Do biophysical studies and coastal databases enhance coastal management sustainability? Several Philippine cases

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Ocean & Coastal Management 48 (2005) 411–426

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Do biophysical studies and coastal databasesenhance coastal management sustainability?

Several Philippine cases

Roy Olsena, D. De Leona,�, Alan T. Whiteb

aBiology Department, Silliman University, 6200 Dumaguete City, PhilippinesbCoastal Resource Management Project, Tetra Tech EM Inc., 5th Floor, CIFC Towers, North Area,

Cebu City, 6000, Philippines

Abstract

This study traces the impact of biophysical studies on the sustainability of Integrated

Coastal Management (ICM) processes with emphasis on programs that have aimed to develop

and implement a coastal resource management plan at the municipal level. It documents the

availability of data sets, extent of use of the biophysical studies, the prevailing methods in

gathering biophysical data, and the institutional capacity in the conduct of the studies. It also

evaluates the use and impact of the Municipal Coastal Database initiated by the Coastal

Resource Management Project in selected local government units in the Visayas and

Mindanao.

Results of the study show that the biophysical data sets continue to be generated in support

of ICM initiatives in the Philippines. They continue to provide baseline information as well as

to substantiate issues that need to be addressed and help prioritize specific initiatives. These

however, are underutilized. Generally, the flow of information stops in the planning stage.

This can be attributed to the difficulty in accessing the information, lack of perceived need for

the information or lack of technical know how in utilizing the information as well as updating

the information.

r 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

see front matter r 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

.ocecoaman.2005.04.014

nding author.

dress: [email protected] (A.T. White).

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R. Olsen et al. / Ocean & Coastal Management 48 (2005) 411–426412

1. Introduction

There is no question that current Integrated Coastal Management (ICM)initiatives have been triggered by the biological and physical states of thecoastal ecosystems. Declines in fisheries [1], mangroves [2], coral reef condition [3]and the quality of our seas have awakened the government, academe and non-government organizations among others to formalize actions to mitigate thesituation [4].On the positive side, the biophysical data sets generated by surveys and studies

documenting the improvement of fisheries, a result of effective marine sanctuariesestablished in Sumilon and Apo Islands in the Philippines [5–8], have greatlyinfluenced the establishment of more than 400 small marine sanctuaries all over thecountry [9,10].Because of the importance of biophysical studies in ICM and as advocated by

ICM initiators, such studies have become an integral part of the ICM process. Thepioneer community based resource management effort in Apo Island recognized atits outset the need to conduct an environmental survey to document the status ofreefs and the diversity and abundance of reef fishes. The objective was to evaluatechanges in reef quality resulting from management [11]. The coastal managementplanning process now being adapted for Philippine local government units continuesto include primary and secondary biophysical data sets to identify resource issuesand to establish the baseline information for evaluation of the managementinitiatives [12].Biophysical studies in most cases are costly. It is estimated that the cost of resource

and environmental profiling was about $US500 per km of shoreline in NegrosOriental during the first year of the Coastal Resource Management Project (CRMP)that began in 1996. This represented approximately 14 percent of the total local areabudget excluding data management costs [13]. The significant cost of conductingbiophysical studies and managing the data makes it worthy to evaluate the extentand impact of the studies and determine issues associated with maximizing the use ofsuch data.This analysis adopts the concept of ICM sustainability embodied in GESAMP

[14]. For a program to be considered sustainable, it should build on previousinitiatives, complete stages in the management cycle and loop to a new generationprogram. The link and progression of programs should be clearly manifested andintentional. Completion of the cycle and the subsequent looping to the nextgeneration program require benchmarks and updated information to feedback to thedifferent stages in management.An evaluation of the first major ICM project in the Philippines, the Central

Visayas Regional Project (CVRP) (1984–1992), found insufficient baseline informa-tion. It was thus difficult to evaluate the results of CVRP to provide feedback tosucceeding programs [15]. In contrast, the CRMP developed a monitoring andevaluation protocol for municipal coastal resource management (CRM) thatincluded as a key element an information management system. The system,embodied in the Municipal Coastal Database (MCD) called for updated biophysical

