An Overview of Philippine Fisheries

Transcription

1 An Overview of Philippine Fisheries PORFIRIO M. ALIÑO The Marine Science Institute University of the Philippines Diliman 1101 Quezon City PHILIPPINES The Philippines is the 11th top fishing nation in the world (Fig. 1, Table 1). This annual fisheries yield is estimated to be worth around US$2.5 billion (estimated at around 4.3% of gross domestic product) (Barut et al. 1997). Annual harvest is around 1.67 million tons from capture fisheries, the estimated value of which was around US$578 million in 1994 (US$1 = PhP23.75). This contributed to around 62% of annual total fisheries catch, with the rest covered by aquaculture and inland fisheries. Towards the early 1990 s, a decline has been observed in the municipal fisheries (i.e., small-scale capture fisheries from less than 3 gross ton boats). The decline has been offset by commercial fisheries (i.e., capture fisheries from more than 3 gross ton boats). Around 47% of this capture fisheries (~787,000 tons) came from municipal Figure 1. Marine production by countries, (Source: De Silva 1996)

2 Table 1. Asian countries artisanal fishing sectors. (Source: De Silva 1996) fisheries and the rest (~885,000 tons) was from commercial fisheries (Barut et al. 1997) (Table 2; Figs. 2, 3). In the medium term development plan of the Philippines (including the next 5 years), it is projected that no further increases from municipal fisheries are expected. Thus, it was emphasized in the Philippine s National Fisheries Agenda to arrest the decline in municipal fisheries and sustain the present levels. Commercial capture fisheries production was expected to increase by around 10% Figure 2. Philippine marine fisheries production, (Source: BFAR and BAS Statistics 1994, in Barut et al. 1997)

3 Table 2. Marine fisheries production (top) and annual economic benefits from fisheries (bottom) in the Philippines, (Source: White and Cruz-Trinidad 1998) to compensate for the deficits from increased demand due to population growth. Aquaculture was also expected to account for over 35% of the total harvests, and hence, complement overall fisheries production (Aguilar 2001). By the year 2010, if the annual population growth of the Philippines continues at 2.4%, then a considerable deficit in fisheries yield relative to per capita consumption is expected. from surplus production models by Silvestre and Pauly (1986) of pelagic catch and of the demersal catch (Dalzell 1996), the Philippines has well exceeded the estimated MSY. The calculated annual rent dissipation from overfishing was estimated at around US$130 million for demersal fisheries and around US$290 million for small pelagics (Trinidad et al. 1993) (Figs. 6 and 7). As an archipelagic state composed of around 2,100 islands, the Philippines extends around 2,000 km north to south from 4o05 to 4o30. The total territorial waters cover around 2.2 million km2 and the shelf area is around 184,600 km2 (Barut et al. 1997) (Fig. 4). Silvestre (1989) cites an initial delphi analyses of the various fishing areas in the Philippines and shows that most of these areas are already fully- to overexploited (Fig. 5). Based on some general estimates One may note that since the Philippines is found in the most diverse region in the marine world, its multispecies and multigear fisheries (Fig. 8) manifests the varied range of problems in the resources and its developing economy. Thus, the country s fisheries experience indications of shifts in species composition together with a decline in fisheries yield (see Dalzell et al. 1987).

4 Figure 3. Philippine marine fisheries production, (Source: DA-BFAR Statistics 2000) The issues and concerns mentioned earlier can best be exemplified by some of the following case examples: 1. Lingayen Gulf and Manila Bay: too many fishers and environmental stress One of the common features in many fishing areas is how the varying degrees of environmental stress induced by human impacts interact with fisheries North Latitude (degrees) East Longitude (degrees) Depth (meters) Straight Baselines Treaty Limits 200 n.mi. E.E.Z. Kalayaan Claim - Republic Act No amended by R.A Treaty of Paris (1898) - Presidential Decree No. 1593; Presidential Decree No. 1595; 1979 Figure 4. Schematic territorial boundaries and bathymetry map of the Philippines. (Source: Aliño, 1998)

