outside interest shown in the birds of Siburan could provide greatly needed encouragement to conservation in the area. This site provides a unique opportunity to see at least four species that are almost impossible to find anywhere else in the world.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Insects Euploea tobleri mangyan T, Halcon En

Amphibians Mindoro tree frog Philautus schmackeri Mindoro En

Reptiles Philippine crocodile Crocodylus mindorensis T, En

Birds Ashy Thrush Zoothera cinerea RT Black-hooded Coucal Centropus steerii RT Mindoro Bleeding-heart Gallicolumba platenae RT Mindoro Hornbill Penelopides mindorensis RT Mindoro Imperial-pigeon Ducula mindorensis RT Mindoro Scops-owl Otus mindorensis R Mountain Shrike Lanius validirostris R Philippine Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia T Philippine Hawk-eagle Spizaetus philippensis T Scarlet-collared Flowerpecker Dicaeum retrocinctum RT Spotted Imperial-pigeon Ducula carola T

Mammals Forest Mouse Apomys gracilirostris was discovered in 1995 Mindoro En Mindoro Climbing Rat Anonymomys mindorensis Mindoro En Spiny Rat Maxomys nov. sp. (a genus previously from Palawan) Mindoro En Tamaraw Bubalus mindorensis T, Mindoro En

16. Malpalon Coordinates: 12°42' N 120°58'E Area: 25,176 ha Altitude: 894 masl (maximum)

Malpalon is found in the towns of Calintaan and Sablayan, Mindoro Occidental. This includes a group of forest remnants on a limestone ridge adjacent to MIBNP, a few kilometers to the south of Siburan. The ridge peaks at just below 1,000 m, and is forested for several kilometers. Clearance has been very recent here, such that many big trees and residual patches of forest exist in the lowlands, especially along field edges and watercourses. Continuous forest is now only found on the sides of steep, narrow ridges. Here the forest was on very irregular broken ground, creating heterogeneous forest types with many areas of scrubby thickets and few tracts of tall shady forest.

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A species of wild pig occurs at Malpalon, and the Tamaraw Bubalus mindorensis was present in the past and still occurs nearby.

There has been extensive clearance of forest for kaingin at Malpalon. Forest fires, spreading from areas of secondary growth and cogon (grassland), can be a serious risk in the dry season. Collection of firewood, rattan and bamboo was probably increasing with the population.

Hunting is claimed locally not to be serious, but snare traps for terrestrial animals are common, and spear traps for pigs are so numerous that it can be unsafe to leave any path in the area.

A small area, mostly grassland, around Tusk Peak, is within MIBNP. Apparently none of the area is protected, although some of it is afforded nominal protection as a "Catchment Forest".

The most important areas are probably the remnant patches below 500 m, which are difficult to protect by statutory means. The Kalikasan Mindoro Foundation has started an ambitious education programme, centered on species such as the endemic birds and the Tamaraw, to make barangays and villages feel responsible for their remaining forests and to encourage more sustainable use.

There is insufficient socio-economic data for this area to understand the loss of biodiversity and the conservation measures needed.

17. Mt. Hinunduang Coordinates: 12°35' N 121°17'E Area: 29,799 ha Altitude: c.150-1,300 masl

Found in the towns of Mansalay, Mindoro Oriental and Calintaan and San Jose, Mindoro Occidental. Mt. Hinunduang lies at the southern end of the central mountain ranges of Mindoro. Recent forest cover maps show a relatively extensive forest block on the mountain, most of which is presumably montane. A survey was carried out at San Vicente in 1991 in the Watershed of Tauga River below Mt. Hinunduang. Fieldwork concentrated on the lower-altitude quality forest and the mountain itself was not visited. No primary forest was found below 550 m although the long valley of the Tauga River, which provides access, had large trees and scattered secondary forest along its sides and floor down to about 150 m. Kaingin and small plantations (of fruit and cash crops) had penetrated most of the valley bottoms up to 500 or 600 m and were scattered through the remaining forest. The forest was of true lowland type at its lowest altitudes, but higher up was impoverished by steep slopes, exposure and recent logging (an abandoned road crosses the area at 750-820 m) and was therefore difficult to assign to type. Small blocks of closed-canopy primary lowland forest persisted on some flatter ridges.

Several of the threatened and restricted-range birds of the Mindoro Endemic Bird Area have been recorded on Mt. Hinunduang, and the extensive montane forests which remain there are likely to prove to be important for montane species, notably the endemic Mindoro Imperial-pigeon and Mindoro Scops-owl. The areas of lowland forests at San Vicente and possibly elsewhere on the lower slopes of the mountain are also important for the conservation of some of the endemic lowland forest birds of Mindoro, such as Scarlet- collared Flowerpecker. Threatened subspecies of endemic wild pigs occur in this IBA.

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At San Vicente, kaingin and plantations were encroaching into the forest, as described above, and the forest was used for rattan and creeper harvesting, and hunting for birds and (the threatened) wild pigs. Commercial logging operations within Oriental Mindoro have been stopped for quite some time, and the canopy of the logged-over areas has already closed. However, many of these stands are seriously threatened by poaching and slash-and-burn agriculture.

The San Vicente area has been zoned by the local DENR for reforestation, timber stand improvement, and rattan plantation by concession holders. DENR has plantation sites much lower down the river which was not mature enough in 1991 to take pressure off the natural forests. However, this poses a threat to the area because DENR requires that all secondary growth be cleared prior to planting.

Surveys are required in this IBA, to investigate both the extent and quality of the remaining habitats and the current status of the threatened and restricted-range birds and other biodiversity.

VII. Calamianes Group of Islands

The Calamianes Group of Islands is situated in the northernmost section of the Palawan province. The coastlines of the islands are highly indented and are characterized by intertidal sand flats, mangrove forest and mudflats, seagrass beds and extensive coral reefs.

18. Calauit Island Coordinates: 12°18'N 119°52'E Area: >4,000 ha Altitude: 0 - 236 masl

Calauit is a small, low-lying island in the Calamian group, north of Palawan. It is a short distance from the much larger island of Busuanga (PH048). The natural vegetation there is lowland forest, with beach forest and mangroves along the coast. Plantations, secondary growth and open grassland have replaced much of the forest. Calauit Island Game Reserve and Bird Sanctuary (3,400 ha) was declared by Proc. No. 1578 on 31 August 1976.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Birds Blue-headed Racquet-tail Prioniturus platenae RT Chinese Egret Egretta eulophotes T Grey Imperial-pigeon Ducula pickeringii RT Palawan Blue-flycatcher Cyornis lemprieri R Palawan Flowerpecker Prionochilus plateni R Palawan Hornbill Anthracoceros marchei RT Palawan Tit Parus amabilis R Philippine Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia T Yellow-throated Leafbird Chloropsis palawanensis R

Mammals Calamian Hog-deer Axis calamianensis EN Palawan Stink Badger Mydaus marchei Binturong Arctictis binturong Bearded Pig Sus barbatus Bottlenose Dolphin Tursiops truncates Minke Whale Balaenoptera acutorost rata

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Amphibians Brown-striped Tree Frog Polypedates macrotis . Everett’s Tree Frog Rhacophorus everetti

Several threatened and restricted-range species of the Palawan Endemic Bird Area were recorded on Calauit, including the threatened Grey Imperial-pigeon, Blue-headed Racquet-tail and Palawan Hornbill, and unconfirmed reports of the Philippine Cockatoo.

Threats to the habitats on Calauit include cutting of timber, agricultural expansion, burning of vegetation and the collection of forest product. Exploitation of birds is also reported.

19. Busuanga Islands Coordinates: 12°05' N 120° 05'E Area: Not estimated Altitude: 0 – 653 masl Wetland types: shallow sea bays; small offshore islands/islets; sea beaches; intertidal mudflats and sandflats; mangrove; coastal brackish saline lagoons and marshes; rivers and streams, both slow flowing and fast flowing

Not officially protected but part of this IBA was proclaimed as a Marine Reserve/Tourist Zone in 1978 by Proc. No. 1801.

Busuanga (87,500 ha) is the largest island in the Calamian group, to the north of Palawan. There are two mountain ranges on the island, the Chinabayan and the Wayan ranges. It retains patches of open canopy broadleaf lowland forest, consisting of small to medium sized trees on poor soil, which are mostly found on ridges.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Amphibians Philippine Discoglossid Frog Barbourula busuang ensis EN

Reptiles Green Turtle Chelonia mydas Hawksbill Turtle Eretmochelys imbricata Philippine Crocodile Crocodylus mindorensis Estuarine Crocodile Crocodylus porosus

Birds Blue Paradise-flycatcher Terpsiphone cyanescens R Blue-headed Racquet-tail Prioniturus platenae RT Palawan Flowerpecker Prionochilus plateni R Palawan Hornbill Anthracoceros marchei RT Philippine Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia T White-vented Shama Copsychus niger R Yellow-throated Leafbird Chloropsis palawanensis R

Mammals Bearded Pig Sus barbatus En Bottlenose Dolphin Tursiops truncatus Calamian Hog-deer Axis calamianensis En Leopard Cat Prionailurus bengalensis En

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Palawan Flying Fox Acerodon leucotis En Palawan Porcupine Hystrix pumila En Palawan Stink Badger Mydaus marchei En Palawan Tree Shrew Tupaia palawanensis En Short-tailed Mongoose Herpestes brachyurus En

The forests on Busuanga are not believed to be under serious threat of encroachment, apart from occasional cutting apparently for local use. However, an old carabao trail leading into the Chinabayan mountain range has been greatly widened and is now continually used, which may indicate increasing pressure on this area. There is a need to assess the current status of the habitats at this site, and to determine whether it still supports populations of any of the threatened and restricted-range species that formerly occurred there.

20. Culion Island Coordinates: 11°50' N 119°55' E Area: 45,600 ha Altitude: 70-467 masl

Culion (45,600 ha) is a reserved area as a leper colony under the Department of Health and the provincial government. It is the second largest of the Calamian group, to the north of Palawan. It retains patches of open canopy broadleaf lowland forest, consisting of small to medium sized trees on poor soil, found both along the ridges and on flat areas.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Amphibians Philippine discoglossid frog Barbourula busu angensis EN

Reptiles Green Turtle Chelonia mydas Hawksbill Turtle Eretmochelys imbricata Philippine Crocodile Crocodylus mindorensis Estuarine Crocodile Crocodylus porosus

Birds Blue Paradise-flycatcher Terpsiphone cyanescens R Blue-headed Racquet-tail Prioniturus platenae RT Palawan Blue-flycatcher Cyornis lemprieri R Palawan Flowerpecker Prionochilus plateni R Palawan Hornbill Anthracoceros marchei RT Palawan Peacock-pheasant Polyplectron emphanum RT Philippine Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia T White-vented Shama Copsychus niger R Yellow-throated Leafbird Chloropsis palawanensis R

Mammals Bearded Pig Sus barbatus En Bottlenose Dolphin Tursiops truncatus Calamian Hog-deer Axis calamianensis En

The forests on Culion are not believed to be under serious threat of encroachment, apart from occasional cutting apparently for local use.

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VIII. Mainland Palawan

21. Bacuit Bay-El Nido Coordinates: 11°10'N 119°23'E Area: 35,284 ha Altitude: 0 – 648 masl Wetland types: shallow sea bays; small offshore islands and islets

Bacuit Bay is located within the municipality of El Nido at the northernmost tip of Palawan Island. The area is a popular nature spot with its diverse coastal ecosystems. This includes extensive intertidal sandflats and mudflats, mangroves forests, seagrass beds, and extensive coral reefs.

