DOCUMENTATION OF CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS AND ADAPTATION MEASURES OF SMALL FARMERS IN CENTRAL VISAYAS, PHILIPPINES By Sibol ng Agham at Teknolohiya (SIBAT), Inc. In collaboration with Pesticide Action Network Asia and the Pacific April 2011 PAN AP CLIMATE CHANGE AND RICE REPORTS Documentation of Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Measures of Small Farmers in Bohol Province, Central Visayas, Philippines Research Organization: Sibol ng Agham at Teknolohiya (SIBAT), Inc. Publisher: Pesticide Action Network, Asia and Pacific PO Box 1170, 10850 Penang, Malaysia www.panap.net Editor: Peter Gillespie Proofreading and Layout: Brigette DePape Enquiries may be directed to: Ms Victoria Lopez, Sibol ng Agham at Teknolohiya (SIBAT), Inc., at [email protected] or [email protected]. This study was part of a regional project conducted by the Save Our Rice Campaign of PAN AP in collaboration with sixteen network partner organizations. The aim was to assess the level of vulnerability and adaptive capacities of rice-growing communities in the Philippines, Indonesia, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh by documenting the impacts of climate change on the communities and their adaptation practices. The longer-term goal was to identify ways to improve the adaptive capacities of these and other vulnerable communities. From 2009 to March 2011, twenty studies were carried out. This publication may be reproduced in full or in part as long as the research organization and publisher are properly acknowledged as the sources and PAN AP is furnished with copies of the final work where the reproduction appears. April 2011 List of Contents 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 The Study: Bohol Province, Central Visayas 2 1.2 Study Sites 2 1.3 Study Site One: Sitio Panaghuisa, Brigy. San Vincente, Trinidad, 3 Bohol 1.3.1 Agricultural profile and farming system 5 1.3.1.1 Rice farming 5 1.3.1.2 Corn farming 6 1.3.1.3 Vegetable growing for food and cash 6 1.3.1.4 Palm oil 7 1.3.1.5 Inadequate government social services 7 1.3.2 Impact of climate change in Panaghiusa 8 1.3.3 Adaptive practices and recommendations for Panaghiusa 13 1.3.3.1 Sustainable agriculture practices 13 1.3.3.2 Recommendations 15 1.4 Study Site Two: Barangay Pangpang, Ubay, Bohol 17 1.4.1 General profile 17 1.4.2 Agricultural profile and farming system 19 1.4.2.1 Farming system 19 1.4.2.2 Fishing 21 1.4.2.3 Livestock 21 1.4.2.4 Paid labor 21 1.4.2.5 Inadequate government social services 21 1.4.3 Impact of climate change on farmers and fisherfolk 22 1.4.4 Adaptive practices and recommendations for Pangpang 28 1.4.4.1 Sustainable agriculture practices 28 1.4.4.2 Recommendations 29 2.0 SUMMARY: CLIMATE CHANGE AND VULNERABILITY IN 30 PANAGHISUA AND PANGPANG List of Figures Figure 1 Map of Brgy. Trinidad 3 Figure 2 Spot map of Sitio Panaghiusa 4 Figure 3 Seasonal calendar of Barangay San Vicente (1980‟s to 1990‟s) 10 Figure 4 Seasonal calendar of Barangay San Vicente (year 2000 - 2010) 10 Figure 5 Map of Ubay Bohol, Brgy. Pangpang 17 Figure 6 Spot map of Pangpang 18 Figure 7 Historical transect map of agriculture in Pangpang 20 Figure 8 Seasonal calendar of Barangay Pangpang (year 1970 - 2000) 26 Figure 9 Seasonal calendar of Barangay Pangpang (year 2000 - 2010) 27 1.0 INTRODUCTION The Philippines is highly vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change due to its geographical location and its reliance on climate sensitive sectors such as agriculture and water resources. Central Visayas is among the regions at risk to the projected and growing impacts of climate change. The provinces in the region are important in the country‟s food security efforts since they make a significant contribution to the country‟s total rice production. A number of the rural poor whose livelihoods depend on farming and fishing constitute the sector in the region that is most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. The effects of changing climatic patterns were discussed in June 2007 by NGO and People‟s Organization (PO) partners of SIBAT in sustainable agriculture projects in Central Visayas. At that time, the immediate problem was prolonged drought followed by torrential rains resulting in poor crop yields for consecutive seasons, and the failure of cropping and seed development initiatives in the PO communal projects. The persistence of this pattern poses a threat to the productivity of small rice and corn producers and their efforts to improve their work. It was recognized that this threat can only be addressed through collaborative efforts of various players in the rural farming sector. Research on community vulnerability to climate change was conducted in varying agricultural typologies in Visayas and Mindanao during 2008 to 2010. Research was conducted in six indigenous people‟s sites in Mindanao, and in two upland sites in the Visayas. The two research initiatives in this study are on lowland and coastal rice farming typologies undertaken