5 Figure 5. Heavily exploited areas in the Philippines. (Source: Tandog-Edralin et al. 1987, in White and Cruz- Trinidad 1998) overexploitation (e.g., siltation together with pollution in Lingayen Gulf and Manila Bay; Padilla and Morales 1997, Pauly and Chua 1988). The most prevalent fisheries concern is the condition that is referred to as malthusian overfishing. This condition often related to an increasing density of fishers population and leads to using more efficient but destructive fishing practices such as blastfishing (Pauly et al. 1989). In addition, the competition between commercial and municipal fishing activities within municipal waters has been consistently seen as one of the major concerns (Table 3; Figs. 9 and 10). 2. Municipal fisheries vs commercial fisheries Due to the overexploited state in the coastal areas and the need to regulate fishing effort (i.e., municipal waters within 10 to 15 km from the shore), illegal access by the commercial fleets has been seen as a major problem in the fisheries sector. Smith et al. (1983) has highlighted this quite well for San Miguel Bay (Table 4). Note that the 89 trawlers belonged only to 40 households (with 42% of its total value) whereas the 2,300 small-scale fishing gears belonged to 3,500 fishers (Silvestre and Pauly 1997). This social equity and uneven competition have been considered characteristic not only in the Philippines, but also in many other coastal fisheries of developing countries. Thus, solutions require greater empowerment mechanisms (e.g., community-based efforts for improved enforcement), which, to some extent, have been initiated through some of the decentralization devolution mechanisms of the Philippine local government code of Unfortunately, the small-scale municipal fisheries sector also requires considerable effort reductions in order to have any significant change to mitigate for the decline of the fisheries resources (Hilomen et al., unpubl. rep.). As mentioned earlier, malthusian overexploitation, together with the marginalization of

6 Figure 6. Surplus production models of the Philippines small pelagic and demersal fisheries. (Sources: Silvestre and Pauly 1986; Dalzell et al.1986, in Silvestre and Pauly 1997) Figure 7. Trend of catch per unit effort since (Source: Dalzell et al. 1987, in White and Cruz-Trinidad 1998) the municipal fishers, have led them further to desperate measures for more effective and destructive fishing practices (e.g., blast fishing, poison fishing) (Pauly et al. 1989). 3. Capture fisheries and mariculture Due to the expected stagnation of capture fisheries in the coastal areas and, on the other hand, with a projected continuous increase in population, cheap fish protein food may be less available in future (Bernacsek 1987). Hence, mariculture has been seen as the logical panacea to augment the fisheries deficit. This suggestion, however, has been wrought with problems such as the issue of degradation of important fisheries habitats. In the Philippines, fishpond conversion of mangrove areas has been identified as one of the major cause of mangrove

7 Figure 8. Some fishing gears used in the Philippines. (Source: SEAFDEC 1995) destruction (Aliño et al. 1998) (Figs. 11 and 12). Recently in the Lingayen Gulf, the introduction of fish pens and fish cages brought about serious problems. Aside from the problems of water quality and fish kills due to unrequlated aquaculture activities (Fig. 13), further displacement of fishers has occurred in addition to the unfair access arrangements in the commons (Verceles et al. 2001). 4. Transboundary issues: pelagic stocks and disputed areas Morgan and Valencia (1983) shows the importance of the Philippines in the migration route of yellow fin tuna and illustrates some important concerns in shared stocks (e.g., round scads between the Philippines and Malaysia in the South China Sea and, in addition, Indonesia, in the Sulu-Sulawesi Sea region) (Figs. 14 and 15). Ganaden and Stequert (1987) reported on the innovation by the Filipinos introduction of the payao (a fish aggregating device; Fig. 16) and suggested that catch rates in the Philippines may be beyond their potentials and may also have signs of growth overfishing. - bottom set gillnet - tabang - fishtrap - bira-bira - hook and line - surface/floating gillnet - baby trawl - sagap - lamp - fish corral Figure 9. Spatial patterns of exploitation of various municipal fisheries in the Lingayen Gulf, Aug-May (Source: Hilomen and Jimenez 2002)

8 Table 3. Comparison of the estimates of catch rates (in kg per trip) obtained for selected municipal fisheries in Lingayen Gulf between 1985 and (Source: Hilomen & Jimenez, unpubl. rep.) Fishery d % decrease A. Municipal Gillnet a H/L 7.08 a Fish corral 4.35 a Fish trap 2.1 a Baby trawl 31.3 b B. Commercial Danish seine 26.8 a Trawl 31.8 c a Calud et al b Mines 1986 c Value estimated in 1987 in Ochavillo et al d This study. CPUE in kg mn-hr-1 were translated to kg per trip by multiplying CPUE with average number of actual hours spent fishing each day. 20,000 18,000 16,000 14,000 Yield (mt) 12,000 10,000 8, ,000 4, , ,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000 60,000 70,000 80,000 90,000 Fishing effort (HP) Figure 10. Sustainable yield and status (with years indicated) of combined commercial and municipal fisheries in the Lingayen Gulf. (Source: Hilomen & Jimenez, unpubl. rep.) An extrapolation by Ganaden and Stequert (1987) for a 5-degree grid fishing area shows that compared to other areas in the world, the Philippines has around 2 to 4 times more yield than the most productive fishing area in the Atlantic (yield ~28,400 Mtons per 5 o square), in the East Pacific (24,500 Mtons per 5 o square), and in the Indian Ocean (17,600 Mtons per 5 o square). Aliño et al. (1998) have provided some initial evidence of the possible decline of tuna stocks especially in the South China Sea area.

