Adaptation and Coping Strategies to Extreme Climate Conditions: Case Study of Selected Sites Affected by Typhoon Frank in , Rodelio F. Subadea,b, Emeliza C. Lozadac, Jorge S. Ebaya, Jessica A. Dator-Bercillad Andres C. Tionkoe, Jee Grace B. Suyoa,b, Farisal U. Bagsitb, Josefa T. Bascoa,b a. Division of Social Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, UP Visayas, , Iloilo; b. Institute of Fisheries Policy and Development Studies, CFOS, UP Visayas, Miagao c. School of Technology, UP Visayas, Miagao, loilo d. Christian Aid Philippine Field Office, Quezon City e. Rural Center Incorporated (PRDCI),

Research Problem

• The effects of typhoon Frank remains the biggest letdown of the economy affecting the gross regional domestic product of the region in its 3 major sectors (agriculture & forestry, fishery, industry and service. • The category 3 typhoon frank which visited Iloilo caused devastating floods & heavy rains killing many people and destroying crops and properties. • This rare occurrence, flooded more than 60% of Iloilo city and riverside communities in the various towns of Iloilo. • For many people, the impacts of climate caused-disaster was their first or among their rare experiences. • It is worth documenting how the people responded/adapted to the disaster. • It is also relevant to determine whether these people, their communities and even the local government units had opportunities to prepare themselves in adapting to such extreme climate occurrence. OBJECTIVES

1. Determine the socio-economic characteristics of communities in general and households in particular in areas vulnerable to typhoon-induced disaster in Iloilo.

2. Assess the nature and extent of vulnerability of these households and communities to typhoon induced disasters or hazards like flood and landslides.

3. Identify and analyze the adaptation measures/strategies and coping mechanisms being formulated and implemented by the households, communities and local government units to mitigate the impacts of natural disasters.

4. Determine the perception, level of awareness, preparedness of households, community, and local government units on natural disaster occurrence such as landslide and flooding due to typhoon.

5. Draw policy insights and recommendations for improving adaptive management responses of households and local government units to natural disasters, particularly typhoon related. Methodology

• A pre-proposal consultation,pre-field discussion and wokshop with co-researchers identified the study sites which were affected by Frank, along the Magsapa Swagge river and Jalaur river sytems from upland towards the coast. • Six barangays were selected clustered into 3 groups-the upper swagge communities,the mid-swagge and the lower –swagge (this is the tail end of the river). • Fixed proportion systematic sampling with random start was employed to select 60 respondents ( who were affected by Frank) per site. • The respondents were household head and were personally interviewed. • A pre-tested questionaire was adapted from the work undertaken by Predo(2009. • Focus grooup discussions with at least 2 groups per study site was conducted. • Descriptive statistics was used to summarize the results. Philippine Map showing the location of Iloilo Province and the municipalities of study sites

Janiuay Badiangan

Dumangas Table 1. Study sites and main climate change adaptation measures

Study sites Main SS adaptation Features

Upper Swagge River Communities 1. Introduced adaptation strategies 1. Brgy. Sianon, Badiangan (Christian Aid site) 2. Brgy. Danao, --- with CC adaptation and DRR assistance Mid Swagge River Communities Autonomous or none, with LGU initiated 1. Brgy. Guibuangan, Pototan 2. Brgy. Tuburan, Pototan

Lower Swagge River Communities Introduced adaptation strategies (non- 1. Brgy. Bantud Fabrica Christian Aid site) 2. Brgy. Cayos, --- with CC adaptation and assistance RESULTS A. Nature and extent of impacts of climate related disaster Typhoon Frank as been considered as one of the strongest and among the few typhoons which left huge damages and many deaths. The Iloilo Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council (PDCC) estimated a total of one billion pesos worth of damages in agriculture in Iloilo province alone, 800 million of which were damages on farms, while 230 million came from fisheries damages (Table 2). ITEM Damage/Amount (PhP million) MONETARY DAMAGE COST 1. Agriculture 1.1 Fisheries/Fish farms 230 1.2. Farms 800 2. Health facilities (e.g. hospitals) 2.1. Partially affected 12 2.2. Heavily affected 126 NON-MONETARY DAMAGE 1. Person 1.1. Dead 135 persons 1.2. Injured 1, 011 persons 1.3. Missing 69 persons 2. Houses 2.1. Partially damaged 50, 261 houses 2.2. Totally damaged 17, 035 houses DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE OF RESPONDENTS

Table 3. Desciptive statistics of independent variables ITEM PERCENTAGE Average age 48.12 Number of household members 4.81 Number of children 4.01 Number of years in school 8.71 Religion Catholic 91.4 Others (Baptist, IFI) 8.6 Civil Status Married 76.9 Single 9.2 Others (Widow/er, separated) 13.9 INCOME SOURCES

