IRREVERSIBLE? Climate Change, Fisherfolks, and the Coastal Community Vince Cinches FIDEC Inc. STSCM

Center of the center… Scientists have described the Philippines as the center of the center of marine shorefish diversity with the “richest concentration of marine life on the entire planet.” (Carpenter and Springer, 2005)

“ Climate change, which may lead to sea level rise and possible increases in storm frequency and strength, could have major impacts on Philippine marine and coastal resources, especially coral reefs, fisheries and the community they support.” -Philippine Environment Monitor 2005

Historic correlation between C0 2 and temperature

Worldwide, marine and freshwater fisheries generate over US$130 billion annually, employ at least 200 million people, and feed billions of people reliant on fish as an important source of protein Atmospheric carbon concentration will lead to warm sea water which will lead to decline of marine species and coral bleaching. hotter water means less food, less offspring and even less oxygen for marine and freshwater fish populations, since the amount of oxygen dissolved in water decreases as temperatures rise. .

Impacts on Philippine Coastal Environments “ The coastal are the natural crossroads between human activity and the sea.” (Weber 1993) As an archipelagic nation, the Philippines is essentially one big coastal zone. Impacts on coastal resources may be felt from activities conducted at the highest mountain peak to the coastal and marine waters. Human impacts on coastal resources in the Philippines continue to intensify as increased population pressure on land and in the sea are degrading fisheries, coral reefs, and mangrove areas that serve as the basis for food security, economic development, and biodiversity conservation. Coastal resource management (CRM) is above all else managing people and human activities so that their negative impacts on the coastal environment are minimized. It is a dynamic process that seeks to rationalize the use and development of coastal resources to ensure that present human needs are provided while coastal environments and habitats are protected and managed for future and sustainable use.

Sea level rise

7 meters rise

United Nations Environment Program Pg 32. The Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change states that warming of the climate system is unequivocal, as is now evident from observations of increases in global average air and ocean temperatures, widespread melting of snow and ice, and rising global average sea level. Natural systems, including oceans and coasts, are being affected by regional climate changes, particularly by temperature increases. Besides rising surface water temperatures and sea level, impacts are or will be associated with changes in the wave climate, circulation, ice cover,fresh water run-off, salinity, oxygen levels and water acidity.

Shifts in ranges and changes in algal, plankton and fish abundance have already been observed in high-latitude oceans. Sea level-rise is negatively contributing to coastal erosion, losses of coastal wetland ecosystems, including salt marshes and mangroves, and increasing damage from coastal flooding in many areas. These effects will be exacerbated by increasing human-induced pressures on coastal areas.

Corals are beautiful living animals that are enjoyed by millions of snorkelers and divers world wide, but they are also of vital importance for the whole coral reef ecosystem and for coastal fisheries. TYPHOONS

WARMING AND DISTRIBUTION OF SPECIES With melting sea ice and warming of the oceans, marine species change their distributions, affecting entire food chains and ocean productivity. In 2005 the subtropical dinoflagellate Ceratium hexacanthum was found in CPR samples from the North Sea at levels that were 6 standard deviations above previous measurements since 1958. Further evidence of this warning signal is seen in the appearance of a Pacific planktonic plant (a diatom Neodenticula seminae) in the Northwest Atlantic for the first time in 800,000 years, by transfer across the top of Canada due to the rapid melting of Arctic ice in 1998. INVASION OF PECIES

If this ocean conveyor belt slows down or changes as a result of melting ice and increasing ocean temperatures, the impacts on marine life may become severe.

Thank you.