9 Table 4. Summary of data on the duality of the fisheries in San Miguel Bay, Philippines. (Source: Smith et al. 1983) Figure 11. Mangrove resource decline in the Philippines. (Source: World Bank 1989, in White and Cruz-Trinidad 1998) Summary and conclusions Silvestre (1989) provided some recommendations on tackling the various issues and concerns on Philippine Fisheries: 1. Enhance capabilities of Fisheries Management councils at all levels specially through the establishment of National and Regional Fisheries Councils. To date, with Republic Act 8550 (the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998), the Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Councils (FARMCs) have been Figure 12. Proliferation of fishpens in the Lingayen Gulf. (Photos by Dr. Gil S. Jacinto)

10 this story was taken from URL: Fish kill hits coastal town of Pangasinan Posted:2:40 PM (Manila Time) Feb. 02, 2002 By Inquirer News Service BOLINAO, Pangasinan A massive fish kill hit this coastal town as millions of pesos worth of cultured bangus (milkfish) died suddenly. Mayor Jesus Celeste said there was no estimated damage yet although one operator with 10 fish cages was said to have lost about P4-million worth of bangus, while another lost about P1-million worth. Many operators of fish cages, as a result, have been hastily harvesting their remaining stocks. There are about 400 fish cages and 200 fish pens in Bolinao, but the most affected were those in Barangays Guiguiwanen and Luciente II. Celeste said somebody could have poured a chemical that poisoned the bangus. White fluid was found in the fish cages, he said. "Why was only one area affected if the cause was pollution? Why not the entire Bolinao?" he asked. He sought the help of the University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute, which maintains a laboratory in the town, to examine the chemical that caused the fish kill. The incident occurred amid protests from residents about the proliferation of fish cages and pens in Bolinao. In a letter to the municipal council, Margaret Celeste, elder sister of the mayor, said fish cages have been polluting the waters off Barangays Lambes, Zaragoza, Catungi, Tara, Culang, Luna and Luciente II, and parts of Barangays Luciente I and Lucero. "The areas occupied by fish cages and pens have become polluted due to excessive concentration of fish feeds, and the water quality (there) has deteriorated," Margaret Celeste said. She warned that the presence of these fish cages "might The fish cages and pens have already affected the navigational route of the residents of Santiago Island, especially at night, the mayor's sister said. Yolanda Fuertes, PDI Northern Luzon Bureau all rights reserved Figure 13. News of the recent fish kill in Bolinao, Pangasinan, downloaded from www. inq7.net on Feb 2, (Photos were from institutionalized by law. Unfortunately, they are mainly a consultative body and would require improved ways of making them more effective in actual management interventions in the ground. 2. There is a need to clarify the management goals that fisheries management programs often confuse the management concerns that deal with intermediate causes (e.g., overexploitation of fisheries and habitat destruction) and those that deal with the root causes (e.g., poverty, population growth, social equity, political economy). Aside from the clarification of these goals and objectives, it is crucial that appropriate stakeholders roles and responsibilities be identified to contribute to coordinated, integrated and complementary outcomes.

11 Figure 14. Inferred migratory route of some tuna species passing through the Philippines. (Source: Morgan and Valencia 1983) 3. Pursue innovative ways of reducing fishing effort and more effective ways of enforcement and compliance. Considering the dire depauperate condition of the Philippines and widespread hunger and deprivation in its social development, controlling fishing effort requires more than the usual command and control monitoring, control and surveillance mechanisms of developed states. Much of the succesful initiatives tended to provide social pressures from the community through a changed social view of community stewardship. A broader compliance to local and national ordinances can be improved if political-will is demnstrated by the local government. On the other hand, many broad based organized community (e.g., through militant peoples organizations) or through citizens watch programs known as Bantay Dagat (sea watchers or local community coast guards) have also been succesful. Though only documented in fewer cases in the Philippines, some communities still assert some of their local beliefs (akin to traditional ecological knowledge and wisdom) as a guide for their fishing practices (Mangahas 1993). 4. Explore incentives for livelihood-linked programs to sustain resource management and disincentives for sustainable practices. Due to the broader development concerns prevalent in developing countries, regulating fishing as a crucial livelihood for the sustenance of fishers requires effective incentives to shift towards sustainable practices. Some success has been shown for areas where some fishers have shifted towards some ecotourism related activities involving marine sanctuaries where resource extraction has been minimized (Vogt 1997). In addition, it has been suggested that resource enhancement activities involving community stakeholders has shown some promise. Such experiences in learning by doing as part their livelihood and as stewardship responsibility creates a greater social pressure for unsustainable practices. Reducing product acceptance derived from unsustainable livelihood practices (e.g., blast fishing and poison fishing) and as compared to more acceptable ecolabelled goods and services also offer complementary value-added incentives.

