COASTAL MANAGEMENT

AND CONSERVATION
HEROBEN-HOMETEL, TAGUM CITY
 The coastal zone

Land

M a n g ro ve B ea ch es
T id a l f la t s
S e a g ra s s b e d s

C o a s ta l z o n e
C o ra l re e fs
1 km 15 km
M u n ic ip a l w a t e r s O pen
sea

- is the interface where the land meets the ocean.

It includes the shoreline environment and the
adjacent coastal waters.
 The coastal zone

Land

M a n g ro ve B eaches
T id a l f la t s
S e a g ra s s b e d s

C o a s ta l z o n e
C o ra l re e fs
1 km 15 km
M u n ic ip a l w a t e r s O pen
- has the following major resource units/ecosystems sea

along its shallow coastlines

 coral reefs
 seagrass beds
 mangroves
 Brackish wetlands
 Beach systems
 Country Profile
 832 Coastal municipalities in the Philippines
 7,100 islands
 18,000 kilometer of coastline
 Major coastal habitat
a. Mangrove :
• 134,000 hectares (1993) remained area
• 47 true mangrove
• 26 associated family (like talisay, nipa etc)
b. Seagrass:
• 14 species (6 types common around the country)
c. Coral Reef:
• 27,000 sq. kms
• 488 species found in the Philippines
Fish and other resources
2,824 marine fish species (FishBase, 2006)
1.400 species of crustaceans
900 species of seaweeds
5,000 species of clams, snails and mollusks
5 sea turtle species
Marine mammals (dolphins, whales, dugong)
Davao Gulf Profile
o 23 coastal LGUs (18 municipalities and 5 cities in 5
provinces
o 520 kms of coastline
o 6,600 km2 of water
o Major habitats
o Corals/ coral reef
o 412 km
o 34 genera of hard corals
o Mangrove
o 2092 has. (DENR R-11)
o 14 true and 6 associate
o Seagrass – 9 species
o Fisheries
o 10th most productive fishing ground
o Feeding and breeding ground of small pelagics, breeding
and nursery ground for large pelagics
o Other wildlife
o 15 species of cetaceans (SMARTSeas PH Project
cetacean survey 2016 and 2018)
100 Million Filipinos depend on seafood
as their primary source of protein.

Good number of Filipinos

dependent on fishing for
livelihood
Habitats of the Philippine
coastal zone
 MANGROVE FOREST

Mangroves are woody, seed bearing plants adapted

for life in brackish water. Serve as feeding and
nursery grounds and refuges to many fish species,
migratory birds and other marine organisms.
COMMON MANGROVE GENUS

Avicennia Bruguiera

Rhizophora Sonneratia
Various mangrove
propagules

… allowing dispersal by
seawater
  One hectare of mangrove
trees produces up to 3.6
tons of litterfall annually.
 One hectare of healthy
mangrove ecosystem
produces about 1.08 tons
of fish and fishery products
per year.
F a llin g le a v e s
(Schatz 1991)

B ig f is h

C ra b
S h r im p S m a ll f is h

D e t r it u s
( le a f p a r ti c le s w it h f u n g i & b a c te r ia )
Seagrasses are
seed-producing
marine plants that
occur in shallow,
nearshore waters,
and are often found
between coral reefs
and mangrove
areas, colonizing
the soft, shallow
and sandy-muddy
bottom.
 Seagrass
 Seagrass beds harbor a rich assemblage of
marine organisms that all contribute to the
important role of seagrasses in the marine
ecosystem
 Seagrass beds support at least:
– 172 species of fish
– 46 species of invertebrate
– 51 species of seaweeds
– 45 species of algal epiphytes
– 1 species of sea turtle
– 1 species of Dugong
 Types of seagrasses commonly found
in the Philippines

Halodule
Cymodocea Syringodium

Halophila
Thalassia Enhalus
Food chain in Philippine seagrass ecosystems
Corals are
actually tiny
animals called
polyps that live
in colonies
underwater,
either in patches
or extensive
reefs.
Considered as the
“rainforests of the
sea”, coral reefs are Philippine coral reefs host:
among nature’s
most spectacular  more than 2,000 species of
and beautiful fish
creations and ranks
as one of the most
 5,000 species of clams,
complex and diverse snails and other mollusks
ecosystems in
 488 species of corals
the world.
 981 species of bottom-living
algae
 thousands of other marine
organisms

It is estimated that one square kilometer of healthy coral reefs can produce up to
20 tons of fish per year. Destroyed reefs on the other hand only produce less than
4 tons of fish per square kilometer per year.
Mutual contributions of tropical
coastal habitats
IMPORTANCE OF CORAL REEFS,
SEAGRASS MEADOWS AND MANGROVES

• They serve as natural wave attenuators

• Serves as source of sediment and traps for sediment
• Their destruction leads to removal of sediment
traps, greater wave penetration and removal of
sediment source
• Healthy coral reefs and wide mangrove and
seagrass cover promote coastal accretion
 THREATS TO COASTAL AND MARINE
ENVIR0NMENT
• Anthropogenic
• Sedimentation: Land use – agriculture, land clearing, construction,
increased erosion, and runoff
• Urbanization, watershed modification: Increase in waste and other
discharges
• Commercial and incidental destruction: transportation, tourism and
recreational use, mining, dredging, destructive fishing, oil spill
• Climate Change Impacts
• Sea Lever Rise
• Increasing air temperature
• Increasing Sea Surface Temperature
• Changes in amount and pattern of Rainfall
• More intense and frequent typhoons
• Waves and storm surges
• Ocean acidification
• Exacerbation of Sedimentation
 Pollution and loss of water quality

 About 50% of the

coastal and marine
pollution in the
Philippines comes
from runoff and
land-based
discharges.
Improper waste disposal is
becoming a major problem
 Resource use conflicts
 Coastal areas all over the Philippines are
being developed rapidly because people like
to live and do business near the sea.
 The consequence is that beaches, foreshore
land areas and nearshore coastal habitats are
in demand and are being utilized for a wide
variety of conflicting human uses including
industry, construction, dumping, boat
landings, tourism and human settlements.

