VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT OF MARINE TURTLE NESTING SITES IN THE PHILIPPINES

Abstract

Climate change is inevitable and could lead to some detrimental impacts such as biodiversity reduction and loss. Anticipated climatic variables affect the marine and land-based stages of the life of a marine turtle but have greater hazard on their terrestrial reproductive stage. This research looks into the vulnerability to negative impacts on marine turtle nesting grounds in the Philippines due to climatic changes and human development by assessing adaptive capacity and the potential impacts due to climate change exposure and the systems’ sensitivity. Four marine turtle nesting sites were selected as representative sites and were assessed on their vulnerability using predicted climate variables and qualitative data on human adaptive capacity through interviews. This research shows that marine turtle nesting grounds in the Philippines in general are highly impacted by climate change because of its island and tropical endemics making it prone to natural hazards of cyclones, increased temperature and sea level rise. Within the Philippines, intensity of the impacts depends on their relative geographic location and adaptive measures should conform to the imminent situation in the area. The northern part would be more prone to intense typhoons while the southern part would likely experience effects of sea level rise. Both factors were likely to cause habitat/beach loss that will restrict the capacity of the marine turtle to successfully nest. Anthropogenic activities posed an immediate and greater impact on these nesting grounds though increased pressure on habitat use for economic development. The lack of coastal management plans, social organization, awareness and capacity to adapt to climate change increased the impact vulnerability of the coastal areas. Exposure to climate change is expected, vulnerability can only be minimized by reducing the area’s sensitivity to climate change and increasing adaptive capacity of that community. This can only be accomplished through human intervention encompassing integrated action of different stakeholders of the society such as the implementation of an Integrated Coastal Zone Management system.