Community-Conserved Freshwater Areas
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COMMUNITY-CONSERVED FRESHWATER AREAS A comparative study on effectiveness of fish sanctuaries San Mariano, The Philippines COMMUNITY-CONSERVED FRESHWATER AREAS A comparative study on effectiveness of fish sanctuaries Based on three months of fieldwork (January 2014 – March 2014) in the municipality of San Mariano, Isabela province, The Philippines Master of Arts (MA) dissertation by Lien Vermeersch s1382314 Leiden University Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology Track: Environment and Development Supervisor: Dr. Jan van der Ploeg July 2014 2 Abstract Community-conserved areas are popular, especially in the Philippines. The bulk of studies on community-conserved areas in the Philippines focuses on marine protected areas (MPAs), and largely leaves out the –at least- equally important freshwater areas. This thesis addresses the question of effectiveness in community-conserved freshwater areas. Six to eight years after the establishment of 10 different community-conserved fish sanctuaries in the municipality of San Mariano, Isabela province, the question ‘does it work?’ has driven a three-month evaluative research in 10 different barangays (villages). Based on community perceptions of success and the evaluation of management processes, this report analyses to what extent the fish sanctuaries in San Mariano have the potential to contribute to biodiversity conservation and poverty reduction in its widest definition. Both a qualitative and quantitative analysis show that social and political context-factors are the most important ones for effective fish sanctuaries: a strong political will from barangay leaders to be involved with the fish sanctuary and clear communication to community residents are keystones for increased chances of success. Although fish in San Mariano is usually valued as a ‘casual catch’ - meaning that the practice of fishing is considered additional to farming -, community perceptions about the effectiveness of the fish sanctuaries are positive. However, there is still much room for improved management strategies. Continuing advice from external organisations and better co-management with higher political institutions is therefore suggested to ensure better overall effectiveness and to increase community benefits resulting from the fish sanctuaries. 3 Table of contents Abstract ……………………………………………………………………………………………….3 Table of contents…………………………………………………………………………………….4 List of figures…………………………………………………………………………………………6 List of tables………………………………………………………………………………………….7 Acknowledgement…………………………………………………………………………………..8 1. Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 10 1.1. Problem definition: community-conserved areas .......................................................... 10 1.2. Community-conserved freshwater areas ........................................................................ 11 1.3. Objectives and relevance of the research ....................................................................... 12 1.4. Structure .......................................................................................................................... 15 2. Literature review ............................................................................................................ 16 2.1. Biodiversity conservation vs. poverty reduction ............................................................ 16 2.2. Philippine conservation strategies ................................................................................ 20 2.2.1. Marine protected areas ........................................................................................... 22 2.2.2. Philippine freshwater policies ................................................................................. 23 2.3. Contextual background of the research site ................................................................. 24 2.4. San Mariano’s community-conserved freshwater fish sanctuaries: past processes ..... 32 3. Methods ............................................................................................................................. 35 3.1. Research design ............................................................................................................. 35 3.2. Qualitative research methods ......................................................................................... 36 3.2.1. Participant observation ............................................................................................. 36 3.2.2. Semi-structured interviews ....................................................................................... 37 3.2.3. Unstructured interviews ............................................................................................ 41 3.2.4. Group discussion ...................................................................................................... 42 3.2.3. Secondary data ........................................................................................................ 43 3.3. Quantitative research methods ....................................................................................... 44 3.3.1. Structured interviews ................................................................................................ 44 3.4. Data analysis ................................................................................................................... 44 3.5. Ethics ............................................................................................................................... 45 4. Results .............................................................................................................................. 47 4.1. Qualitative analysis ......................................................................................................... 47 4.1.1. Dibuluan .................................................................................................................. 47 4.1.2. Disulap ..................................................................................................................... 51 4 4.1.3. San José .................................................................................................................. 54 4.1.4. Libertad .................................................................................................................... 59 4.1.5. Del Pilar .................................................................................................................... 63 4.1.6. Macayu-cayu ............................................................................................................ 65 4.1.7. Ibujan ........................................................................................................................ 68 4.1.8. Buyasan ................................................................................................................... 73 4.1.9. Tappa ....................................................................................................................... 76 4.1.10. Dicamay ................................................................................................................. 81 4.2. Quantitative analysis ....................................................................................................... 85 4.2.1. Dependent variables: Success Measures ................................................................ 85 4.2.2. Independent variables: predictor variables ............................................................... 91 4.2.3. Discussion of quantitative results ............................................................................. 98 5. Discussion ................................................................................................................... 102 5.1. Casual catch .................................................................................................................. 102 5.2. Political will .................................................................................................................... 105 5.3. Communication ............................................................................................................ 106 5.4. Towards co-management .............................................................................................. 109 5.5. Limitations of the study ................................................................................................. 112 6. Conclusions ................................................................................................................. 113 7. Appendices .................................................................................................................. 115 Appendix I :Road map of San Mariano, including main rivers ............................................. 115 Appendix II : Topic list semi-structured interview with barangay officials ............................. 116 Appendix III : Topic list semi-structured interview with fishers ............................................ 118 Appendix IV : Transcription of group discussions ................................................................ 120 Buyasan (15th February 2014) ......................................................................................... 120 Ibujan (16th February 2014) ............................................................................................. 125 Dicamay (2nd March 2014) .............................................................................................