El Nido Managed Resource Protected Area was proclaimed by virtue of Proc. No. 32 on October 8, 1998. It covers a land area of 35,283.64 ha and a marine area of 53,847.57 ha. This IBA is one of the recipients of the DENR-EU-NIPAP. It is included within the El Nido Marine Reserve, which covers 95,000 ha, much of which is marine but also includes a substantial area of land. Some extensive areas of old growth forest are shown on the low hills there on recent forest cover maps. There are reported to be extensive areas of forest on limestone (ironwood) and beach forest there.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Terrestrial Herpetofauna unknown

Marine Reptiles Green turtle Chelonia mydas T Hawksbill Turtle Eretmochelys imbricata T Olive Ridley Turtle Lepidochelys olivacea T

Birds Blue Paradise-flycatcher Terpsiphone cyanescens R Palawan Flowerpecker Prionochilus plateni R Palawan Hornbill Anthracoceros marchei RT Palawan Peacock-pheasant Polyplectron emphanum RT Palawan Swiftlet Collocalia palawanensis R Sulphur-bellied Bulbul Ixos palawanensis R White-vented Shama Copsychus niger R Yellow-throated Leafbird Chloropsis palawanensis R

Terrestrial Mammals unknown

Marine Mammals Bottlenose Dolphin Tursiops truncatus Finless Porpoise Neophocaena phocaenoides

The areas logged on Palawan are relatively recent, and the majority of the forest within the closed canopy line is primary. Small-scale timber extraction and the operations of well-organized logging operations are hastening the depletion of the forest cover on the island. The Ten Knots Development Corporation had developed the El Nido Resort for ecotourism, including birdwatching.

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Mainland Palawan and its associated islands are included in a Biosphere reserve, declared in 1990. An integrated management plan was prepared for the Palawan Biosphere Reserve – Environmentally Critical Areas Network (ECAN), to zone the island, which incorporates the existing El Nido Marine Sanctuary and other protected areas. This are includes terrestrial core zone (primitive wilderness area strictly protected) and buffer zone (regulated use allowed) areas.

22. San Vicente-Taytay-Roxas Coordinates: 10°46'N 119°20'E Area: 152,30 ha Altitude: 701 masl (maximum)

Several large blocks of old growth forest are shown on recent forest cover maps between the towns of San Vicente, Taytay and Roxas, in northern Palawan. Much of this area is low-lying, with the hills reaching a maximum altitude of only 701 m, so all of these are likely to be lowland forests.

The birds of this area are generally poorly known, but there are records of several of the threatened and restricted-range species of the Palawan Endemic Bird Area, including the threatened Palawan Peacock-pheasant, Philippine Cockatoo, Blue-headed Racquet-tail and Palawan Hornbill. The extensive lowland forests in this IBA are likely to support significant populations of these and other threatened and restricted-range species.

Logging in Palawan is relatively recent, and the majority of the forest within the closed canopy line is primary. Small-scale timber extraction and well-organized illegal commercial logging operations are hastening the depletion of the forest cover.

Surveys are required to investigate both the extent and quality of the remaining habitats and the current status of the threatened and restricted-range birds and other biodiversity.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Birds Blue-headed Racquet-tail Prioniturus platenae RT Palawan Hornbill Anthracoceros marchei RT Palawan Peacock-pheasant Polyplectron emphanum RT Palawan Swiftlet Collocalia palawanensis R Palawan Tit Parus amabilis R Philippine Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia T Yellow-throated Leafbird Chloropsis palawanensis R

23. Malampaya Sound Coordinates: 100 43'N-11000'N; 119016'E-1190 28 'E Area: 30,000 ha Wetland types: shallow sea bay; estuaries; small offshore island and islets; intertidal mudflats and sandflats; mangrove

Malampaya Sound is one of the most important fishing grounds in the Philippines. It is located in northwest coast of Palawan in Taytay municipality, situated between two landmasses that form a horseshoe shaped area characteristic of a delta type estuary. It is divided into two sections: the outer sound and the inner sound. The important ecosystems that serve as spawning and nursery ground for the rich aquatic life that inhabits the Sound include coral reefs, seagrass beds, and mangrove estuaries. It is an extremely indented bay that is divided into an outer section dominated by sandy substrates and coral; and an inner

70 Philippines National Report on Wetlands section characterized by muddy substrates and mangrove. The mangrove areas (2,513 ha) were classified as follows: primary old growth mangroves (304 ha), young mangrove (1,652 ha) and reproduction brush (557 ha). It is the only place in the Philippines where the globally endangered Irrawady Dolphin is found.

The main inflow into the sound is the Abongan River from the south. Apart from the broad flat valley of the Abongan River, the topography surrounding the Sound is the rolling hill topography characteristic of northern Palawan. The inner part of the sound is extremely shallow (only about 1 m at low tide) with a fine mud substrate. The surrounding hills are either still forested or being cleared by settlers for cultivation. Further inland, ricefields dominate the valley of the Abongan River.

The area around northwest Palawan is one of the richest fishing grounds in the Philippines. This is in part thought to be due to the input from the mangrove areas in the Sound, thus it is vital to the support of the local coastal fisheries. The Sound is also the livelihood for many local communities that are increasing rapidly due to in-migration from other Philippine islands where the coastal resources have already been degraded. The mangrove is used for local uses such as cutting for firewood and building.

Commercial trawling has been banned in the Sound. It is recommended that the inner part of the Sound be afforded some kind of protected status, and that absolutely no conversion of mangroves to fishponds be allowed.

ERDB in 1989 assessed the timber resources of the mangrove areas, while Asian Wetlands Bureau (AWB) carried out a brief survey of the status of the mangrove. The Sound was proclaimed the Malampaya Sound Protected Landscape and Seascape under the NIPAS law and was the recipient of the DENR-EU-NIPAP conservation program.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Mangroves Acanthus sp., Acrosthicum aureum, Acrosthicum aureum, Brugiera gymnorrhiza, Brugiera sexangula, Ceriops decandra , Ceriops tagal, Excoecaria agallocha, Hibiscus tiliaceus, Lumnitzera racemosa, Nypa fruticans, Rhizophora apiculata, Rhizophora mu cronata and Xylocarpus granatum,

Invertebrates and Fishes Penaeid shrimps, rabbitfish (Siganus spp. ), mullet/banak (Mugil spp.), anchovies and other fish of the families Carangidae and Scombridae are common in and around the mangrove areas.

Herpetofauna Green Sea Turtle Chelonia mydas T Hawksbill Turtle Eretmochelys imbrcata T

Birds Green Imperial Pigeon Ducula aenea palawanensis Palawan Malkoha Phoenicomalphaeus curvirostris Palawan Peacock Peasant Polypectron emphanum Palawan Racket-tailed Parrot Prioniturus platenae Philippine Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia Stork-Billed Kingfisher Pelargopsis capensis Tabon Bird Megapodius freycinet cumingii Talking Myna Gracula religiosa palawanensis

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Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus White-breasted Sea Eagle Haliaetus l eucogaster

Terrestrial Mammals Long Tailed Macaques Macaca fascicularis Northern Palawan Lesser Tree Squirrel Callosciurus juvencus Palawan Bear Cat Arctictis binturong Palawan Porcupine Thecurus pumilus Palawan Skunk Mydaus marchaei Palm Civet Cat Parado xurus hermaphroditus Small Leopard Cat Felis minuta

Marine Mammals Bottlenose Dolphin Tursiops truncatus Irrawady Dophin Orcaella brevirostris T Sea Cow Dugong dugon T

24. Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park-Ulugan Bay Coordinates: 10°10'N 118°55'E Area: > 3,901 ha Altitude: 0 - 1,593 masl

Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park (PPSRNP) – Ulayan Bay is on west coast of Palawan, about 81 km north of Puerto Princesa. St. Paul Bay bounds it to the north and the Babuyan River to the south. The landforms in the park are associated with rocky mountains (of marble and limestone) running from north to south that forms spectacular limestone formations.

PPSRNP (3,901 ha) was declared by Proc. No. 835 on March 26, 1971. It is situated on the west coast of Palawan. This was later increased to more than 20,000 ha that included the whole of the adjacent Babuyan River catchment as part of its inscription as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The main feature of the park is an 8.2 km navigable underground river, an underground river flowing within a deep cavern under rugged limestone and marble cliffs which features cathedral-like caverns and domes, that drains into the St. Paul Bay. To the south of the Park is Ulugan Bay with its extensive mangrove swamps and mudflats found in the inner part of the bay. The relatively intact mangrove area represents one of the very few remaining areas of old-growth mangrove in the country.

Two-thirds of the area is covered by lush tropical rainforest from the shoreline to the highest peak, and one-third is thinly vegetated karst limestone. The vegetation types include lowland forest (often with a 35 m canopy), coastal forest and karst forest. There is a small human population in the park, whose livelihoods are fishing and farming.

The human population in the park is currently small, occupying an area suitable for rice cultivation on both sides of the Cabayugan River. Many small areas adjacent to the park were cleared for cultivation in the early 1990s, which could pose a serious long-term threat to the forests inside the park. Some logging was recently reported from inside the park, and gathering of rattans would pose a major problem if left unchecked. However, the park is relatively well manned and actively managed by the local government of Palawan.

All of Palawan and associated islands are included in a Biosphere reserve, declared in 1990. An integrated management plan has been prepared for the whole Palawan Biosphere Reserve (ECAN), to zone the island, incorporate the existing PPSRNP and other protected areas which includes terrestrial core zone (primitive wilderness area strictly protected) and buffer zone (regulated use allowed) areas.

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The PPSRNP is currently a popular destination for visiting bird-watchers, and most of the threatened and restricted-range birds of the Palawan Endemic Bird Area have been recorded there. Several threatened species are regularly seen in the extensive lowland forests there, and the populations of Palawan Peacock-pheasant and Philippine Cockatoo in the park are particularly important.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Plants Dao Dracontemelon dao Kamagong Diospyrus sp. Malugai Pometia pinnata

Birds Ashy-headed Babbler Malacocincla cinereiceps R Blue Paradise-flycatcher Terpsiphone cyanescens R Blue-headed Racquet-tail Prioniturus platenae RT Chinese Egret Egretta eulophotes T Falcated Wren-babbler Ptilocichla falcata RT Melodious Babbler Malacopteron palawanense R Nordmann's Greenshank Tringa guttifer T Palawan Blue-flycatcher Cyornis lemprieri R Palawan Flowerpecker Prionochilus plateni R Palawan Flycatcher Ficedula platenae RT Palawan Hornbill Anthrac oceros marchei RT Palawan Peacock-pheasant Polyplectron emphanum RT Palawan Swiftlet Collocalia palawanensis R Palawan Scops-owl Otus fuliginosus RT Palawan Tit Parus amabilis R Philippine Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia T Sulphur-bellied Bulbul Ixos palawanensis R White-vented Shama Copsychus niger R Yellow-throated Leafbird Chloropsis palawanensis R

Mammals Binturong Arctictis binturong Oriental Small-clawed Otter Amblonyx cinereus Palawan Flying Fox Acerodon leucotis T, En Palawan Flying Squirrel Hylopetes nigripes En Palawan Montane Tree Squirrel Sundasciurus rabori En Palawan Porcupine Hystrix pumila En Palawan Stink-badger Mydaus marchei En

25. Ulugan Bay Coordinates: 10°02”-10°08’N, 118°4’118°50’E Area: 1,880 ha. of mangroves Wetland types: shallow bay; mangrove; estuary; offshore islands; intertidal mudflats; sea beaches; coral reefs; seagrass bed; offshore islands; and small bays

Ulugan Bay, located in the mid-western coast of Palawan about 35 km north of Puerto Princesa City, is a major shallow bay with the most diverse coastal mangrove forests associated with estuary, offshore islands, intertidal mudflats, sea beaches, coral reefs, seagrassbeds, small islands, and smaller bays, number of rivers empty into the bay including

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Banaog, Kamanglet, Sia, Burnang, Egdasen, Baheli and Kayulo. Salinities range from 9.2 to 27 ppt. and pH values from 7.0 to 7.5. The tide is predominantly of diurnal type, with a mean diurnal range of 1.22 meters. It is one of the remaining natural habitats of the salt water crocodile, Crocodylus porosus.