Table 5. Top 10 income sources as reported by the respondents ITEM FREQUENCY PERCENTAGE FARMING 165 45.83 BACKYARD ANIMAL RAISING 47 13.06 REMITTANCE/PENSION 40 11.11 PAMUGON (ODD JOBS) 32 8.89 LABORER 25 6.94 FISHING 15 4.17 NONE/rely on spouse 15 4.17 DRIVER 14 3.89 CARPENTER 82.22 SMALL STORE OWNER 71.94 Typhoon Frank affected many of the surveyed respondents across sites for this study. The most cited impacts were effect on economic conditions and cause of poverty, and damage to property. Fourteen percent of the respondents suffered house damage (partial or total) while agricultural lands or farms of 19% of the respondents were inundated (Table 6). ITEM Dumangas Pototan Janiuay/ All Badiangan Cause of poverty 16 40 27 83 (13.3) (33.3) (22.5) (23.05) Damage to property 37 29 13 79 (30.8) (24.2) (10.8) (21.94) Damage to agricultural lands or 31 29 8 68 farms (25.8) (24.2) (6.7) (18.90) Damage to house 42 9 1 52 (35.0) (7.5) (0.8) (14.44) Cause of family inconvenience 11 15 17 43 (9.2) (12.5) (14.2) (11.9) Loss of livelihood 11 17 7 35 (9.2) (14.2) (5.83) (9.72) Loss of backyard animals 18 9 1 28 (15.0) (7.5) (0.8) (7.78) Converting the reported impacts on monetary damages, respondents provided estimates as shown below. These are however limited to those which they could give numerical estimates and were classified as: damages on household property and appliances, agricultural lands and animals, and loss of livelihood. Total damages amounted to PhP17, 404.75 per household which is 22% of estimated annual household income.

18,000.00 15,790.51 16,441.67 16,000.00

14,000.00 12,000.00 9,723.37 10,000.00

8,000.00

6,000.00

4,000.00

2,000.00

0.00 household property agricultural lands and loss of livelihood and appliances animals Average number of days respondents were able to recover from the effects of typhoon Frank.

160 143.28

140

120

100

80 64.94 55.13 60 41.22 40

20

0 DUMANGAS POTOTAN JANIUAY-BADIANGAN All RESULTS B. Perceived impacts of Climate-related Disaster All of the respondents experienced loss in one way or another due to the flood which 9 explains the lower scores they gave for the “after the flood” scenario. Respondents perceived a negative change in the condition of households after the flood. 8 8.04 7 7.18

6 6.4 5.99 5.77 5.8 6.44 5.71 5 5.75 4.32 4 4.56 4.72 4.36 4.05 3.86 3 3.61

2 1.75

1 1.23

0 Well being of HH Access to land Access to water Access to Access to credit Household Employment Household risk Overall state of coastal fishery income opportunity and natural resources vulnerability resources and environment

Before the flood Immediately after flood Comparison of scores between “immediately after the flood” and “at the time of the interview” revealed significantly positive changes across all indicators. This implies that the affected household have somehow recovered from the impacts/effects of typhoon Frank. 9

7.9 8 7.08 7

5.94 5.82 5.66 5.52 6.44 6 5.39

5.75 5 4.4

4.72 4.56 4 4.36 4.05 3.86 3.61 3

2 1. 5 8

1 1. 2 3

0 Well being of HH Access to land Access to water Access to coastal Access to cr edit Household income Employment Household r isk and Over all state of fisher y r esour ces oppor tunity vulner ability natur al r esour ces and environment Immediately after the flood at the time of survey C. Awareness of households on climate change phenomenon and climate change induced disasters

More than two thirds of the respondents (69%) were aware of the climate change phenomenon and more than half (63.3%) have knowledge about sea level rise. Almost all of the respondents know about the risk and threats associated with natural disasters. Mean level of awareness of climate change and sea level rise are also above average. 100 92.5 90 80 68.6 70 63.3 60 50 40 30 20 10 6.12 5.84 0 Climate Change Sea Level Rise Risk and threats from na tura l disa ste r

Aware Mean level of awareness Prior experiences of households in low lying areas have increased their awareness of the ill effects of flooding to their community. Other hazards, namely, landslide, storm surge/sea level rise, and coastal erosion registered below-average awareness scores possibly because (a) these hazards have not yet occurred in the area or (b) the intensity of the occurrence is low, hence, they are not considered as immediate threat to the community.

7

6 5.79

5

4 3.65

3 2.81 2.35

2

1

0 Flooding Landslide Storm surge/sea level Coastal erosion rise D. Vulnerability and Preparedness of Households and the Community to Climate-related Disaster

Respondents self-rate their own vulnerability to flooding higher than other natural disasters/events/calamities. They also fear that extreme event (like the flooding due to typhoon Frank in 2008) will reoccur in the future. Storm surge, coastal erosion, and landslide were still rated low in terms of their threat to the community. 7

5.82 6

5

4

3 2.09 2 1.38 1.33

1

0 Flooding Landslide Storm surge/sea level Coastal erosion rise All, except for 7%, of the households interviewed said that they are prepared for the possible threats from natural disaster/calamities in the future. When asked about the status of their preparedness, 61% claimed they are prepared or highly prepared. Very few of the households interviewed admitted that they are not prepared at all.

