Adaptation measures of farmers in response to climate change in Bicol Region, Philippines

Abstract

A study was conducted to determine the climate change adaptation (CCA) measures of 211 farmers located in five provinces in the Bicol Region, Philippines. The study employed the descriptive method. A structured questionnaire with open-ended questions served as the main tool for data gathering. Respondents were selected purposively from the Department of Agriculture's master list of farmers. They were selected based on the following criteria: owner of at least one hectare; had been practicing farming for at least five years; a resident of the municipality and living within 50 km radius of synoptic stations. Frequency counts, weighted means and percentages were used to describe the profile of respondents and their climate change adaptation measures. The major climate hazards the respondents had to contend with are flood, drought, typhoon, erosion and volcanic eruption. Typhoons happen almost every year with varying magnitude. In terms of flood and landslide, residents living in low-lying villages and near river channels, shorelines and mountain slopes are most affected. For the climate-induced drought, the provinces of Albay, Camarines Sur and Catanduanes are more at risk. Volcanic eruptions on the other hand happen in the provinces of Albay and Sorsogon, and hazards brought about by these are volcanic quakes, pyroclastic flow, mudflow, ash fall, landslides, and bush fire. With these climate hazards, farmers practice various CCA measures. Availing of climate forecast services was the most commonly cited and ranked highest across the 4 major hazards, except for erosion where livelihood/income diversification ranked highest as CCA measure. Farmers in the province of Catanduanes had the highest mean score on CCA followed by those in the provinces of Camarines, Sorsogon and Albay. Recommendations include: provision of adequate investment to enhance farmers' access to climate advisories; strengthen nonstructural interventions such as policies, knowledge development, and awareness, to make CCA more effective and reduce the impact of climate change; encourage partnerships between informal processes and formal interventions to facilitate adoption of CCA initiatives introduced by the government; and provide necessary support for the utilization of indigenous knowledge on CCA measures to increase the resiliency of farmers against climate hazards.