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R. Olsen et al. / Ocean & Coastal Management 48 (2005) 411–426 413

information and as one benchmark for three levels of CRM, the third level indicatingsustained implementation of the program [16,17].This study traces the impact of biophysical studies on the sustainability of ICM

processes with emphasis on programs that have aimed to develop and implement acoastal resource management plan at the municipal level. It documents theavailability of data sets, extent of use of the biophysical studies, the prevailingmethods in gathering biophysical data, and the institutional capacity in the conductof the studies. It also evaluates the use and impact of the MCD initiated by theCRMP in selected local government units in the Visayas and Mindanao.

2. Study sites and ICM programs

ICM projects and sites in Negros Oriental and Sogod, Southern Leyte are used ascase studies (Fig. 1). These sites cover the variations on the extent of use of intensivetechnical biophysical studies and their contribution or impact on the sustainability ofICM initiatives. In addition, 53 municipalities and cities in the provinces ofSarangani, Davao del Sur, Negros Oriental, Bohol and Cebu were surveyedregarding the application and result of the municipal coastal database (Fig. 1).

2.1. Negros Oriental

Negros Oriental is a province in the Central Visayas region of the Philippines. Theprovince has a long history of ICM activities and is one of the few provinces in thePhilippines that had institutionalized ICM activities with the creation of theProvincial Resource Management Office. It is also the home of the pioneer programin community based resource management situated in Apo Island. The province alsoserved as a ‘‘learning area’’ for the CRMP of the Department of Environment andNatural Resources (DENR) implemented from 1996 to 2004. The CVRP alsooperated in Negros Oriental. A technical [18] and community generated resource andecological profile [19] was published to support the implementation of CRM inselected sites in the province.Prior to CRMP in 1996, resource assessments were conducted in various sites in

Negros Oriental. These included those conducted by Center for the Establishment ofMarine Reserves in Negros Oriental (CEMRINO) to establish a network of marinereserves in Negros Oriental. Silliman University Marine Laboratory conductedresource assessments in Bais Bay under the Coastal Living Resources Project and theEnvironmental Resource Management Project [20]. The DENR Regional Office 7also conducted biophysical studies to support the establishment and monitoring ofthe Coastal Environment Project sites.To date, the Provincial Resource Management Division continues to conduct

biophysical studies to assess areas for the establishment of marine sanctuaries andevaluate the progress of management for the established sites. The SynergisticManagement of Coastal Resources Project also conducted resource assessmentsspecifically to address the establishment of more marine sanctuaries and manage-ment of mangrove resources in the province.

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Fig. 1. Map of the Philippines, showing primary study sites and those where the MCD survey was

conducted (modified from http://education.yahoo.com/reference/factbook/rp/map.html).


2.2. Sogod Bay, Southern Leyte

Sogod Bay, on the southern coast Leyte, was among the 12 priority bays identifiedby the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Department of Agriculture in theFisheries Sector Program (FSP). Sogod Bay is currently a site of the FisheriesResource Management Project (FRMP) (Phase 2 of FSP). The FSP supported thedrafting of a technical resource and ecological profile for the bay [21]. Ultimately thetechnical resource and ecological profile was updated by the FRMP augmenting thecommunity generated (Participatory Community Resource Assessment Profile)resource and environmental profile [22,23].

http://education.yahoo.com/reference/factbook/rp/map.html

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3. Methods

This study reviewed the different CRM resource profiles and plans of the studysites, legislation developed in aid of CRM, implemented programs. Documentanalysis was augmented by interviews of 30 key informants. The key informantsinclude Municipal/City Planning and Development Officers; Municipal/CityAgricultural Officers; Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources of the Department of Agriculture(BFAR) personnel both from local and regional offices.The coastal management planning process framework adapted for Philippine local

government is used as a guide in tracing the impact of biophysical studies on thesustainability of ICM. In principle, the biophysical data set should permeate all thefive phases of the process (Fig. 2).The MCD survey in five provinces was conducted by interviewing responsible

municipal or city personnel and observing what was stored in their databases. Thenumber of sites per province for this survey is shown in Fig. 3.