Ulugan Bay and the rivers joining it are used in the transport of cargo and passengers to and around the Bay including PPSRNP and Port Barton. On the eastern coast is the research and training center of the Palawan National Agricultural College - Regional Institute of Fisheries (PNAC - RIFT). In the southern corner is a infrastructure complex of the Philippine Navy. Coral boulders are being gathered and used as filling materials for the reclamation project in barangay Macarascas. Mangroves are cut for charcoal production and as fish poles, fencing and housing materials, furniture and firewood. Small-scale fishing like hook and line, crab traps, fish traps, fish corrals and fishnets are noticeable in the bay. Nipa fronds are used in making roofing materials. Crabs, shrimp and mollusks are collected as food items. There is an abandoned fishpond of about four ha in the inland mangrove area along the Bahile River. Three mining companies in the western side of the bay occupy a reclaimed area of the mangrove forest.

Mangrove trees are being cut excessively and destroyed for various purposes. Siltation of the bay results from the operations of the mining companies. Oil pollution from the naval ships and other boats had killed some stands of Rhizophora and Bruguiera . Domestic wastes from the coastal communities are dumped into the area. Over-collection of corals is depleting this important resource.

Ulugan Bay is a declared Naval Reserve while the coastal mangrove area is a forest reserve. Mangrove reforestation projects had been undertaken at the Bahile River estuary. The UNDP is undertaking a project to protect the bay by promoting alternative livelihoods including sustainable tourism activities.

The Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau (ERDB-DENR) conducted vegetation studies of mangrove forest in the bay while PNAC-RIFT did research on ichthyofauna of the bay.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Plants Among the mangrove species found are: Acanthus ilicifolius, Acrostrichum aureum , Acrostrichum ebracteatus, Acrostrichum speciosum , Aegiceras floridum, Avicennia lanata, Bruguiera gymnorrhiza, Bru guiera sexangula, Bruguiera cylindrical, Bruguiera parviflora, Caesalpinia crista, Cerbera manghas, Ceriops tagal, Cynometra ramiflora, Derris trifoliate, Excoecaria agallocha, Heritiera littoralis, Hibiscus tiliaceus, Lumnitzera littorea, Lumnitzera racem es, Nypa fruticans, Rhizophora mucronata, Rhizophora apiculata, Rhizophora stylosa, Sonneratia alba, Scyphiphora hydrophyllacea, Terminalia catappa, Thespesia populnea, Xylocarpus granatum, Xylocarpus granatum and Xylocarpus mekongensis

Invertebrates Several species of marine mollusks have been identified including Cerithium, Conus pondulus, Cvpraea, Hippopus, Lambis, Natica, Oliva, Pinctada, Strombus, Telescopium, Tridacna, Trochus, Vasum.

Reptiles Philippine Cobra Naja naja Reticulated python Python ret iculates Salt Water Crocodile Crocodylus porosus

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Birds Black-naped Tern Stern Sterna sumatrana Blue-Naped Parrot Tanygnathus lucionensis Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos Crow Corvus enca Dusky Grey Heron Ardea sumatrana Eurasian Bittern Butorides stria tus Lesser Coucal Centropus benghalensis Orange-bellied Flowerpecker Dicaeum trigonostigma Philippine Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia Reef Heron Egretta sacra Stork-Billed Kingfisher Pelargopsis capensis Velvet-fronted Nuthatch Sitta frontalis Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus White Collared Kingfisher Halcyon chloris Yellow-throated Leafbird Chloropsis palawanensis

Mammals Long tailed macaques Macaca fascicularis

26. Victoria and Anapalan ranges Coordinates: 9°23'N 118°18'E Area: 182,456 ha Altitude: 50-1,798 masl

The Victoria and Anapalan mountain ranges and the adjacent foothills and lowlands is located in central Palawan, to the southwest of Puerto Princesa. There are montane forests on the higher peaks and large tracts of little disturbed lowland forest in the valleys and foothills southwest of Iwahig Penal Colony, in the foothills on the Sulu Sea side of the mountains and to the shoreline on the South China Sea coast in some places. Victoria Peak is reported to support the largest area of ultramafic forest on Palawan, and other habitats there include lowland dipterocarp forest and lower and upper montane forest. Although not officially protected, it is included in the Environmentally Critical Areas Network (ECAN) as a buffer zone under the Strategic Environmental Plan for Palawan.

The most serious threats to the forests here are illegal logging and kaingin. Emigration from other parts of the Philippines to Palawan is high and squatting is commonplace. Concessions for Almaciga resin and rattan gathering exist, which are often not exploited in a sustainable way. The exploitation of birds is a threat in this area, which affects Palawan Peacock-pheasant and parrots.

Ancestral domains have been claimed by Tagbanua and Palawan peoples here, but have not been approved yet. If approved, they could provide some protection to the remaining forests.

Palawan and its associated islands are included in a Biosphere reserve, declared in 1990. An integrated management plan has been prepared for the whole Palawan Biosphere Reserve (ECAN), to zone the island. This IBA includes terrestrial core zone (primitive wilderness area strictly protected) and buffer zone (regulated use allowed) areas.

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Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Reptiles Palawan Earless Sphenomorphus Sphenomorphus palawanensis En

Birds Ashy-headed Babbler Malacocincla cinereiceps R Blue Paradise-flycatcher Terpsiphone cyanescens R Blue-headed Racquet-tail Prioniturus platenae T Chinese Egret Egretta eulophotes T Falcated Wren-babbler Ptilocichla falcate RT Japanese Night-heron Gorsachius goisagi T Melodious Babbler Malacopteron palawanense R Palawan Blue-flycatcher Cyornis lempri eri R Palawan Flowerpecker Prionochilus plateni R Palawan Flycatcher Ficedula platenae RT Palawan Hornbill Anthracoceros marchei RT Palawan Peacock-pheasant Polyplectron emphanum RT Palawan Scops-owl Otus fuliginosus R Palawan Striped-babbler Stachyri s hypogrammica R Palawan Swiftlet Collocalia palawanensis R Palawan Tit Parus amabilis R Philippine Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia T Philippine Hawk-eagle Spizaetus philippensis T Sulphur-bellied Bulbul Ixos palawanensis R White-vented Shama Copsych us niger R Yellow-throated Leafbird Chloropsis palawanensis R

Mammals Northern Palawan Tree Squirrel Sundasciurus juvencus En Palawan Stink Badger Mydaus marchei En Binturong Arctictis binturong Oriental Short-clawed Otter Amblonyx cinereus Palawan Flying Fox Acerodon leucotis En Palawan Montane Tree Squirrel Sundasciurus rabori En Palawan Tree Shrew Tupaia palawensis En

27. Mt. Mantalingajan Coordinates: 8°48' N 117°40'E Area: 169,406 ha Altitude: about 400 - 2,086 masl

Mt. Mantalingajan, which encompasses the towns of Quezon, Brooke’s Point and Bataraza, is in southern Palawan, and at 2,086 m is the highest mountain on the island. The Mantalingajan range includes an estimated 70,000 ha of montane mossy rainforest, with stunted forest on the exposed tops. Lowland rainforest is found in the northwest of the mountains on the coastal plain, around the Ilog-Ilog River. To the southeast of the mountains, the forest has been cleared up to 800 m on the slopes, although some slope forest remains on the top of the flanking coastal ridge from about 400 m upwards. The transition from lowland to montane forest occurs at approximately 1,000 m. The forest becomes progressively stunted with the Mantalingajan peak appearing particularly so, with large areas of slope scoured by landslides, and conifer re-growth occurring.

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The southeastern slopes of the mountains have been cleared for kaingin up to 800 m in most places, and the level lowlands on this side of the mountains are almost entirely deforested. The areas logged on Palawan are relatively recent, and the majority of the forest within the closed canopy line is primary. Small-scale timber extraction and well-organized logging operations are hastening the depletion of the forest cover on the island.

In the past, the Mantalingajan range and the adjacent lowlands contained most threatened and restricted-range birds in the Palawan Endemic Bird Area and is probably the stronghold of the Palawan Striped-babbler, which is known only from its montane forests. Little recent information on the status of most of the threatened species in this area, but the extensive lowland forests on the coastal plains to the west of the mountains are likely to be important for several of them, including the Philippine Cockatoo.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Amphibians Mary’s frog Micrixalus mariae E

Birds Ashy-headed Babbler Malacocincla cinereiceps R Blue Paradise-flycatcher Terpsiphone cyanescens R Blue-headed Racquet-tail Prioniturus platenae RT Falcated Wren-babbler Ptilocichla falcate RT Melodious Babbler Malacopteron palawanense R Palawan Blue-flycatcher Cyornis lemprieri R Palawan Flowerpecker Prionoch ilus plateni R Palawan Flycatcher Ficedula platenae RT Palawan Hornbill Anthracoceros marchei RT Palawan Peacock-pheasant Polyplectron emphanum RT Palawan Scops-owl Otus fuliginosus R Palawan Striped-babbler Stachyris hypogrammica R Palawan Swiftlet Collocalia palawanensis R Palawan Tit Parus amabilis R Philippine Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia T Philippine Duck Anas luzonica T Sulphur-bellied Bulbul Ixos palawanensis R White-vented Shama Copsychus niger R Yellow-throated Leafbird Chloropsis palaw anensis R

Mammals Palawan montane tree squirrel Sundasciurus rabori EN Palawan soft-furred mountain rat Palawanomys furvus T, EN

IX. Balabac Group of Islands

28. Balabac Island Coordinates: 7°57' N 117°01'E Area: 35,277 ha Altitude: 567 masl (maximum)

Thirty small islands and islets with fringing coral reefs and intertidal sandflats comprised the island municipality of Balabac located on the southern-most part of Palawan. The principal islands are Bugsuk, Pandanan, Matangule, Bancalan and Balabac. Balabac (34,200 ha), the largest of the group of islands south of Palawan, has lowland forests, but little

77 Philippines National Report on Wetlands forest cover is reportedly remaining on the island. It is proclaimed as a Marine Reserve/Tourist Zone in 1978 by Proc. No. 1801, but not officially protected under the NIPAS.

There is ins ufficient data about the Balabac Group of Islands socio-economic pressures that affect its biodiversity.

