June Update - Philippine Marine Project
Added to website: 01 June 2005
Project Brief
Aim
The Southern Leyte Coral Reef Conservation Project is a three-year collaborative project (2002-2005), to survey the coral reefs of Sogod Bay. The programme provides training and conservation education opportunities for local Filipinos, as part of an integrated programme to develop local capacity and ensure the long-term protection and sustainable use of marine resources throughout the region.
Location
Sogod Bay, Southern Leyte, South-Eastern Philippines.
CCC Partners
CCC is working at the invitation of and in partnership with the Provincial Government of Southern Leyte and the Philippine Reef & Rainforest Conservation Foundation Inc (PRRCFI).
Marine Science Programme
Baseline Surveys
Our baseline surveying programme is designed to gather data about the biological and morphological standing of Sogod Bay. These data are combined with information on human and natural impacts on the reefs, along with oceanographic data, to ultimately produce a Geographical Information System ‘map’ of the various habitats of the bay. It is like a ‘stock-take’ of the current marine resources, which is being produced to provide policymakers and concerned institutions with information necessary to effectively manage those resources. To date, the northern end of Sogod Bay has been surveyed, and the remainder of the project will concentrate on the south and Limasawa Island. If you would like more information on our surveying rationale or methodology, please don’t hesitate to contact our Project Scientist.
Number of transects surveyed this month
Transects B2117, B2105, B2205, B2101 and B2113D
Surveys have been done on the eastern side of Sogod Bay and results are looking very promising, showing some areas that are rich in both coral cover and fish density. We are excited to get back aboard Sanga, our surveying boat as soon as the final repairs have been made and head down to the other side of the bay to continue our surveying of the marine resources that Sogod Bay has to offer.
Reef Check
Based at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), ReefCheck is the name of both the world’s largest coral reef monitoring network and of the common methodology used, allowing the comparison of results from various locations worldwide. Although less detailed than CCC’s baseline surveys, the ReefCheck method is effective for monitoring changes in reef health over time. In order to do this, we mark the survey ‘transect’ with metal stakes, to ensure that repeat surveys are in the same place each time. These stakes are sited in rock, dead coral or sand for minimal disruption of the fragile reef system. CCC is proud to be a major contributing member of ReefCheck. Check out their site at www.ReefCheck.org
We are delighted to say that we have almost completed all our ReefCheck surveys on the southwest side Tangkaan point and we will be coming back to some of the sites to see how the health of the reefs has changed over time. With the percentage of hard coral cover we are finding at most of the locations, there should be high numbers of fish. Over fishing is probably the reason why this is not always the case. With the improved fisheries management laws and legislation that Sogod Bay has received under Governor Rosette Y. Lerias, together with the instalment of fish sanctuaries in the area, we are hoping to see positive changes in the fish stocks over the coming years.
Environmental Awareness
A workshop was held in Padre Burgos municipality for all the local fisherman so that they could share ideas and opinions with representatives of Coral Cay, the Provincial Coastal Resource Management Office and representatives from the municipality on the recently installed marine protected areas (MPA’s). The project scientist gave a lecture on the importance of protecting coral reefs and the sustainable management of fish stocks through the use of fish sanctuaries. They have been proven to be successful in the past at locations such as Apo and Sumilon Islands. The fishermen were allowed to fill in a survey at the end in which they could express their expectations and thoughts about the sanctuaries. There was full support and enthusiasm for the sanctuaries. This is a good basis for successful management and will hopefully lead to sustainable livelihoods for the community.
Coral Cay volunteers again helped out with the Youth Catholic Movement this month with their monthly beach cleanup in Sogod. We fully support this project and would like to congratulate them on achieving a placement in the top 20 youth organisations in the Philippines this year.
Coral Cay representatives also helped out the United States Peace Corps in doing an open day for several classes in Malitbog. The afternoon was composed of lectures about marine life; taking the kids for a snorkel and doing a mangrove replant.
The ‘Fred the Fish Show’ a puppet show that the volunteers put on to increase marine awareness made a big comeback with shows given to the children of Padre Burgos at the town centre and the chapel and a show given to the Miss Southern Leyte beauty contestants, a slightly more mature audience, although no less enthusiastic!
Coral Cay will continue to support such projects and be hosting several of our own educational days at the base so that the children can be made aware of the their marine environment and all it has to offer.
Upcoming Events
Apart from collecting data and increasing community awareness about the importance of protecting the maine environment, another aim of the Southern Leyte Coral Reef Project is to give dive and marine survey training to local counterparts. The counterpart training involves a three day dive training that will bring the participants up to the Padi Open Water SCUBA diving level. Afterwards, there will be a three day ‘science development program’ during which the participants will receive lectures in tropical marine biology and learn how to conduct surveys underwater. Future monitoring of fish sanctuaries can then be carried out without the presence of Coral Cay representatives. Close monitoring of the sanctuaries ensures that changes in fish numbers and sizes are detected and this will help keep the community enthousiastic and involved in the project. The training will be held sometime in the near future and a succesive training will be organised in October for the sanctuary wardens that can then use their acquired knowledge and skills to monitor the sanctuary and act as underwater guides for visiting tourists.