4. Findings

4.1. Biophysical study approaches

There are currently two approaches being used for biophysical assessments insupport of coastal resource management. These are the Resource Ecological

National policy and legal framework

Phase 1

Phase 5

Phase 2 Phase 3

Phase 4

Issue Identification and baseline assessment

CRM plan preparation and

adoption

Action plan and project

implementation

Local legislation

Coastal law Enforcement

Regulation

Annual program Revenue Preparation and generation Budgeting

Monitoring and evaluation

Information management, Education and outreach

External revenue source

Multisectoral and inter-LGU participation and resource sharing

Fig. 2. The coastal management planning process being adapted for Philippine local government [24].

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Municipal Coastal DatabaseDistribution of LGUs Surveyed

79

52

5

816

1

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

Sarangani NegrosOriental

Bohol Cebu Davao delSur

No

. of

Mu

nic

ipal

itie

sExpansion AreaMunicipalities/Cities

Learning AreaMunicipalities/Cities

Fig. 3. Local governments surveyed for use of the municipal coastal database.


Assessment (REA) and the Participatory Community Resource Assessment(PCRA).Resource Ecological Assessments (REAs) are detailed studies that include

biological (species composition and diversity, extent and condition of coastalecosystems, fish stock assessments, plankton composition, coliform bacterialcontamination), and physico-chemical (nutrient analysis, sediment characteristics,hydrography) parameters. The reports or profiles generated are technical andquantitative in nature. REAs are conducted by highly skilled technical personsmostly coming from the academe. Methodologies are generally based on Englishet al. [25].For the CRMP learning area in Negros Oriental, Silliman University Marine

Laboratory (SUML) was contracted by the United States Agency for InternationalDevelopment (USAID) to establish baseline information and determine indicatorsfor monitoring [20].Likewise, SUML was contracted by BFAR to conduct REA for Sogod Bay in

Southern Leyte to develop a management plan for the bay to regenerate coastalresources and rehabilitate the coastal environment among other objectives [21].SUML also conducted a post-REA activity to evaluate the impact of CRMinitiatives in the Bay as a result of the FSP. In areas where there are localgovernment or national government established marine protected areas (MPAs), anabbreviated REA specific to coral reef ecosystems are done to monitor the progressof the MPAs.Participatory Community Resource Assessment (PCRA) involves community

participation with very minimal technical input. Usually, resource maps, transectand trend diagrams are generated as a result of consensus among communityparticipants [26]. This approach has been applied more recently to increase the

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participation of the community in the management process and the relativelyminimal cost of the assessment.PCRAs in the CRMP learning area in Negros Oriental were implemented by the

Rotarian Martin ‘‘Ting’’ Matiao Foundation (TMF). Selected community membersin each of the CRMP learning sites in Negros Oriental conducted their own PCRAwith CRMP and TMF staff assistance and came up with their own municipal coastalenvironmental profile. The municipal profiles are summarized in Yambao et al. [19].More recently, prior to the post-REA activities in Sogod Bay, Southern Leyte, the

BFAR Regional Office conducted PCRA in sites identified for the implementation ofFRMP.

4.2. Extent of use of the biophysical studies

In general, the use of the results of biophysical studies was observed to be variableand generally limited to determining coastal zones (e.g. multiple use, rehabilitation,tourism zones) and baseline information as to the status of the coastal resources. Theextent of use or impact on CRM for each of the approaches in data collection isdifficult to ascertain. While two separate studies were actually made and twoseparate reports drafted, the PCRA report [19] made reference in most cases to theREA report [20].