Among the important biodiversity found and their status are {Threatened (T), restricted-range (R) and Congregratory (C) birds, Endemic (En)}:

Amphibians Brown-striped tree frog Polypedates macrotis En Rough-skinned tree frog Philautus longicrus En South-East Asian wood frog Rana sanguinea En

Reptiles Estuarine crocodile Crocodylus porosus T Hawksbill turtle Eretmochelys imbricata T

Birds Ashy-headed Babbler Malacocincla cinereiceps R Blue-headed Racquet-tail Prioniturus platenae RT Falcated Wren-babbler Ptilocichla falcate RT Grey Imperial-pigeon Ducula pickeringii RT Melodious Babbler Malacopteron palawanense R Palawan Blue-flycatcher Cyornis lemprier R Palawan Flowerpecker Prionochilus plateni R Palawan Hornbill Anthracoceros marchei RT Palawan Scops-owl Otus fuliginosus R Palawan Tit Parus amabilis R Philippine Cockatoo Cacatua haematuropygia T White-vented Shama Copsychus niger R Yellow-throated Leafbird Chloropsis palawanensis R

Mammals Greater Mouse-deer Tragulus napu En Palawan Flying Fox Acerodon leucotis En Palawan Shrew Crocid ura palawanensis En Palawan Tree Shrew Tupaia palawanensis En

Many of the threatened and restricted-range species of the Palawan Endemic Bird Area were recorded on Balabac in the past, including the threatened Grey Imperial-pigeon, Philippine Cockatoo, Blue-headed Racquet-tail and Palawan Hornbill. It is unclear whether there is enough natural habitat remaining on the island to support significant populations of any of these birds. Surveys are required to investigate both the extent and quality of the remaining habitats there and the current status of the threatened and restricted-range birds and other biodiversity.

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REFERENCES:

Agaloos, L. C. and P. M. Nepomuceno. 1977. Ecology of Caluit Island. Sylvatrop Phil. For. Res. J. 2: 163- 178. Alcala, A. C. 1986. Guide to the Philippine Flora and Fauna Vol. X, Amphibians and Reptiles . Natural Resource Management Center-Ministry of Natural Resources and University of the Philippines. 195 pp. Alcala, A. C. and W. C. Brown. 1998. Philippine Amphibians: An Illustrated Field Guide . Bookmark, Manila. Alonzo-Pasicolan, S.1987. Status of wetlands in Luzon. Paper presented at the Conference on Wetland and Waterfowl Conservation in Asia, Malaca, Malaysia. 23-26 February 19887. International Wetlands Research Bureau (IWRB) and INTERWADER. Alonzo-Pasicolan, S. 1990. A survey of hunting pressure on waterbirds in Luzon, Philippines, Kuala Lumpur and Cebu City: Asian Wetlands Bureau Publication No. 6. Baluyut, E. A. 1983. Stocking and introduction of fish in lakes in the ASEAN countries. Food and Agriculture Organization Fish Tech. Paper 236. 82p. Brooks, T., G. Dutson, L. Gabutero and R.Timmins. 1995. Siburan – key area for birds on Mindoro. Oriental Bird Club Bull. 21: 28-33. Bruce, M. (ed.) 1980. The Palawan expedition. Unpublished report by Traditional Explorations and the Sydney Speleological Society. Castañeda, P. G. 1993. Management planning for the Palawan Biosphere Reserve. Nature and Resources 29: 35-38. Custodio, C. C. 1996. Conservation of migratory waterbirds and their wetland habitats in the Philippines, pp. 163-172 in Wells, D. R. and Munkdur, T. (eds.) Conservation of Migratory Waterbirds and their Natural Wetlands Habitats in the East Asia- Australasian Flyway. Proceedings of an international workshop, Kushiro, Japan. 28 Nov.-3 Dec. 1994. Wetlands International-Asia Pacific, Kuala Lumpur, Publication No. 116, and the International Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Bureau-Japan Committee,Tokyo.304 pp. Davies, J., P.M. Magsalay, R. Rigor, A. Mapalo and H. Gonzales. 1990. A Directory of Philippine Wetlands: A preliminary compilation of information on wetlands of the Philippines. Cebu City: Asian Wetlands Bureau Philippines and Haribon Foundation. Davis, S. D., V. H. Heywood and C. Hamilton (eds.).1995. Centres of plant diversity. A guide and a strategy for their conservation. Vol.2: Asia, Australiasia and the Pacific. Cambridge, U.K.: IUCN Publication. DENR. 1996. Resource Basic Inventory (RBI) of the Kalbario-Patapat National Park. DENR Region 1. Dutson, G. C. L., T. D. Evans, T. M. Brooks, D. C. Asane, R. J. Timmins and A.Toledo. 1992. Conservation status of birds on Mindoro, Philippines. Bird Conser. International 2: 303-325. Environmental Science for Social Change. 1999. Decline of Philippine Forest. The Bookmark, Inc., Makati City. Evans T. D., G. C. L. Dutson and T. M. Brooks. 1993. Cambridge Philippines Rainforest Project 1991: final report. Cambridge, U.K.: Birdlife International (Study Report 54) Lambert, F. R. 1993. Some key sites and significant records of birds in the Philippines and Sabah. Bird Conser. International 3: 281-297. Mallari, N.A.D., B.R. Tabaranza, Jr. and M.J. Crosby. 2001. Key Conservation Sites in the Philippines: a Haribon Foundation and Birdlife International Directory of Important Bird Areas. Department of Environment and Natural Resources and Bookmark Inc. Makati City: Bookmark. Morioka, H. and R. V. Sison. 1987. Birds of the highlands of Mt.. Halcon, Mindoro, Philippines, Jap. J. Orn. 35: 109-124

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NORDECO-DENR. 1998. Technical Report. Integrating conservation and development in protected area management in Bataan National Park, the Philippines. NORDECO, Copenhagen and DENR, Manila. Ong, P. S. L. E. Afuang and R. G. Rosell-Ambal (eds.). 2002. Philippine Bio diversity Conservation Priorities: A Second Iteration of the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan. Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau, Conservation International Philippines, Biodiversity Conservation Program-University of the Philippines Center for Integrative and Development Studies, and Foundation for the Philippine Environment, Quezon City, Philippines. Ong, P. S., M. R. Duya, R. Fernandez, M. De Guia, M. Pedregosa. 1999. Faunal Inventory and Wildlife Assessment of the Subic Bay Forest Reserve. Report submitted to the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development, Dept. of Science and Technology. Unpublished. Scott, D. A. (ed.) 1989. A Directory of Asian Wetlands. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, U. K.: International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Talaue-McManus, L. 2000. Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis for the South China Sea. EAS/RCU Technical Report Series No. 14. UNEP, Bangkok, Thailand. Werner, T.B. and G.R. Allen (eds.). 2000. A Rapid Marine Biodiversity Assessment of the Calamianes Islands, Palawan Province, Philippines. RAP Bulletin of Biological Assessment 17. Washington, D.C.: Conservation International.

80 ANNEX 3.

A numbered list of past projects conducted in Philippine Wetlands from 1986-2001, as part of the review for the project “Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand”.

RESPONSIBLE/ AREA/S OUTPUT/RESULTS/ HIGHLIGHTS PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES IMPLEMENTING DURATION COVERED AGENCIES 1. ASEAN-US Coastal To promote coastal Philippine Council for 1986-1992 Lingayen Gulf Resource assessment, cooperative research, Integrated Coastal Resources Management management through improved Aquatic and Marine (Pangasinan and La Zone Management Project* information flow and design of Research and Development; Union) site specific plans for one site National Economic in each country. Development Authority; International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management 2. Batanes Alternative Energy To support Community-based Batanes Development 1995-1996 Batanes 50 Households from the Ibaton indigenous people of Batanes and Enhancement Project resource management Foundation. participated in establishing battery charging stations, a cooperative activities and livelihood by system was established in managing the solar charging station and installing solar powered 2 mini-cold storage facilities for the preservation of fish catch and a systems for battery charging, marketing system was established for the fish products. (UNDP SGP mini cold storage for fish. Also Project Information, 2002) awareness building on the use of clean and renewable energy sources. 3. Center of Excellence in To determine important Silliman University-Marine 1995-1998 Coastal Resource indicators for monitoring Laboratory. Funded by Management (CRM)- shallow near shore habitats USAID Institutional Strengthening and resources, which may be and Action Research used by USAID to assess programs of the CRM activity.

4. Cetacean By-Catch To assess the extent and Kabang Kalikasan ng 2001 Palawan Fisheries Assessment effects of the fishery by-catch Pilipinas (World Wildlife Project on the population of cetaceans Fund – Philippines); Bureau in the Philippines. of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources

Philippines National Report on Wetlands

RESPONSIBLE/ AREA/S OUTPUT/RESULTS/ HIGHLIGHTS PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES IMPLEMENTING DURATION COVERED AGENCIES 5. Cetacean Research and To study and assess habitats Kabang Kalikasan ng 2000-2001 Batanes, Palawan, Conservation Project of cetaceans and establish Pilipinas (World Wildlife Batangas conservation and stranding Fund – Philippines) networks in critical habitats.

6. Coastal Environment To coordinate various coastal Department of Environment 1993-2001 (Nationwide) Coastal and marine resource survey - 123,186 ha inventoried and Program (CEP)* activities of the DENR; to and Natural Resources Pangasinan, Ilocos assessed, 199 ha surveyed and mapped. Coastal resource improve the efficiency and Sur, Ilocos Norte, rehabilitation/protection- rehabilitated 3,248 ha degraded mangrove effectiveness of the Batanes, Zambales, areas, established 673 ha mangrove plantations. implementation of DENR Palawan Identification and development of alternative livelihood - 219 activities on resource and alternative livelihood projects identified benefiting 6,232 fishermen & environmental management of coastal dwellers coastal environment; attain Community organizing - 70 community groups strengthened. higher levels of productivity, Established protected seascape and sanctuaries - out of 545,823.14 biodiversity, sustainability, ha CEP sites, 403, 988.64 ha have been proclaimed as MPAunder stability, and ecological NIPAS. integrity of coastal resource Coastal pollution assessment & monitoring - 885 pollution sources systems through promotion of were identified and monitored, 894 pollution monitoring stations environment friendly were established, samples and determinations were made. technologies; improve cultural, IEC - prepared, disseminated and installed info materials, conducted socio-economic, and gender public hearings and seminars at CEP sites. equity in access to and use of Capability building - DENR staff and beneficiaries attended training, coastal resources; expand workshops and seminars. sectoral participation in (CEP Accomplishment Report, 2001) protecting and managing coastal environments; upgrade the capability of DENR personnel in both field and support offices to undertake community-based protection and management of coastal environments and resource systems.

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RESPONSIBLE/ AREA/S OUTPUT/RESULTS/ HIGHLIGHTS PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES IMPLEMENTING DURATION COVERED AGENCIES 7. Coastal Zone Environmental To support sustainable Department of Environment 1995-1999 Lingayen Gulf Institutional strengthening through development and maintenance of and Resource Management development of coastal zone, and Natural Resources, a national directory of coastal and marine data; Project to derive maximum National Mapping Utilization of info technology tools to resolve national priority issues development from data on Resources Information in the coastal zone resource management through study biophysical and socio- Authority, Bureau of economic development by Fisheries and Aquatic making them available on a Resources, University of the wider scale and to facilitate Philippines Marine Science more efficient transfer of data Institute, National Economic and information. Development Authority, local government units, LGCAMC 8. Commodity Industry Analysis To review the status and Philippine Council For The report examined the industry, characterized the various of Aquarium Fish potential of the freshwater Aquatic And Marine stakeholders, and identified areas of concern for its development, aquarium fish industry by Resources Research And policy issues and recommendations for enhancement. surveying producers, Development, TAPI middlemen, cooperatives, and experts.