92.5 100

90

80 Status of preparedness to natural disasters 70

60

50 42.0

40 32.4

30 23.7

20

10 3.6 0.9 0

% of prepared Not prepared Less Prepared Highly No answer HH at all Prepared Prepared More than half of the households interviewed cited “being alert always” as one of their preparations to mitigate impacts of disasters. This implies being attentive to information and warnings and coordinating with community leaders. Other preparations include, constructing and modifying house structure, securing important things, and relocating residence.

ITEM FREQUENCY PERCENTAGE Being alert always 194 53.9 Securing important things 68 18.9 Modifying house structure 55 15.3 Plan to relocate residence 52 14.4 Construct protective structure 39 10.8 Follow early warning system 30 8.3 Tree planting 27 7.5 Preparing food/water 16 4.4 Praying 13 3.6 Preparing boat/ropes/etc 92.5 E. Adaptation Measures/Strategies and Coping Mechanisms of Households and Community

Adaptive or adaptation strategies are ways in which individuals, households, and communities change their productive activities and modify local rules and institutions to secure liveliood

Adaptation measures are geared towards securing livelihood or minimizing losses from the effects of climate- related disaster(s) or calamities. Majority of the respondents have adaptation measures or plans being considered to minimize disaster impacts to their household.

71.1 80

70

60

50

40 28.9 30

20

10

0

YES NO The most popular adaptation strategy implemented by 20% of the respondents is the transfer of household members to evacuation areas. Second is restructuing of dwelling units, and tree planting. Almost 12% of the respondents consider long-term measures like changing livelihood and relocating to a safer place permanently.

ITEM FREQUENCY PERCENTAGE Evacuate (to relocation area) 72 20.0 Restructure/strengthen house 70 19.4 Tree planting 58 16.0 Relocate household permanently 22 6.1 Change livelihood/income source 21 5.8 Praying 17 4.7 Securing important things 15 4.2 Improving dike/canal system 13 3.6 Being alert always 12 3.3 Prepare food 30.83 All the respondents had an average of 6 in a 10-point scale when asked to rate the effectiveness of their adaptation strategies. Graph below shows that communities who have had experienced disasters in the past are more “confident” of the effectiveness of their adaptation strategies/plans.

8.91

10

9 6.09 5.68 8 7 6 3.66 5 4 3 2 1 0

Dumangas Pototan Janiuay/BadianganALL More than one third of all respondents believed that they got their adaptation strategies from indigenous knowledge. Media (TV and radio) also played a big role in educating households about preparations to be made to buffer effects of disasters. 12% of the respondents mentioned that they learned their adapation strategy from their community. This implies openness and teach-ability/trainability among community stakeholders in developing adaptive capacity.

50 45 45

40 35

30 25 22.8 20 20 15 12.2 10

5 0 Indigenous knowledge from Media from the Community Others (school, elders, experience) Coping mechanims are the bundle of short-term responses to situations that threaten livelihood systems, and they often take the form of emergency responses in abnormal seasons or years .

For the respondents of this study, getting a loan or borrowing money from money lender or family members is the leading coping mechanism. This form of coping is inevitable for people affected by calamities since extreme conditions expose people/households to unexpected expenses such as house repair, burial or hospitalization of family member and other medical expenses, and purchase of seedlings for those whose farms were damaged or inundated. Table below shows the various coping mechanisms employed by the respondents who experienced avocs brought forth by typhoon Frank.

ITEM FREQUENCY PERCENTAGE Got loan from relatives, friends 89 24.7 Got loan from money lender 43 11.9 Working harder 43 11.9 Resorting to other income sources 40 11.1 Ask assistance from family 36 10.0 members/children Used family savings 29 8.6 Sold livestock/poultry animals 13 3.6 Praying 11 3.1 Asked assistance from community 10 2.8 Most cited kinds of food eaten during/after flood/typhoon.

FOOD FREQUENCY PERCENTAGE Noodles 188 52.2 Rice/lugaw 160 44.4 Sardines 111 30.8 Dried fish 42 11.7

Other canned goods (aside from sardines) 42 11.7 Banana 32 8.9 Vegetables 22 6.1 Root crops 17 4.72 Bread 14 3.9 Fish 12 3.3 Has method/s used to preserve food?

120

96.7 100

80

60

40

20 3.3 0

YES NO Method used to preserve food

35 33.3

30 25 25

20

15

10 8.3 8.3 8.3 8.3 8.3

5

0 none dried fish paksiw fermented cook just putting salt adobo enough for and family vinegar CONLCUSIONS AND POLICY IMPLICATIONS

Typhoon Frank, like any other climate-related disaster or extreme climate conditions, had brought forth havocs and destruction amoung many families and households of Iloilo. On the other hand, the event has solicited both introduced and autnomomous adaptation strategies from the people in order to reduce the potential impacts of hazards on them. Other observations include:

1. Typhoon Frank provided opportunities for people to help each other and for them to witness how prepared they could be in similar conditions.

2. The impacts of typhoon Frank opened the gates for communities to be helped and provided preparations and capability training in adaptation to climate change.

3. Communities were able to demonstrate their infrastructure, soft engineering, and human-related strategies to adapt to the potential effects of climate-related event.

4. Showed the need of people for affordable credit lines that can be supplied by both private and government sectors/agencies. Thank you for the kind attention