4.2.1. Negros Oriental

The results of the PCRA and REA studies incorporated in profiles for each of thelearning sites are very evident in each of the CRM plans for the learning sites [27–29].References are made to the coastal environmental profile and a summary of which isincluded as a chapter in the management plans.Interviews with City/Municipal Planning and Development Officers (C/MPDO)

indicate that the profiles do aid the municipal administration to determine prioritysites (short listing) to implement management initiatives and establish coastal zones.However, in the final determination of sites, detailed technical descriptions of theresource boundaries of management areas was done by the Provincial ResourceManagement and Development Office (PRMDO). The findings of such studies areusually attached or referred to in the enactment of ordinances to legalize theestablishment of the marine reserves.The Municipality of San Jose enacted an ordinance [30] known as ‘‘Comprehen-

sive Ordinance for Sustainable Management, Development, and Conservation ofCoastal Resources of the Municipality of San Jose, Negros Oriental’’. Thisordinance includes the establishment of coastal use zones among others and makesreference to the coastal environment profile [19] for the municipality. In Bais City,the profile is now being used to guide the proponents of an ordinance to zone uses inBais Bay.Interviews with the CPDOs of Bais and Tanjay Cities revealed that the profiles are

used to determine mariculture and possible development sites. In Bais, sites formilkfish fish cage culture were determined using the profile. In Tanjay, investors anddevelopers have requested copies of the profile to determine possible sites for

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investment and development purposes. An ordinance to control and manage thecollection of fish fry in the coastal of waters Tanjay City was drafted based on theprofile but because of constituent lobbying, the ordinance did not pass.In 2001, Bais Bay was affected by a red tide. The BFAR Regional Office (Regional

Fisheries Laboratory) as mandated by its charter conducted monitoring in the bay.The REA profile [20] served as baseline information to determine the normalplankton counts in the bay before the red tide occurred.In Dumaguete City, opponents to a proposed land reclamation plan, used the

biophysical data to try to convince the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) and theCity Administration to abandon their plan to reclaim a portion (1.3 ha) of the seasfronting Silliman University for a fast ferry terminal. In spite of the data setpresented to the local office of the DENR, BFAR the tourism office, they alldeclared that there was nothing wrong with reclaiming the area or the loss of fishinggrounds and habitat [31]. But, the National Historical Institute was able to convincethe regional office of the DENR to require the PPA to conduct a full environmentalimpact assessment [32].To aid legislation to limit fish cage culture of milkfish (Chanos chanos) in Siyt Bay,

Negros Oriental, SUML was requested to study [33] the carrying capacity of the Bay.Reports of algal blooms and sediment accumulation prompted this need. The studyresulted in an ordinance stopping any expansion of the fish cage operation,monitoring and collection of an environmental fee annually for every square meterof fish cage. In May 2002, a fish kill in the bay catalyzed the use of the biophysicaldata as baseline information for an independent monitoring and evaluation by fishcage operators.

4.2.2. Sogod Bay, Southern Leyte

In 1997, the Regional Development Council and the National EconomicDevelopment Authority of Region 8 (funded by USAID) commissioned the draftingof a Comprehensive Coastal Resource Management Plan for the Eastern VisayasRegion that included Sogod Bay [34]. A review of the management plan showed thatit made reference to and heavily relied on the FSP REA profile for its baselineinformation [21]. The said plan was apparently not made available to themunicipalities in Sogod Bay and is generally not being implemented.In the eight municipalities surveyed, only the municipalities of Malitbog and

Liloan had CRM related plans [35,36] that made reference to the biophysical studies.The Malitbog plan made reference to the FSP REA profile [21] while the Liloan planwas based on a more recent PCRA initiated by BFAR Region 8. Except for theestablishments of marine sanctuaries or ‘‘parks’’, most of the activities focus onincreasing fisheries production (e.g. fish pot making, seaweed production, promotingdeep sea fishing and Tilapia culture).Access to information by all stakeholders is not certain. Interviews of key

informants in the area revealed that the FSP contracted REA for Sogod Bay was notgiven to the municipalities. Copies of the BFAR Region 8 PCRA profiles were alsonot made available to most of the municipalities and were thus not referred to.