9. Community-Based Coastal To build the capacity of Sulu Fund 1999- Tingloy, Batangas Baseline information gathering Resource Management community members to Establishment of “bantay dagat” (sea wardens) (CBCRM) in Brgy. Sto. implement a marine Implementation of Fish Code Tomas, Tingloy Batangas conservation project that is Environmental education seminars centered on the establishment Community organizing of a marine protected area

10. Community-Based Coastal The Anda CBCRM program CBCRM Resource Center at 1997 Anda, Pangasinan Building and strengthening people’s organizations, participatory Resource Management in seeks to facilitate the the UP College of Social research and development of local research partners, establishment Anda, Pangasinan implementation of a gender Work and Community of community-based micro-enterprise projects, resource sensitive community resource Development assessments, advocacy and networking resulting in the management through the establishment the Marine Protected Area (MPA), environmental following major components education. namely: Resource Management, Sustainable Livelihood, Networking and Advocacy.

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RESPONSIBLE/ AREA/S OUTPUT/RESULTS/ HIGHLIGHTS PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES IMPLEMENTING DURATION COVERED AGENCIES 11. Community-Based Coastal To facilitate the sustainable University of the Philippines 1994-1997 Lingayen Gulf Environmental education; Resource Management development of coastal zones Marine Science Institute; Bolinao, Pangasinan Community organizing Program* with the local communities University of the Philippines acting as coastal resource College of Social Work and managers. Community Development; Haribon Foundation.

12. Conservation of Priority To pilot test the implementation Protected Areas and Wildlife 1994-2002 Nationwide Protected Areas Project * of the NIPAS Act (Republic Act Bureau; NGOs for Integrated (Batanes, Bataan) 7586) within the ten priority Protected Areas, Inc. sites selected during the IPAS Phase I and to experiment on the viability of partnerships between the government and the non-government organizations in implementing biodiversity conservation project

13. Debt for Nature Swap To alleviate burden of servicing Department of Environment 1989-1993 Palawan Used to finance the protection and management of protected areas large amounts of external debts and Natural Resources, and their buffer zones, training and community programs, and and likewise control the fast World Wildlife institutional support for both government and NGOs as well as environmental destruction in Fund, and the Haribon support for research activities. the country Foundation The Philippine experience is now recognized worldwide as the first successful debt-for-nature swap completed in the Asia-Pacific region.

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RESPONSIBLE/ AREA/S OUTPUT/RESULTS/ HIGHLIGHTS PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES IMPLEMENTING DURATION COVERED AGENCIES 14. Demonstration of Viability To demonstrate the viability of United Nations Development March 1, 2001 to and Removal of Barriers available non-combustion Programme, October 31, 2001 that Impede Adoption and technologies for use in the United Nations Industrial (8 months) Effective Implementation of destruction of obsolete Development Organization Available, Non-combustion Persistent Organic Pollutants Technologies for Destroying (POPs) stockpiles. The cleanup Persistent Organic and remediation of POPs Pollutants - [Non-Com- contaminated soils or POPs]* sediments. To use such technologies to destroy significant obsolete POPs stockpiles in countries with developing economies and economies in transition, and it will thereby help remove barriers to the further adoption and effective implementation of available non-combustion technologies.

15. Economic Valuation of To conduct an economic Department of Environment 1993-1994 Laguna Impacts of Environmental analysis of the environmental and Natural Resources Degradation on Laguna impact of water quality Lake degradation in Laguna Lake.

16. Environmental Sensitivity Aims to provide Geographic Kabang Kalikasan ng 2000-2001 Batangas An Environmental Sensitivity Index of the area of Calumpan Mapping – Batangas Bay Information System (GIS) Pilipinas (World Wildlife Peninsula was made to investigate the threat of oil spills within support and apply computer Fund - Philippines) (KKP) Batangas Bay. A base map showing the critical habitats of the Bay models as a support tool in oil was produced. This pushed for total stakeholder awareness and spill mitigation. accountability leading to the ratification of environmentally clean policies within local industries with the formal signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the leading industries, shipping vessel contractors, resort owners, non-governmental organizations, national and local government agencies and KKP.

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RESPONSIBLE/ AREA/S OUTPUT/RESULTS/ HIGHLIGHTS PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES IMPLEMENTING DURATION COVERED AGENCIES 17. Geographic Information To upgrade regional National Economic and 1991-1993 Lingayen Gulf Established a GIS databank, System of Coastal Area capabilities in coastal area Development Authority - Application studies Management and Planning planning and establish an Region 1 Office; Training information system to facilitate International Center for planning and management of Living Aquatic Resources coastal areas through GIS Management

18. Influence of the South To gain insights on the marine University of the Philippines 1999-2001 Kalayaan Island, China Sea on the Shelf biodiversity, productivity and South China Sea Reef system and the Marine genetic connectivity of reefs in Science Program at the the South China Sea and the Kalayaan Islands Sulu Sea

19. Integrated Coastal Factor Analysis to identify Silliman University Year 1 Lingayen Gulf, Conducted research on the ICM sustainability factors (socio-cultural, Management (ICM) factors at various levels of 2001-2002 Batangas Bay institutional, resource economics, biophysical and legal factors) in Sustainability Research governance and in different the identified priority sites. Project* contexts that influence ICM Provided technical assistance to participating ICM projects in the sustainability; ICM assistance; Philippines. capacity development. Improved technical capacity of involved participants.

20. Mabini-Tingloy Coastal To preserve the common Haribon Foundation Started 1990 Batangas Bay Crafted a common development strategy addressing not only Area Development Project resources in the Maribacan fisheries and aquatic concerns but also tourism and other related Strait in Batangas matters. 21. Manila Bay Monitoring To monitor critical parameters Department of Environment 992-1994 Manila Bay Program of the Bay and Natural Resources- To assess the impact of MWSS Environmental Management marine outfall on the water Bureau, Metropolitan quality and predict long-term Waterworks and Sewerage effects on the integrity of the System Bay.

22. Marine Conservation To reverse the downward trend Haribon Foundation 1988-1994 Masinloc As of 1993, a local organization called Samahang Pangkaunlaran ng Project of San Salvador in fish yields from the coral San Salvador or Organization for the Development of San Salvador reefs through community has begun coordinating the efforts on the island. The success of this involvement in resource project is mainly due to three main reasons: management. Project 1) The community observed tangible benefits as a result of the

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RESPONSIBLE/ AREA/S OUTPUT/RESULTS/ HIGHLIGHTS PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES IMPLEMENTING DURATION COVERED AGENCIES components include: resource project; 2) recognition of the community's prior right to the resource management planning; even without any transfer of ownership; 3) the local community research and monitoring; members with support from the local government are vigilant in the community organizing; protection of their marine resources. community education; support activities; alternative livelihood ; linkages

23. Marine Environmental To develop a Marine Department of Environment 1998 Nationwide Masterplan for the Environmental Masterplan for and Natural Resources Philippines the Philippines.

24. Marine Rapid Assessment Conservation International Calamian Island Program Critical Coral Reef Group, Northern Areas: Calamian Island Palawan Group Northern Palawan 25. National Integrated To establish eight (8) protected Department of Environment 1995-2001 (Nationwide) GIS and integrated database; Protected Areas area sites that were most and Natural Resources- El Nido-Taytay Socio-economic surveys and consultations; Programme* biologically diverse in the Protected Areas and Wildlife Managed Resource General Management Plan; country under the National Bureau Protected Area Protected Area (PA) and buffer zone boundaries and capability of Integrated Protected Areas Malampaya Sound PA management staff; System Protected Locally-identified alternative economic activities; Landscape and Sustainability of public awareness programme; Seascape, Palawan Necessary facilities and technical input

26. Philippine Biodiversity To identify specific geographic Conservation International – 2000-2001 Ilocos, Lingayen Identified priority research and conservation sites in the terrestrial, Conservation Priority- areas in the country as Philippines; Protected Areas Gulf, Batanes, freshwater and marine ecosystems in the Philippines as well as Setting Program priorities for biodiversity and Wildlife Bureau; Zambales, strategic action plans conservation and provide University of the Philippines Batangas, National baseline information for Center for Integrative and Capital Region, monitoring the impact of Development Studies. Pampanga, conservation efforts for the use Pangasinan, of policy makers and local Bataan, Mindoro, conservationists. Palawan

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RESPONSIBLE/ AREA/S OUTPUT/RESULTS/ HIGHLIGHTS PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES IMPLEMENTING DURATION COVERED AGENCIES 27. Philippine Wetlands To document the different Asian Wetlands Bureau - 1986-1988 Nationwide A Directory of Philippine Wetlands was produced providing baseline Inventory wetlands in the Philippines and Philippines; Haribon information on the major wetlands in the country. to provide an overview for Foundation; Department of information gathering for Environment and Natural educational, scientific, and Resources administrative purposes for the DENR and other concerned entities.

28. Regional Programme for The Programme supports 11 Department of Environment 1994-1998 Batangas Bay In the Batangas Bay Region (BBR), an Environmental Protection the Prevention and participating East Asian and Natural Resources, Council (EPC) was created with the assistance of the MPP-EAS and Management of Marine governments in prevention, United Nations Development support from an industry-based non-governmental organization Pollution in the East Asian control and management of Programme Global (Batangas Coastal Resource Management Foundation). The BBR- Seas, Batangas Bay marine pollution, both at Environment Fund- EPC provides the venue where stakeholders can meet regularly to Demonstration Project national and sub-regional International Maritime Office deliberate and reach consensus regarding various issues related to levels, on a long-term and self- activities affecting Batangas Bay. Chaired by the Provincial reliant basis by strengthening Governor, it includes the mayors of the coastal municipalities, regional capability to manage representatives from government agencies, the private sector, non- marine pollution. To test governmental organizations and communities. Its aims include: working models for integrated coordinating stakeholders, initiating legislation, adopting coastal management (ICM) environmental management plans, raising public awareness, applications in two sites, evaluating proposals and monitoring compliance with national and Xiamen, China and Batangas, local pollution control requirements. Philippines. (www.un.org/esa/sustdev/success/sids7.htm, 2002)

29. Socio-Economic and Bio- To provide socio-economic University of the Philippines 1998-2001 Economic Analysis of information for development Visayas, Bureau of Fisheries Coastal Fish Stocks in Asia strategies and action plans for and Aquatic Resources. sustainable utilization of coastal fish stocks in Asia

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RESPONSIBLE/ AREA/S OUTPUT/RESULTS/ HIGHLIGHTS PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES IMPLEMENTING DURATION COVERED AGENCIES 30. Strategic Environmental To enhance the capabilities of Municipal Government of 1994-1998 San Vicente, Heightened the awareness and consciousness of the beneficiaries Plan San Vicente Project local government units, non- San Vicente Palawan on environmental concerns, followed by organizing and equipping governmental organizations core leaders, working groups and associations at the barangay level and peoples’ organizations in with necessary skills. Working groups and associations have been natural resource management formed and mobilized to protect municipal waters from destructive through human resource methods of fishing (e.g., dynamite, cyanide). Also, other development, community groups/associations have started mangrove reforestation, organizing, development installation of artificial reefs and establishment of coral reef support, communication, sanctuaries. In the uplands, the farmers and forest-dwellers have environmentally critical areas initiated community -based nurseries. network and institution-building.