Commercial size fishing

vessels often compete with
small-scale fishers in
municipal waters
Nearshore fisheries support many thousands of
coastal dwellers through livelihood and food
EFFECT OF COASTAL
AND MARINE
DESTRUCTION
Coral reef degradation
Status of Philippine coral
reefs at 14 localities
(85 reefs samples)
2 .4 %

P e rc e n t a g e o f o b s e rv a t io n s
(E X C E L L E N T )
2 2 .4 % 2 3 .5 %

(G O O D ) (P O O R )

( FA IR )

5 1 .7 %
C o r a l r e e f c o n d it io n a s p e rc e n t a g e o f h a r d c o r a l c o v e r

0 -2 4 .9 % P o o r 2 5 - 4 9 . 9 % F a ir 5 0 - 7 4 . 9 % G o o d 7 5 - 1 0 0 % E x c e ll e n t
( 8 5 r e e f s s a m p le d )
 CORAL BLEACHING

Loss of pigments for photosynthesis, or loss of the algae (=zooxanthellae)

Mangroves in trouble
Decline of mangrove
resource in the Philippines

4 5 0 ,0 0 0 h a
in 1 9 1 8

(T h o u s a n d s o f H e c t a re s )
M a n g ro v e A re a 2 8 8 ,0 0 0 h a
in 1 9 7 0

1 4 0 ,0 0 0 h a
1 7 5 ,0 0 0 h a in 1 9 8 8
in 1 9 8 0
1 3 8 ,0 0 0 h a
?
in 1 9 9 3
Plate 1. Plant debris that are being deposited at the remaining mangrove areas in 1)
Libuak, 2) San Isidro, and 3 - 4) Camudmud.
Loss of seagrass beds
Loss of marine sand through mining/quarrying
and inappropriate coastal development
 Erosion, sedimentation, accretion
 Illegal logging and
improper site
development have
resulted in erosion
of lands and
subsequent
sedimentation of
wetlands and
foreshore areas.

Shoreline erosion
causes a real loss
of land
 Trend in catch per
unit effort for
municipal small
pelagic fisheries since
1948 and total
fisheries production

45

40

K g o f F is h c a u g h t fo r s t a n d a r d u n it o f e f fo r t
35

30

Average catch of fish 25

per unit effort since 20

1940s for fishers using 15

hook-and-line from six 10

provinces around the 5

Philippines 0
1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000
Year
 Overfishing
Growth overfishing Level of exploitation of
world’s major fisheries
D e p le te d M o d e r a te ly e x p lo ite d
S iz e o f f is h a v a ila b le

O v e r e x p lo it e d 8% 26%
17%

1 2 3 4 5 F u lly e x p lo ite d
Y e a r s o f f i s h in g 49%

Current technologies give us the ability to catch everything in the sea

 Long-term impacts of overfishing

B e g in n in g p o p u la t io n

N a t u r a l s e le c tio n F is h e r ie s s e le c tio n

A f te r m a n y g e n e r a tio n s

A fte r m a n y m o r e g e n e ra tio n s
Growing population and deepening poverty
 The coastal areas are under increasing
pressure from rapid population growth
of 2.4% per year and the consequent
concentration of development activities
in the coastal strip.
 More than 60% of the Philippine
population live within what are
considered coastal areas.
 The increasing population and poverty
have put additional pressure on
resources, subsequently resulting in
increasing environmental damage,
overfishing and alarming degradation
of habitats.
The average Filipino family has
more than 5 members
 STRATEGY TO
ADDRESS THE ISSUE
OF COASTAL AND
MARINE DESTRUCTION
AND DEGRADATION
Key content points:
 Coastal resource management (CRM) is first and
foremost about addressing varied, wide-ranging and
often interconnected issues that directly or indirectly
impact coastal areas.
 CRM provides the tools for slowing down, if not reversing
the negative impacts of uncontrolled use of these
resources.
 CRM is best accomplished by a participatory process of
planning, implementing and monitoring sustainable uses
of coastal resources through collective action and sound
decision-making
 By involving resource users and focusing on local level
responsibility, the communities have more ownership of
the resources, issues and problems and their
corresponding solutions.
 CRM Strategies

A. MARINE PROTECTED AREA

ESTABLISHMENT
B. COASTAL ZONING
C. REFORESTATION: UPLAND AND
COASTAL
D. BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION
E. COMMUNITY AWARENESS AND
EMPOWERMENT
F. IMPLEMENTATION OF FISHERY AND
COASTAL LAWS
G. IMPLEMENTATION OF
ENVIRONMENTAL FRIENDLY
ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT
Compelling Reasons for Encouraging
the Establishment of MPA Networks
in Davao Gulf
WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND LIFE
HISTORIES OF MARINE ORGANISMS

• Open communities
• they do not self replenish their communities. New
individuals arrive as supplied from elsewhere
• Marine organisms DO NOT RECOGNIZE
BOUNDARIES –
• during their larval phases, they are at the mercy of
water currents
• Species with longer larval duration are dispersed
farther than those with shorter larval duration
• When they settle, they actively look for good
habitats (corals, seagrass and mangroves)
Life history characteristics of marine organisms
consistent with establishment of MPA Network

Green, White and Kilarski 2013

January April

July October

Seasonal
Connectivities
DAVAO GULF MPAN AND PROPOSED SUB-MPAN