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Changes in the local political leaders as well as CRM related personnel have erodedthe link between FSP and ICM initiatives.A blatant example of the non-use of biophysical information is the mangrove

reforestation initiative in the area. The FSP Profile for Sogod Bay [21] recorded thatRhizophora species is not the dominant species in the bay considering the rockysubstrate and therefore when used as a reforestation species will most likely notsurvive. In spite of this finding, reforestation activities in the bay continue to useRhizophora species as a reforestation material. The poor survival rate of 0–25%, canthus be explained.Since the results of the FSP REA Profile for Sogod Bay were not made available to

the municipalities, the biophysical study had very little impact on the establishmentof marine sanctuaries as well as other management initiatives. Interviews revealedthat the establishment of recent marine sanctuaries was based on the recommenda-tion of the BFAR Region 8 divers that conducted a separate baseline study.The FSP REA Profile is currently used as baseline data to determine the state of

the resources and evaluate the impact of resource management initiatives on the bayafter FSP. The results (post-REA) will be used to guide the implementation ofFRMP initiatives in the bay.

4.3. Biophysical data management

4.3.1. Provinces utilizing the municipal coastal database

Data sets generated for the CRMP in the five provinces of the study are availableas published materials in the form of coastal environmental profiles and are availableat the Municipal Agricultural Office, Municipal Planning and Development Office ofthe learning area municipalities. Normally, the provincial environment office or itsequivalent such as the Provincial Resource Management Division Office (PRMDO)in Negros Oriental or the Bohol Environment Management Office in Bohol containthe published materials. These are made available to the general public but only afew organizations or individuals (the academe, media, non-governmental organiza-tions) do request for such biophysical information.The CRMP likewise developed the Municipal Coastal Database (MCD 2000)

software [37] to electronically house the information generated through the PCRA aswell as REA and other secondary information acquired in the development of themunicipal profile. The MCD runs on Access Microsoft Software platform. TheMCD also allows for the updating of information and report generation as wellselected trend analysis.Each learning area municipality was provided with the software and trained to use

the software. These are available and can usually be found at the Municipal Planningand Development Office. They are likewise encouraged to update the ProvincialMunicipal Coastal Database Center housed at the Provincial Resource ManagementDivision Office (Fig. 4).The survey of 53 municipalities and cities that had previously been provided with

the MCD software and instructions on its use revealed that up to 86% of the localgovernments had an ‘‘operational’’ MCD but that a consistently lower portion had

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updated the MCD with current information (Fig. 5). In the case of Bohol Province,only 23% reported having updated the MCD during the survey year of 2002 whileNegros Oriental reported a 44% update rate. A primary reason for the lack ofconsistent updating of the MCD was a shortage of permanent personnel assigned forthe task of MCD maintenance within the local government as indicated in Fig. 6.Another major factor hindering updated information in the MCD was the weakcapacity of the local government to continue field monitoring and to collect newPCRA data. Thus, in Negros Oriental, for example, the municipalities were relyingon the technical expertise from the PRMDO to monitor their marine sanctuaries.Most of the personnel involved in CRM were overwhelmed by other assignmentsand therefore could not update the information.In spite of the limitations of the local government personnel to fully maintain

and update the MCD, most reported that the MCD was useful for CRM planning

Provincial Municipal Coastal Database Center

Provincial Partners &

Stakeholders

Regional Offices of the

National Government

Agencies

MCD MCD MCD MCD MCD

Fig. 4. Current flow and management of database between of local and regional levels. (modified from

DENR et al. [12]).