31. Sustainable Development To ensure future sustainable Laguna Lake Development 2000-2001 Laguna Lake of Laguna de Bay development of Laguna de Bay Authority. Environment based upon a sound knowledge of the functioning of the system, its users and the institutional settings

32. Technical Assistance for To enhance biodiversity Nordic Agency for 1999-2001 Nationwide Improving Biodiversity management and integrated Development and Ecology; (Palawan, Bataan, Conservation in Protected biodiversity conservation with Protected Areas and Wildlife Batanes) Areas in the Philippines * local development plan. Bureau Specifically, to improve monitoring biodiversity in protected areas of the Philippines and to enhance capacity of protected area staff and communities in biodiversity monitoring.

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RESPONSIBLE/ AREA/S OUTPUT/RESULTS/ HIGHLIGHTS PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES IMPLEMENTING DURATION COVERED AGENCIES 33. Training for Mangrove To build the capacity of Philippine Marine Life and June-July 1996 Manila Bay Various fishing association participated in the construction of Reforestation of Manila Bay selected leaders in mangrove Aquatic Conservationist mangrove nurseries and outplanting activities rehabilitation and management Association for Manila Bay

34. Training Local To develop Community-based Marine Environment and 1997-1999 Bolinao, Pangasinan Communities in reef monitoring and evaluation tools Resource Foundation. Monitoring and Evaluation: for coral reefs towards Participatory Evaluation of increasing understanding and the Effectiveness of Marine commitment of local Protected Areas in communities of marine Maintaining Reef Functional protected areas, increase Biodiversity coastal management effectiveness at community level and develop simple methods for reef monitoring and evaluation.

*multi-site projects/programs

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ANNEX 4.

A numbered list of on-going projects conducted in Philippine Wetlands from 2002 onward, as part of review for the project “Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand”.

RESPONSIBLE/ PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES/STRATEGIES DURATION AREA/S COVERED IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES 1. Asian Waterfowl Census* To establish the diversity and an abundance of waterfowl in different sites all over Department of Environment and On-going Manila Bay, Candaba Asia. Natural Resources Swamp, Cavite, Pampanga, Bataan.

2. Asian Conservation Foundation To achieve long-term conservation of globally significant marine and coastal International Finance Corporation May 17, 2002 Initial sites include: El biodiversity at six sites in the Philippines through an innovative partnership between (9 years) Nido, Palawan, Sangay a private equity investment company. The conservation interventions will include: Reserve, Negros conservation management; marine enforcement; information-education- Occidental; Asid Gulf, communication; sustainable livelihoods; Biodiversity research and monitoring; and Masbate; Guimaras development of institutional and financial sustainability mechanisms. Strait, Iloilo; Bantayan Island, Cebu.

3. Assessment of Capacity Building To assess the capacity building needs of the Philippines to implement the National Department of Environment and 2001-2002 Nationwide Needs for Biodiversity Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan and fulfill its commitment to the Convention of Natural Resources – Protected Approval date 8-21-2001 Conservation in the Philippines Biological Diversity. Areas and Wildlife Bureau (DENR- PAWB) United Nations Development Program – Global Environment Fund

4. Bantay Lawa Program To implement management of the lake by involving stakeholders particularly Laguna Lake Development Continuing activity Laguna fishermen through deputation. Authority. Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources of the Department of Agriculture.

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RESPONSIBLE/ PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES/STRATEGIES DURATION AREA/S COVERED IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES 5. Bantay Palawan Bantay Palawan as a program envisions having an environment of sustainable Provincial Government 1993 Palawan development through the judicious use, management and protection of natural resources, including forests and marine resources.

6. Broad-based Coastal To (1) initiate collaboration and networking activities in South and Southeast Asia; Department Environment and Phase 1: 1994-1999 Nationwide Management Training Program (2) develop a pool of coastal managers; (3) adapt the National Course on Integrated Natural Resources; International Phase 2: 2000-2003 Coastal Management (NCICM) and experiences; (4) adapt the NCICM to fit the Center for Living Aquatic need of local government units in the Philippines; and (5) institutionalize ICM in Resources Management, government agencies in the Philippines. Department of Agriculture – Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources; Haribon Foundation; IIRR; Philippine Council for Aquatic and Marine Resources Research and Development 7. Building Partnership in Strategies - Build national and regional capacity to implement ICM; promote multi- Department of Environment and 1999-2004 (Regional) Bataan, Environmental Management of country initiatives in addressing priority transboundary environment issues; reinforce Natural Resources Batangas Bay, Manila the East Asia Seas (PEMSEA)* and establish networks to support environmental management; identify Bay environmental investment opportunities, promote mechanisms such as pubic- private sector partnerships, and package environmental projects for financing and other forms of assistance; enhance scientific and technical inputs; develop integrated information management systems; establish the enabling environment to reinforce the delivery capabilities and advance the various stakeholders; strengthen national capabilities for developing policies; and promote regional commitment for cooperation and collaboration.

8. Capacity Building for the Fishery To conserve and protect Balayan Bay through community- based coastal resource Ang Nagkakaisang Mamamayang 2002-2003 Balayan Bay Management of Balayan management activities particularly for Fishery resources. Kostal ng Balayan. Municipal Waters

9. Coastal Resource Improvement To encourage coastal community to participate in the protection and improvement Local Government Units, Governor 2002 Lingayen, Pangasinan Project of Coastal resources through maintenance of the cleanliness of their shores. of Pangasinan, Department of Environment and Natural Resources

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RESPONSIBLE/ PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES/STRATEGIES DURATION AREA/S COVERED IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES 10. Coastal Resource Management To improve formulation and implementation of a coastal resource management Department of Environment and 1996-2002 Nationwide (Palawan) Project (CRMP) policy at national and local levels through participatory assessment, planning and Natural Resources; Bureau of implementation of coastal resource management plans. Fisheries and Aquatic Resources; Local Government Units

11. Community-Based Coastal To conserve marine resources in Bolinao, Pangasinan through community based Haribon Foundation Phase 1: 1995-1997 Pangasinan Resource Management in approach Phase 2: 1999-2002 Bolinao Phase 3 (in the pipeline) 12. Community-Based Coastal To continue the initiatives of the UNESCO/UNDP Project for Ulugan Bay, Ulugan Bay Foundation, Inc., 2001-2003 Palawan Resource Management in Ulugan specifically to implement activities directed towards the development of community Environmental Legal Assistance Bay enterprise (e.g. eco-tourism), tenurial security and community direct actions (i.e. Center, Bureau of Fisheries And Community Based Coastal Resource Management, Fish Sanctuary Establishment, Aquatic Resources, Palawan Mangrove conservation, etc.). Council For Sustainable Development Staff, International Center For Living Aquatic Resources Management, USPCV, City Government and Provincial Government of Palawan.

13. Community-Based Pawikan To undertake a comprehensive in-situ marine turtle conservation along the Bataan Bantay Pawikan Inc. 2001-2003 Bataan Conservation in Bataan Coastline through building awareness and participation from all concerned sectors.

14. Conservation of Laguna de Bay's To conduct an intensive information, education and public awareness campaign that Laguna Lake Development Since June 2001 Laguna Environment and Resources is specifically focused on two major stakeholder groups: the Lakeshore communities Authority, Project and industries. Society for the Conservation of Philippine Wetlands and Unilever Phils.

15. Dugong Conservation Program To conduct habitat surveys; research and Information, Education Communication; Protected Areas and Wildlife 1991 to present Nationwide captive breeding studies; rescue and rehabilitation efforts as the need arises. Bureau

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RESPONSIBLE/ PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES/STRATEGIES DURATION AREA/S COVERED IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES 16. El Nido Integrated Conservation To contribute to the conservation of biological diversity in the El Nido-Taytay Kabang Kalikasan ng Pilipinas; 1999-2002 Palawan and Development Project: Managed Resource Protected Area and improve the quality of life of the local Philippine Rural Reconstruction Biodiversity Component community Movement

17. Enhancing Sustainable Fisheries To formulate concrete guidelines on the establishment of Marine Fisheries Philippine Council for Aquatic and 1999-2002 Nationwide Through Improved Marine Resources to facilitate the effective implementation of at least one Marine Fisheries Marine Research and Development Fisheries Reserves Resource per municipality as provided for in the Philippine Fisheries Code and to formulate an indicative plan for the National Fish Sanctuary in the Philippines.

18. Environmentally Sustainable GOJ – JBIC 2002-2004 Northern Palawan Tourism Development for Department of Tourism Northern Palawan Almec Corporation

19. Fisheries Resource Management To reduce rural poverty and environmental degradation through fisheries resource Department of Agriculture-Bureau 1998-2003 Lingayen Gulf Project management systems and the promotion of income diversification among municipal of Fisheries and Aquatic fishermen. Resources, Department of Interior and Local Government, local government units,

20. Handog sa Dagat Project To enhance the value of conservation and protection of the coastal/marine Palawan Council For Sustainable Palawan ecosystem, promote the value and importance of protecting endangered species, Development Staff provide a convergence venue for collaborative efforts, define programmatic and legislative agenda among stakeholders and concerned groups, and to establish public awareness in line with the international year of the ocean.

21. Implementation of Revised To regulate fishpen operations based on the revised Zoning and Management Plan Laguna Lake Development Continuing activity Laguna Zoning and Management Plan and the systematic management of fishery resources. Authority (LLDA)

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RESPONSIBLE/ PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES/STRATEGIES DURATION AREA/S COVERED IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES 22. Implementation of User Fee To raise funds through payment from stakeholders to utilize the lake and through Laguna Lake Development Continuing activity Laguna Bay system penalty fees for pollution of the lake. Authority

23. Industrial Pollution Control To implement rules and regulations regarding development activities in the lake. Laguna Lake Development Continuing activity Laguna Bay Authority

24. Integrated Coastal Management To integrate land and coastal management in 11 towns in Balayan Bay and the Kabang Kalikasan ng Pilipinas 2000-2003 Batangas of Balayan Bay and Adjacent adjacent bays in Batangas Province. Bays in Calatagan Peninsula

25. Integrated Coastal Resource To assist the government in the formulation of investment projects for Integrated Department of Environment and 2001-2002 Regions 1,3,4 and 7 Management Project-Project Coastal Resource Management to help promote sustainable management, use and Natural Resources Preparation Technical conservation of coastal resources and related ecosystems. Assistance.

26. Integrated Coastal Resources To adopt an integrated approach to promote sustainable management of the Department of Environment and TA Approval Date: Nationwide Management coastal resources and related ecosystem, conserve coastal resources, control land- Natural Resources 2 August 2001 based pollution and siltation and reduce the extensive poverty in coastal areas by providing opportunities for increasing income and improving living standards.