with the support and guidance of Pesticide Action Network, Asia Pacific (PAN AP). These initiatives aim to contribute to the studies being conducted by PAN AP in the Asia Pacific region. This Vulnerability and Adaptation Research project aims to understand the vulnerability to climate change and methods of adaptation of small farmers in the context of their rural poor conditions. Vulnerability is understood as an inherent weakness in the agro- ecological system and economic life of farmers that diminishes their ability to cope with stresses brought about by changing climate patterns, variability and extremes. Adaptation is understood as a process in which strategies to avoid, moderate, cope with and/or take advantage of the consequences of climate change are developed, enhanced and implemented.1 The solutions documented and proposed here are collectively termed „adaptation strategies‟.2 The research objective was to identify and document the impacts of climate change and community adaptation strategies as practiced by rice-growing communities in two study 1 UNFCCC. 2 This research therefore does not cover mitigation: measures added to reduce, prevent or correct the impact of climate change that are basically anthropogenic measures to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases or enhance their sinks. [UNFCCC] sites; in other words, to understand the reality of the effects of climate change on small farmers, and the formulation of action plans to address these problems. 1.1 The Study: Bohol Province, Central Visayas Methodology The study team conducted Household Interviews (HI), Focused Group Discussions (FGD) and Key Informant Interviews (KII). Instruments were prepared for each method. The clusters of information or data categories sought and methodology are shown below: Data Categories Methodologies Tools Macro climate Plotting and statistical analysis of Computer plotting and studies to recognize climate data statistical tools and identify the climate changes, Secondary literature review variability and extremes Biophysical changes FGD, KII, HI, ocular observation, Questionnaire, seasonality attributed to climate climate change historical mapping calendars, transect, matrix change or trending, resource mapping, and ranking tools photos, transect, matrix and ranking Agricultural or FGD, KII, HI, resource maps, Questionnaire, seasonality farming systems transect, matrix and ranking calendars, transect, matrix and ranking tools Socio-economic FGD, KII, HI Questionnaire, case changes documentation outline The formulation of recommendations for multi-stakeholder and community planning was conducted through discussions with partners. Historical trending and comparative analysis were used to substantiate evidence of changes. 1.2 Study Sites The three target sites and their basic typologies are listed below: Research Sites Basic Features Sitio Panaghiusa, Brgy. San Vicente, Agricultural plains with rain fed and irrigated Trinidad, Bohol systems, mainly rice growing (rice granary of Bohol province) Brgy. Pangpang, Ubay, Bohol Coastal and rain fed agricultural ecosystem, mainly rice growing and fishing 2 1.3 Study Site One: Sitio Panaghuisa, Brigy. San Vincente, Trinidad, Bohol Panaghiusa is one of the sitios of Barangay San Vicente of the town of Trinidad. The sitio is three kilometers from the town and is bounded on the east by Brgy. Kinan-onan, on the west by Brgy. Lauswahan, and on the north by Brgy. San Roque. The sitio is accessible mostly by habal-habal transport through a rough road network from the town center. Figure 1: Map of Brgy. Trinidad3 Panaghiusa has a population of 232 households with 1,320 individuals. The average household size is six. The main organization of farmers in Panaghiusa is the Trinidad-Talibon Integrated Farmers Association (TTIFA), created in 1989 to wage a struggle for land in the Bohol Cattle Ranch from the feudal hold of large landlords. The struggle to occupy the lands was successful in 1990. TTIFA was subsequently able to secure a mother Certificate of Land Ownership Award (CLOA) and individual CLOAs as tenurial instruments for the 1000 hectares of land occupied by the farmers. The individual CLOA, however, means a relative or temporary tenurial security over the land, where true security depends on meeting yearly amortization payments. Threat of dispossession therefore comes from the inability to pay amortization, the surrender of the instrument as collateral for a loan, or through a Voluntary Offer to sell to another party. 3 http://www.ppdobohol.lgu.ph/AllRoadsImages/Trinidad%20Map%20A3%20Layout.pdf 3 The organization has been successful in developing economic, health and literacy projects for the welfare of Panaghiusa community. TTIFA together with other peoples‟ organizations in Bohol protested the entry of the oil palm industry which divested 50 farmers of their lands in the palm oil production arrangement with a private company that did not return enough for them to recover their land as collateral.