56%

46%39%

83%86%86%

44%

23%28%

83%

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

NOri

Cebu Davao delSur

% of LGUs withoperational MCDs% of LGUs withupdated MCDs

56%

46%39%

83%86%86%

44%

23%28%

83%

NegrosOriental


% of LGUs withoperational MCDs% of LGUs withupdated MCDs

Per

cen

t

Sarangani

Fig. 5. Percent of local governments with operational and updated MCDs.

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89%

62%

83% 83%

100%

50%

67%

31%

44%

86%

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Sarangani NegrosOriental


% of LGUs surveyedwith MCD personassigned% of LGUs withpermanent status ofMCD person

89%

62%

83% 83%

100%

50%

67%

31%

44%

86%

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

NegrosOriental


% of LGUs surveyedwith MCD personassigned% of LGUs withpermanent status ofMCD person

Per

cen

t

Fig. 6. Percent of local governments with MCD person-in-charge and their employment status.

Fig. 7. Local governments and other organizations using MCD for planning.


(Fig. 7). It was also reported that other organizations took advantage of the MCDfor information (Fig. 7).In those government offices that reported an under or non-utilized MCD, a

common reason was almost always related to a computer technology relatedproblem and not because of a lack of appreciation for its usefulness as a tool. But,the two problems are interrelated in that for those with a high level of awareness ofCRM and about the importance of using good information for planning, theymanaged to solve the computer related, program or other technical problems so theycould make use of the MCD. Thus, its use was seen to be evolving as the perceptionof need increased in selected areas. The adequacy of lack of staff to maintain thesystem could also be partially explained in relation to the perceived need for theMCD.

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4.3.2. Sogod Bay, Southern Leyte

Results of the FSP REA Reports are available only in limited printed form at theRegional Office of the BFAR in Tacloban City and its national office in Manila.Because of the limited copies, interested stakeholders find it difficult to access thereports.With the BFAR FRMP, although not completed as yet, there are indications that

copies of the PCRA reports initiated by project are available at the municipal level.At the same time, copies of the post-FSP REA surveys are also made available to themunicipal project sites. There is a plan to publish the said reports.FRMP is currently developing Philippine Fisheries System 2 (Philfis2) to house the

data generated by the project that includes the post-REA and Socio EconomicAssessments (SEA) results for Sogod Bay. The software utilizes Microsoft SQLplatform. Philifis2 is a national database linked on the municipal and regionalfisheries management units connected via the Internet facilities (Fig. 8). The core ofthe system is on fisheries management but also incorporates other biophysicalparameters as well as socio-economic indicators.The management information system that FRMP is striving to develop is

something that is laudable but idealistic. It is envisioned to provide the technicalinformation that is required for the management of the fisheries from different levels.As mandated by the Philippine Fisheries Code (Republic Act 8550), BFAR ismandated to conduct fish stock assessments to determine the maximum sustainableyields of economically important species. With this system, fish stocks could betterbe monitored.The system’s future however, is facing difficulty. First, the software platform that

is being used is expensive and not readily available. Interviews with BFAR personnelthat were trained in data management reveal that software are not installed in thecomputers distributed for that purpose, second, most of the municipalities do not yethave Internet communication facilities. There were also some problems in thestandardization of data sets considering that most of the Post REA activities wereconducted ahead of the system development and therefore may face someincompatibility.

Internet

Municipal

Regional

National

Internet

Fig. 8. Conceptual data and communication architecture of PhilFIS 2 (modified from Gayanilo and

Razon, [38]).

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5. Conclusion and recommendations

Biophysical data sets continue to be generated in support of ICM initiatives in thePhilippines. They continue to provide baseline information as well as to substantiateissues that need to be addressed and help prioritize specific initiatives.The biophysical data generated however, are underutilized. Generally, the flow of

information stops in the planning stage. This can be attributed to the difficulty inaccessing the information, lack of perceived need for the information or lack oftechnical know how in utilizing the information as well as updating the information.In most cases, ICM are still project based and the use of data stops with the life ofthe project.