27. Integrated Ecosystems To implement management programs towards sustainable management of Laguna Laguna Lake Development Continuing activity Laguna Management of Laguna de Bay Bay for the continuous promotion of its ecological, economic and social functions Authority, with possible involvement Region and services. of University of the Philippines Los Baños Foundation, Science Research Foundation

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RESPONSIBLE/ PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES/STRATEGIES DURATION AREA/S COVERED IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES 28. Integrated Population and To enhance management of coastal resources and ecosystems at the community Path Foundation Phil Taytay and El Nido Coastal Resource Management level and to improve reproductive health outcomes among people living in coastal Initiative communities.

29. Inventory of Endangered To locate, conserve and develop comprehensive profiles of endangered habitats Palawan Council For Sustainable 2000-2001 Mainland Palawan, Habitats and habitats of and endangered fauna. Development Staff Busuanga Island. Endangered Fauna 30. Kontra Kalat sa Dagat A catalyst for forging partnerships in Integrated Coastal Management in Bataan. Bataan Coastal Care Foundation since September 1999 Bataan (represented by Petron Foundation and Global Environment Facility / United Nations Development Programme / International Maritime Organization / Partnerships in Environmental management for the Seas of East Asia

31. Land-Ocean Interactions in the To gain a better understanding of the global cycles of the key elemental nutrients International Biosphere-Geosphere 1993-2003 Manila Bay, Lingayen Coastal Zone Core Project* carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P); understand how the coastal zone Programme and United Nations Gulf, Subic Bay affects material fluxes through biogeochemical processes; and characterize the Environment Programme / Global relationship of these fluxes to environmental change, including human intervention Environment Facility

32. Mabini-Tingloy Marine To conduct a comprehensive marine resource assessments in the area of the Philippines Reef and Rainforest January to March 2002 Mabini-Tingloy, Biodiversity Conservation Project Mabini- Tingloy Conservation Foundation, Coral Batangas Bay Pilot Phase Cay Conservation, Kabang Kalikasan ng Pilipinas (World Wildlife Fund - Philippines)

33. Manila Bay Environmental Partnership among government agencies, coastal and Non-coastal provinces, cities Department of Environment and Began June 2000 Manila Bay Management Program and municipalities, industries and private sector and civil society which aims to Natural Resources, International undertake projects such as rehabilitation and protecting the bay. Also aims to Maritime Organization, Partnership develop both terrestrial and marine coastal resources in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia

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RESPONSIBLE/ PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES/STRATEGIES DURATION AREA/S COVERED IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES 34. Manila Bay Monitoring Program To obtain reliable, accurate environmental information on the state of environmental Environmental Management regular activity Manila Bay quality of Manila Bay Bureau - Department of Environment and Natural Resources 35. Marine Protected Area Project To improve the management and conservation of coral reef ecosystems through Coastal Conservation and 2001-2003 Nationwide (Batangas) marine protected areas in the Philippines. Education Foundation

36. Monitoring of Marine Turtles To promote conservation of Marine Turtles through information dissemination of Region 1 of Department of Regular activity (Conservation of Marine Turtles) marine conservation at schools and communities in coastal areas. Environment and Natural Resources

37. Natural Resources Management Management of shoreline for sustainable resource utilization. Department of Environment and 1996-2004 Palawan Program II, Coastal Resource To offset or reverse on-going resource degradation Natural Resources, Coastal Management Project Resource Management Project, US Agency for International Development 38. Palawan New and Renewable Center for Renewable Resources October 29, 1999 Palawan To reduce the long-term growth of Green House Gases emissions through Energy and Livelihood Project and Energy Efficiency (3 year period) removing barriers to commercial utilization of renewable energy systems to substitute for the use of diesel generators in Palawan.

39. PAMANA Project (Building a To strengthen the National Alliance of Community-based Marine Protected Area Haribon Foundation Phase 1: 2000-2003 Nationwide National Community of Local Managers (PAMANA Ka Sa Pilipinas) through membership and leadership Phase 2: 2003-2006 Coastal Resource Managers- development, training, participatory research and policy advocacy. (in the pipeline) BNC-LCRM) 40. Participatory Coastal Resource Palawan Council For Sustainable El Nido, Duamaran assessment Development Staff-EMES 41. Pasig River Environmental To achieve a clean and green environment for the river basin by 2014. The aim is to Pasig River Rehabilitation 1999-2014 Metro Manila Management and Rehabilitation restore water quality and create an urban environment for Metro Manila that makes Commission Program it a clean, pleasant, and attractive place to live, work, and conduct business. This will be achieved through the adoption of a long-term policy reform agenda and implementation of the Pasig River Development Plan (PRDP) for the rehabilitation of the river system over a 15-year period from 1999-2014. The PRDP aims to achieve water quality Class C standard and encourage urban renewal in the Pasig River basin.

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RESPONSIBLE/ PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES/STRATEGIES DURATION AREA/S COVERED IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES 42. Pasig River Rehabilitation To improve the overall quality of the Pasig River specifically improve the water Department of Environment and 1989-2005 Metro Manila Program quality and environmental conditions of the river. Natural Resources

43. Pawikan Conservation Program Conservation of endangered marine turtles with three priority programs namely (1) Protected Areas and Wildlife 1979 to present Nationwide resource management and protection program; (2) research and investigation Bureau program and (3) IEC

44. Protection of Irrawady Dolphins To study the bio-ecological features of Malampaya Sound as a significant habitat of Kabang Kalikasan ng Pilipinas - On-going since 2000 Palawan in the Malampaya Sound Irrawady dolphins. World Wildlife Fund - Philippines

45. Reduction of Environmental Shrimp exploitation by tropical trawl fisheries generates significant amounts of non- United Nations Environment January 11, 2000 Impact from Tropical Shrimp shrimp by- catch. In some countries, by-catch has become an important source of Programme/Food and Agriculture (5 years) Trawling through Introduction of income and contributes to food supply. In others, by-catch of fish, particularly small- Organization by-catch technologies and sized, is discarded at sea. The capture of juveniles of valuable food fish constitutes change of management a threat to the sustainable production of fish from an area. Extensive removal of non-target fish is also a threat to the biodiversity in a fishing area. If the introduction of fishing technologies and practices that reduce the capture of juveniles is successful in a few selected countries in various regions, it can be assumed that such technology and practices would be adopted by other shrimp fishing also experiencing problems with by-catch. In addition to the expected increased fish production and conservation of biodiversity as result of project intervention, shrimp trawling will earn an improved reputation and so continue to produce needed export income for several poor developing countries. (www.wcmc.org.uk/cms/pdf/en/ MT_AF1_INF8_Rev1_Selected.PDF )

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RESPONSIBLE/ PROJECT TITLE OBJECTIVES/STRATEGIES DURATION AREA/S COVERED IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES 46. Support to the Formulation and To support the formulation and finalization of an integrated coastal management Department of Environment and 2001-2002 Nationwide Development of Integrated policy framework for the Philippines that will ensure the conservation of the coastal Natural Resources, United Nations Coastal management Policy environment through application of ICM Strategies and approaches while, at the Environment Programme Framework same time, strengthening the capability of national and local government including Local communities in Integrated Coastal management.

47. Sustainable Coastal Area To provide livelihood support activities for barangays in the inner sound. Provides Palawan NGO Network, Inc. On-going Malampaya Sound Development Program community training on prevention of illegal activities in the sound.

48. Taal Lake Community To mobilize the Taal Lake communities towards active and sustained participation University of the Philippines Los Taal Lake Mobilization in the planning for conservation and management of the lake. Baños

49. Watershed Conservation and To develop and install a community-based renewable energy system in Brgy. Palawan Center for Appropriate June 2002 - May 2004 Palawan Management and Microhydro Bagong Bayan, Roxas, Palawan. Rural technology Power Development for Electrification and Livelihood Project

50. Water Quality Monitoring and To gather information on the lake and its tributary river's water quality, primary Laguna Lake Development Regular activity Laguna Management productivity, fish disease, and the Pasig River backflow: and to determine the Authority. efficacy of pollution control measures

51. Water Quality Monitoring and To provide continuing updates on the water quality status of monitored water bodies Environmental Management Regular activity Nationwide (over 100 Management Bureau – Department of water bodies) Environment and Natural Resources

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ANNEX 5.

Thematic focus of past and ongoing projects reviewed for “Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand”. The numbers refer to the number of the project documents reviewed in Annexes 3 and 4.

Project/Program Theme range from (n=21 reports): Past Projects 1. Alternative energy sources (#2)= 1 2. Alternative Livelihood (#2, #6, #10, #21, #23)= 5 3. Capacity Building (#1, #6, #7, #10, #11, #13, #16, #18, #21, #23, #26, #31, #33)= 13 4. Community-based approaches (#6, #9, #10, #11, #13, #21, #28)= 7 5. Information, Education and Communication (#6, #9, #10, #11, #21, #23, #24, #25, #26, #28, #33)= 11 6. Management planning (#1, #6, #7, #9, #10, #13, #15, #16, #18, #19, #20, #21, #23, #24, #25, #26, #28, #31, #33)= 19 7. Rehabilitation/restoration (#6, #28, #31)= 3 8. Resource Inventory (#1, #6, #9, #10, #15, #16, #17, #18, #21, #23, #33)= 11 9. Science and Policy Research (#1, #7, #8, #10, #13, #15, #16, #17, #18, #21, #23, #24, #25, #26, #33)= 15 10. Species Conservation (#4, #5)= 2

Current Projects 1. Alternative energy sources (#38) = 1 2. Alternative Livelihood (#12, #13, 20)= 3 3. Capacity Building (#6, #7, #13, 20, 38, 39, 43) = 7 4. Community-based approaches (#7, #12, #13, 38, 39) = 5 5. Enforcement (#5, 22, 23, 24) = 4 6. Information, Education and Communication (#7, #12, 13, #14, #15, #16, 20, 38, 39, 43) = 10 7. Management planning (#3, #7, #12, #13, 16, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, 39, 43) = 12 8. Rehabilitation/restoration (#16, 20) = 2 9. Resource Inventory (#3, #7, #12, #15, 16, 19, 20, 38, 43) = 9 10. Science and Policy Research (#3, #7, 16, 19, 22, 23, 24, 39, 43) =9 11. Species Conservation (#14, #16, 43) = 3

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A ANNEX 6.

Economic Valuation Studies Done for SCS Wetlands in the Philippines, as of February 2003

Economic Instrument/ Title Study Area Type of Use Valued Recommendations 1 A Report on the Survey of Tourists and Resorts at Hundred Islands National Lingayen Gulf Recreation; tourism industry Visitor Entrance Fees; Facilities User Park. 1998 Fees 2 Design and Analysis of a Wastewater Discharge Permitting System in the All Water Bodies Receptacle for Wastewater Wastewater Discharge Permit Fee Philippines. 2000 3 Determination of Development Fees for Tourism Establishments Located in El Nido Tourism industry Development Fees El Nido Marine Reserve. 1999 4 Estimating Appropriate Entrance Fees for Divers at Mabini-Tingloy Dive Balayan Bay Recreation Scuba Diving User Fees Sites. 2001 5 Estimating Erosion Costs: A Philippine Case Study at the Lower Agno River Agno River Erosion Control Watershed Management, Environmental Watershed. 1986 Standards 6 Evaluation of Economy-Environment Interactions in the Lingayen Gulf Basin: Lingayen Gulf Environmental Waste Disposal Services Environmental Management Plan A Partial Area-Based Environmental Accounting Approach. 1997 7 Evaluation of Fisheries Management Alternatives for Lingayen Gulf: An Lingayen Gulf Fisheries Fisheries Management Plan Options Paper. 1997 8 Framework for the Application of an Environmental User Fee System for All Surface Water Bodies Receptacle for Wastewater Environmental User Fee System Water Pollution Management in the Philippines. 2000 9 Results of the Willingness to Pay Survey in El Nido-Taytay Managed El Nido Recreation Visitor Entrance Fees Resource Protected Area: Recommendations for the Establishment of Appropriate Entrance Fees. 1998 10 The Economics of Fishpen and Fishcage Aquaculture in Lingayen Gulf. 1998 Lingayen Gulf Fish Resource User Fees

11 Water Resources and Economic Instruments for Laguna Lake. 2000 Laguna de Bay Water use for domestic, industrial, Tradable Water Use Rights irrigation, hydropower, recreation purposes

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ANNEX 7.