12 Figure 15. Some shared pelagic stocks around the Philippines especially in the South China Sea. (Source: Morgan and Valencia 1983) 5. Encourage joint ventures in international waters and consider incentives in lightly exploited international areas. The broad Philippine fisheries experience in the region may offer the problems of its local fisheries resource depletion to explore lightly exploited areas in the Pacific international waters areas with other regional partners (e.g., Indonesia and Papua New Guinea). Improvement of the private sector and state interaction needs to be explored further especially in facilitating goodwill and clarifying mutually beneficial trade agreements. Figure 16. A payao made of bamboo (based on de Jesus 1982). (Source: Aprieto 1995) 6. Improve effectiveness of enhancement and rehabilitation through an ecosystem and integrated coastal management approach. Some reseeding efforts and mangrove enhancement initiatives have met with less success due to the inappropriate context that they have been undertaken. Thus sea ranching without sufficient efforts to regulate access and area control (e.g., with a complementary marine sanctuary area) or proper grow out educated cooperators would not be sustainable. In addition, enhancement areas situated in areas where conflicts in general usage of the zones (e.g., international ports and industrial

13 discharges or possible pollution sources) would jeopardize enhancement and rehabilitation. As shown in the example for mariculture, more and more fisheries management concerns of municipalities are now being approached as part of its integrated coastal development plans. References Aguilar GD (2001) The national integrated research development extension agenda and program for capture fisheries. In Int Sem Responsible capture fisheries in coastal waters of Asia: case studies and researches for sustainable development and management of tropical fisheries, Sept 2001, College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, University of the Philippines in the Visayas, Miagao, Iloilo, Philippines, p 3 (Abstracts). Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Aliño PM (1998) Transboundary diagnostic analysis for the South China Sea - Philippine country report Aliño PM, Nañola CL, Ochavillo DG, Rañola MC (1998) The fisheries potential of the Kalayaan Island Group, South China Sea. In Morton B (ed) Proc 3rd Int Conf Marine Biology of the South China Sea, Hong Kong, 28 Oct - 1 Nov 1996, pp Hong Kong University Press, Hong Kong Aprieto VL (1995) Philippine tuna fisheries: yellowfin and skipjack. University of the Philippines Press, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines, 251 p Barut NC, Santos MD, Garces LR (1997) Overview of Philippine marine fisheries. In Silvestre G, Pauly D (eds) Status and management of tropical coastal fisheries in Asia, ICLARM Conf Proc 53: Bernacsek G Principal fisheries development policy issues for the five-year development plan of the Philippines. Paper presented at the National Fisheries Policy Workshop, Mar 1987, Baguio City Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, DA-BFAR (2000) Fisheries profile Manila, Philippines Dalzell P (1996) Catch rates, selectivity and yields of reef fishing. In Polunin NVC, Roberts CM (eds) Reef fisheries, pp Chapman and Hall, London Dalzell P, Corpuz P, Ganaden R, Pauly D (1987) Estimation of maximum sustainable yield and maximum economic rent from the Philippine small pelagic fisheries. Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Tech Pap Ser 10(3), 23 p De Silva SS (1996) A review of the major trends in Asian fisheries. In De Silva SS (ed) Perspectives in Asian fisheries - a volume to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Asian Fisheries Society, pp Asian Fisheries Society, Makati City, Philippines Ganaden R, Stequert B (1987) Tuna fisheries in the Philippines. Paper presented at the IPTP Tuna Working Group, Aug 1987, Manila, Philippines Hilomen VV, Nañola CL, Dantis AL (2000) Status of Philippine reef fish communities. Proc Workshop Status of PhilippineRreefs, p 14 (Abstract) Hilomen VV, Jimenez L (2001) Resource and social assessment of Lingayen Gulf: Capture fisheries (unpublished report) Manprasit A, Siriraksophon S, Masthawee P, Chokesanguan B, Sae-Ung S, Soodhom S, Dickson JO, Matsunaga Y (1995). Fishing gear and methods in Southeast Asia: III. The Philippines. Training Department Southeast Asia Fisheries Development Center (SEAFDEC) Mangahas M (1993) Indigenous coastal resources management: the case of the hataw fishing in Batanes. Center for Development Studies, University of the Philippines, Quezon City (MA Thesis) Morgan JR, Velencia MJ (1983) Atlas for marine policy in Southeast Asian Seas. University of California Press, Berkeley Padilla JE, Morales AC (1997) Evaluation of fisheries management alternatives for Lingayen Gulf: an options paper. In Studies on Lingayen Gulf, Final report of The Philippine Environmental and Natural Resources Accounting Project (ENRAP-Phase IV), 32 p, 20 tables, 6 figures Pauly D, Chua T-E (1988) The overfishing of marine resources: socioeconomic background in Southeast Asia AMBIO 17:

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