Technical data sets continue to be needed. While PCRA allows the community toparticipate in the generation of the profile for a particular locality and thereforeincreases the appreciation for the biophysical condition of the area, technicalquantitative data sets are still needed.If there are no secondary sources available, then it necessitates that a REA be

conducted to provide a complete set of baseline information. As in Negros Oriental,legislation and the establishments of marine reserves are very much dependent ontechnical reports.

A data based decision-making process should be inculcated. There are indicationsthat the extent of use of the biophysical data is dependent on the need and demandfor it. For instance, for a marine reserve to be established, a survey of the reefcondition is needed as an attachment to ordinances. Red tide monitoring is needed todetermine whether a fish ban should be lifted.While extensive coastal environmental profiles may be generated, if there is no

perceived need for them, they will remain dormant on the shelf. There is a need toadvocate for an ‘‘informed’’ decision-making among local government units. Thismay be attributed to the absence of incentives for data based decisions to offset thecost of generating and updating biophysical information. For instance, the grantingof permits by local governments to development projects is not tied to theEnvironmental Compliance Certificate requirement of the DENR through theEnvironmental Impact Statement System (Presidential Decree, 1586). In most casesif not questioned by stakeholders, the mayor’s permit suffices and gives developersthe nod to implement development. The use and demand for the biophysical data isreactive in these situations and rather than proactive.

Municipal personnel should be trained how to use the data and update the

information. The extent of use of the biophysical data is also limited by theinstitutional arrangements. In most cases, there are no technically trained people inthe local government that can effectively interpret the biophysical data set and giveadvice to the administrators. Most of the local government units rely on thePRMDO and national government agencies that are region based for technicalsupport. There is a need to strengthen the technical capabilities of the localgovernment and perhaps hire a technical person to specifically address needs ofcoastal resources. In many cases, CRM is under the Municipal Agriculture Officethat is already overwhelmed with land based agricultural needs.

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Regularly updating and making accessible of biophysical data sets to the stakeholders.

The publication of profiles and the establishment of the electronic municipal databaseis one factor that made efficient the access and retrieval of information.The MCD developed by CRMP of DENR is a system that can address the basic

database requirements. It uses a platform that is readily available to most computers.If regularly updated, its use can be sustained. However, the software is customizedfor present needs and it may need to adapt and CRM evolves. As the informationneeds grow, an expanded information system may be needed although for presentneeds, it is sufficient. CRMP in the development of the profiles utilized theGeographical Information System (GIS) mapping tool. The maps generated by thesystem have sparked interest for local government heads to be interested in theircoastal resources. This points to a need for more accessible computerized mappingtools as part of the MCD.In summary, it is apparent that there is an increasing need and demand for

managed data sets upon which CRM planning and implementation can be based.Although in the Philippines, where data collection, its management and analysis anduse for planning is not inherently part of the local government regular functions orculture, it is quickly becoming recognized as an important function and tool for localgovernments. Where the MCD is functioning within the local government system, itreceives praise and is producing results in terms of improved coastal managementplanning and implementation of CRM best practices such as marine sanctuaries,zoning schemes and permitting systems for fishing or other uses of resources andspace. Thus, although there is a long way to go for fully data-based coastalmanagement system in the Philippines, the seeds of such a system are growingrapidly in the Central Visayas where this study was conducted.

Acknowledgements

This research was made possible with the financial support of the David andLucile Packard Foundation (Grant no. 2000-14652) and National ScienceFoundation (Grant no. DGE-0132132). The opinions expressed herein are thoseof the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the David and LucilePackard Foundation or National Science Foundation. The Coastal ResourceManagement Project of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources,supported by the USAID and implemented by Tetra Tech EM Inc., is thanked forproviding information and for supporting the participation of A. White. EvelynDeguit, Michael Ocana and Jessie Floren, also supported by the CRMP, are thankedfor providing the survey data on the Municipal Coastal Database.

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ARTICLE IN PRESS


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Documents

Do biophysical studies and coastal databases enhance coastal management sustainability? Several Philippine cases