List of National and Local Legislation Relevant to Philippine Wetlands

LAW/POLICY TITLE/DESCRIPTION

Bureau of Forest Development Circular No. 08 (1979) Regulations for the conservation of marine turtles.

Amends Ordinance 7695 to provide stiffer penalties for improper City of Manila Ordinance 7849 (1994) garbage disposal. Commonwealth Act 141 Public Land Act

Department of Environment and Natural Resources Administrative Order Establishment and management of community based program in protected areas No. 2002-02

Department of Environment and Natural Resources Amending certain provisions of DENR Administrative Order no. 96- Administrative Order 29 and providing specific guidelines for the establishment and No. 2000-44 management of community-based projects within protected areas Procedures in the retention of areas within certain distances along Department of Environment and Natural Resources the banks of rivers, streams, and shores of seas, lakes and oceans Administrative Order No. 97-05 for environmental protection

Department of Environment and Natural Resources Revising DENR Administrative Order No. 32, Series of 1992, to Administrative Order No.96-37 further strengthen the implementation of the Environmental Impact Statement system Department of Environment and Natural Resources Prescribes the organizational and Management Arrangement of the Administrative Order No. 96-12 Pasig River Rehabilitation Program Department of Environment and Natural Resources Administrative Order No. 94-46 Creates the Protected Area Management Board Department of Environment and Natural Resources Guidelines for the management of protected areas Administrative Order No. 93-27 Department of Environment and Natural Resources Coastal Environment Program Administrative Order No. 93-19 Department of Environment and Natural Resources Implementing rules and regulation for the NIPAS Act Administrative Order No. 92-25 Department of Environment and Natural Resources Amending DENR Administrative Order No. 14, series of 1991 Administrative Order No. 92-04 "Establishing the El Nido Marine Reserves Department of Environment and Natural Resources Declaring the Dugong, or Sea Cow (Dugong dugon ), as protected Administrative Order No. 91-55 marine mammal of the Philippines

Department of Environment and Natural Resources Established a list of rare, endangered, threatened, vulnerable, Administrative Order No. 91-42 indeterminate, and insufficiently known species of wild birds, mammals, and reptiles Imposes fees on mine tailings and wastes to compensate for Department of Environment and Natural Resources damage to lands, agricultural crops, forest products, marine life, Administrative Order No. 90-85 aquatic resources and the destruction of infrastructure that are privately owned Department of Environment and Natural Resources Establishes buffer zones in coastal and estuarine mangrove areas Administrative Order No. 87-76

Department of Environment and Natural Resources Clarification of the provisions of the NIPAS law regarding the Memorandum Order no. 95-08 modification of the boundary of the Protected Area and its Buffer zone Department of Environment and Natural Resources DENR Divers who could assist in the conduct of Coral and Fish Memorandum Order no. 94-32 Survey and Assessment Department of Environment and Natural Resources Guidelines on the establishment of Buffer zones for protected areas Memorandum Order no. 93-16

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LAW/POLICY TITLE/DESCRIPTION

Executive Order 114 Creates the Presidential Committee on Illegal Fishing and Marine Conservation Executive Order 117 Creates the Inter-Agency Task Force on Coastal Environment Protection (IATFCEP) Executive Order 240 (1986) Covers Integrated Fishery Management

Executive Order 542 (1979) Covers the creation of Task Force Pawikan Regulations establishing a closed season period for the Fisheries Administrative Order No. 23 conservation of Turtle, Turtle eggs and Turtle shells in the Turtle Islands Fisheries Administrative Order No. 76 Regulations regarding the collecting and gathering of Marine Turtles

Regulations for the conservation of Turtle, Turtle eggs and Turtle Fisheries Administrative Order No. 88 shells

Rules and regulations governing the conversion of ordinary fishpond Fisheries Administrative Order No. 125 permits and ten year fishpond lease agreements into 25-year fishpond lease agreements and other related matters

Fisheries Administrative Order No. 144 Rules and regulations on Commercial Fishing Prohibiting the operation of "Muro-ami" and "Kayakas" in Philippine Fisheries Administrative Order No. 163 Waters Guideline on the experimental collection of precious and semi- Fisheries Administrative Order No. 184 precious corals of the Philippine waters Ban on the Taking or catching, selling, purchasing and possessing, Fisheries Administrative Order No. 185 transporting and exporting of dolphins Fisheries Administrative Order No. 185-1 Amends FAO 185 to include whales and porpoises Fisheries Administrative Order No. 202 Ban on Coral Exploitation and exportation

Fisheries Administrative Order No. 208 Conservation of rare, threatened and endangered fishery species

Ministry of Natural Resources Administrative Order No. Establishment of certain islands in the province of Tawi-tawi, 01 (1982) Palawan and Antique as marine Turtle Sanctuaries Philippine Constitution

Presidential Decree No. 601 (1974) Revised Coast Guard law of 1974

Presidential Decree No. 602 (1974) Establishes the Oil Pollution Center in the Philippine Coast Guard

Revising and consolidating all laws and decrees affecting fishing & Presidential Decree No. 704 (1975) fisheries.

Presidential Decree No. 705 (1975) The Forestry Code of 1975

Presidential Decree No. 825 (1975) Provides penalty for improper disposal of garbage

Presidential Decree No. 856 (1975) Sanitation code

Presidential Decree No. 979 (1976) Marine pollution decree of 1976. Decree providing for the revision of Presidential Decree 600 governing marine pollution. Presidential Decree No. 984 (1976) Pollution Decree of 1976

Presidential Decree No. 1067 (1976) Water Resources Code of the Philippines

Presidential Decree No. 1151 (1977) Covers Philippine Environmental Policy

Presidential Decree No. 1152 (1977) Philippine Environment Code

103 Philippines National Report on Wetlands

LAW/POLICY TITLE/DESCRIPTION

Presidential Decree No. 1219 (1977) The Coral Resources Development and Conservation Decree

Presidential Decree No. 1586 (1978) Environmental Impact Statement System

Presidential Decree No. 2152 Declares the province of Palawan as a Mangrove Forest Reserve

Proclaiming certain areas and types of project as environmentally Proclamation No. 2146 (1981) critical and within the scope of the environmental impact statement system established under Presidential Decree no. 1586

Authorizes the sale of Marsh lands or lands under water bordering Republic Act No. 293 (1948) shores; excludes foreshore lands Republic Act No. 3931 (1964) An Act creating the National Water & Air Pollution Control Commission. Republic Act No. 4850 (1966) Laguna Lake Development Authority Act

Republic Act No. 7160 (1991) Local Government Code of the Philippines

Republic Act No. 7161 (1991) Tax Laws Incorporated in the Revised Forestry Code of the Philippines. Republic Act No. 7586 (1992) National Integrated Protected Area System Act (NIPAS) of 1992

Republic Act No. 7611 (1992) Strategic Environmental Plan (SEP) for Palawan Act.

Republic Act No. 7942 (1995) Mining Act of 1995

Republic Act No. 8041 (1995) National Water Crisis Act of 1995 An Act to strengthen the promotion, development and assistance to Republic Act No. 8289 (1997) small and medium scale enterprises, amending for that purpose Republic Act No. 6977, otherwise known as the “Magna Carta for small enterprises”, and for other purposes Republic Act No. 8371 (1997) Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act Republic Act No. 8435 (1997) Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act of 1997 An act providing for the development, management and Republic Act No. 8550 (1998) conservation of fisheries and aquatic resources, integrating all laws pertinent thereto, and for other purposes [Phil. Fisheries Code of 1998]

Republic Act No. 9003 (2001) Ecological Solid Waste Management Act

Republic Act No. 9072 (2001) Act to manage and protect caves and cave resources and for other purposes Republic Act No. 9147 (2001) An Act providing for the conservation and protection of wildlife resources and their habitats, appropriating funds Revised Fisheries Administrative Order No. 60 (1960) Regulations governing the issuance of fishpond permits and/or leases on forest lands

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Philippines National Report on Wetlands

UNEP/GEF SOUTH CHINA SEA PROJECT Philippine Wetlands Subcomponent

Project National Wetlands Committee

MS. MARLYNN M. MENDOZA (chair), Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau, NAPWNC Compound, North Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City, 1101 Philippines, Tel.: (632) 924 6031; 925 8950, Fax.: (632) 924 0109; 925 8950, E-mail: , MRS. RUTH GRACE R. AMBAL, Wildlife Conservation Society of the Philippines, Inc., c/o Rm 106, Institute of Biology, College of Sciences, University of the Philippines Diliman, Tel.: (632) 831- 1339, Fax.: (632) 551-0593, E-mail: , MR. DANILO S. BALETE, Laksambuhay Conservation, Inc., B105, Li Robinson Homes, Barangay San Jose, Antipolo City, E-mail: , MR. RENATO D. CRUZ, Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau, NAPWNC Compound, North Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City, 1101 Philippines, Tel.: (632) 924 6031; 925 8946, Fax.: (632) 924 0109, E- mail: , MR. RENATO T. CRUZ, Environmental Management Bureau, DENR Compound, Visayas Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City 1116, Tel.: (632) 920 2263; (632) 928-1212, Fax.: (632) 920 2273, E-mail: MR. CARLO C. CUSTODIO, Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau, NAPWNC Compound, North Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City, 1101 Philippines, Tel.: (632) 924 6031, Fax.: (632) 924 0109, E-mail: , ATTY. MA. PAZ G. LUNA, Tanggol Kalikasan, 16D1 Legaspi Towers 300 Roxas Blvd., Malate, Manila, E- mail: DR. PERRY S. ONG, University of the Philippines Diliman, Room 106, Institute of Biology, UP Diliman, Diliman, Quezon City, Tel.: (632) 920-5301 local 6027, Fax.:(632) 920-5301 local 6452, E-mail: , DR. NOEL EUSEBIO O. PADILLA, Police Studies Division, Planning and Policy Service, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, DENR Compound, Visayas Ave., Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines Tel: (632) 925 1183; 929 6626-35 local 2046 Fax: (632) 925-1183, E-mail:

MR. JOHN FRANCISCO A. PONTILLAS, Palawan Council for Sustainable Development Staff, Sta. Monica Heights, Puerto Princesa City, Palawan, Tel.: (6348) 434-4235; (6348) 434-4234, Fax.: (6348) 434- 4234 E-mail.:

MS. RINA MARIA P. ROSALES, Resources, Environment & Economics Center for Studies, Inc. Quezon City, Philippines. Tel.: (632) 911-7294; (632) 912-6937

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