By DJ G Wabe

XU’s McKeough Marine Center, through Macajalar Bay Development Alliance (MBDA), and the Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation, Inc jointly organized the OROBEST EXPO 2013 to formalize the Partnership for Climate Resilience Program with local government units, private and business sectors and other stakeholders.

A forum on Enhancing Partnerships for Climate Resilience was held on Oct 12 at the Limketkai Atrium, where Mayor Oliver Ubaub of Laguindingan, Chairperson of MBDA’s Executive Committee stressed the importance of MBDA in protecting Macajalar Bay, a source of livelihood for coastal communities and a source of food and other marine products in the region.

MBDA’s purpose, structure and current achievements were discussed by MBDA Program Manager Kristine Galarrita. She related that the MBDA is formed by the local executives of 14 municipalities that span Macajalar Bay and the office of the governor of Misamis Oriental.

The Alliance aims to protect the Bay by engaging coastal communities in programs related to environment-friendly sustainable livelihood, conservation, and law enforcement. Currently, MBDA is working on a Habitat Development Program that surveys and maps Mangrove forests, Seagrass and Corals; Municipal Water Delineation and Zoning; Social Marketing Campaign to raise awareness about the Bay’s condition, and what can be done to conserve it; and forming a task force in cooperation with PNP-Maritime to enforce coastal laws.

Arlene Inonencio of Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) was also present to talk about the additional importance of protecting the mountainous areas surrounding the coastline. Inonencio said that the condition of the forests on the ridges ultimately affect the reef. They are actually interrelated ecosystems and both must be rehabilitated and conserved to safeguard lives and livelihood.

For these purposes, the PES system must be in place for funding and monitoring of these activities. PES is not a new tax, explained Inonencio, and it’s separate from the government treasury. All those affected by the condition of the ecosystems, ie. officials and residents of municipalities in both coastal and mountain areas, are stakeholders and, therefore, all have contributions to make.

For example, she said, to protect the CDO River Basin, the municipality of CDO funds reforestation in highland municipalities and the latter, in turn, plants and takes care of the trees. A Monitoring Body is also present to oversee the system. This kind of partnership was observed to be successful when the forest cover in Mt. Kalatungan increased between 2005 and 2013.

XU’s Jofferdale Gallamaso of the Engineering Resource Center (ERC) spoke about Climate Change impacts and Climate Resilience. He explained how and why disasters like Sendong happen and what can be done to prevent them. He explained that Disasters are a combination of three factors: Hazard, Exposure, and Vulnerability. Hazards like typhoons, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are natural phenomena and humans have no control over them. Exposure is comprised of the population that is in the path of these Hazards, and Vulnerability is their ability to survive and respond to these Hazards. The former can be reduced by relocating or evacuating the population and the latter can be adjusted by preparing for the Hazards. Currently, typhoons can be predicted hours before landfall, which is sufficient time for preparation and evacuation. Flood mapping and simulations have been done by XU-ERC and Warning Systems are set up throughout the river starting from highland municipalities down to CDO.

Governor Yevgeny Vincente “Bambi” Emano of Misamis Oriental took the podium to voice his support for MBDA’s efforts as part of his platform for governance. He has funded the activities of MBDA before and he formally presented the Pledge for the Partnership for Climate Resilience. MBDA Local Chief Executives, the Governor, DENR RED, BFAR RED, PNP-Maritime, PCG, MARINA, DILG, DOLE, DA, and DTI of Region 10, PES, XU, the local press, and Business Sectors signed the pledge.

Photo Gallery:

photos taken by: Rich Neri Concepcion