Current
Situation
The region
is
vulnerable
to natural
disasters.
The region
is visited
by
destructive
typhoons
several
times every
year. The
presence of
active
volcanoes
poses a
constant
threat to
Bicolanos.
Flooding and
landslides
are common.
Flooding is
experienced
in the Bicol
River Basin
in the
provinces of
Albay and
Camarines
Sur. It has
a drainage
area of
about 3,156
km2,
majority of
which (63.40
percent) is
agricultural,
and the rest
are forests,
wetlands,
rivers and
lakes. There
is high
siltation in
the river
basin area
as water
carries
materials
coming from
Mt. Mayon.
Disaster
risk is high
in most of
these
environmentally
constrained
areas
because
there are
houses,
commercial
establishments,
and other
structure in
the area.
Materials
ejected
during
eruptions
pose danger
to people,
infrastructures,
farmlands,
properties
at the base
and
mid-slope of
the volcano.
The most
common
hazards are
lava flows
and base
surges.
Other
dangers are
earthquakes,
and
tsunamis.
Frequent
weather
disturbances
affect the
Bicol Region
inducing
water
related
disasters
such as
floods,
landslides
and mud and
debris
flow. Flood
management
however is
only focused
on the more
expensive
engineering
solutions
rather than
the
non-structural
measures.
The
structural
measures
were not
sufficient.
Intermittent
sections of
river
training
works and
drainage
structures
were
constructed
solving the
problem
locally.
Palliative
measures
such as
river
dredging are
common but
these only
provide
immediate
and short
lived
solutions.
Bicol has 17
areas in the
National
Integrated
Protected
Areas System
(NIPAS)
covering
60,485
hectares
that provide
the major
life support
system of
Bicol.
The recent
typhoons (Milenyo
and Reming)
in 2006
caught the
Bicolanos
unprepared.
Local
disaster
coordinating
councils
were not
prepared in
terms of
organization,
rescue
equipment
and manpower
to respond
to the
disaster.
Vulnerable
communities
resisted
evacuation
for fear of
losing their
properties
and
reluctance
to live in
evacuation
centers.
In the
province of
Albay, the
Public
Safety and
Emergency
Management
Office (APSEMO),
was created
as an
independent
department
so that the
province
will have an
empowered
disaster
risk
management
programs. It
was
designated
as the
permanent
secretariat
and
technical
arm of
Albay’s
Provincial
Disaster
Coordinating
Council (PDCC).
It is
directed to
reduce
disaster
risks in
order to
achieve
sustainable
economic
growth.
APSEMO’s
objective is
to manage
disaster
risks toward
more
pro-active
and disaster
resilient
communities
in Albay.
The APSEMO
has been
enrolled in
the
Department
of Local
Interior and
Government
Good
Practices in
Local
Governance:
Facility for
Adaptation
and
Replication
(GO-FAR).
This is a
facility
designed to
build the
capacities
of LGUs by
providing
opportunity
to improve
local
governance
performance
through
sharing and
replication
of good
practices
that are
participatory,
innovative
and
sustainable.
The
Provinces of
Sorsogon,
Pampanga,
and
Sarangani
are
replicating
the
permanent
disaster
management
office.
Albay has
become a
learning
center for
disaster
management.
Study tours
organized by
other local
governments
are looking
into the
APSEMO
practices
and
opetations.
The province
of Albay has
also
initiated
the “Albay
in Action on
Climate
Change”
(A2C2)
program. It
has
proclaimed
the
pioneering
prototype
for local
climate
change
adaptation
and embedded
disaster
risk
reduction to
promote
climate
proofing and
disaster-proofing
of
development.
It has
created the
Center for
Initiatives
and Research
on Climate
Adaptation
(CIRCA) as
its research
institution
on
progressive
sustainable
agriculture,
forestry,
energy and
eco-cultural
tourism. The
main
strategies
of this
program are
climate
adaptation
and climate
education,
based on
public and
private
partnership
initiatives.
There are
several
foreign-assisted
projects
which with
some
provinces in
the region
as their
pilot areas.
Two examples
are the
Action
Against
Hunger/Accion
Contre La
Faim (ACF)
funded-project
entitled
“Disaster
Risk
Reduction
Project (DRR)
Bicol
Region”
which will
conduct a
household
vulnerability
and risk
analysis for
the
provinces of
Camarines
Sur and
Catanduanes
and the
Strengthening
Capacities
for Climate
Risk
Management
and Disaster
Preparedness
in Selected
Provinces of
the
Philippines
of the
Department
of
Agriculture
with funding
support from
the World
Bank. It
will be
implemented
in the
municipalities
of Buhi,
Camarines
Sur;
Guinobatan,
Albay and
Gubat,
Sorsogon.
There will
be three
pilot
barangays
for each
municipality.
back to top
Desired
Situation
With the
lessons
learned from
past
disasters
and the
conscious
efforts to
reduce
disaster
risks, Bicol
looks
forward to
zero
casualty and
minimum
damage to
property
during
occurrence
of hazards.
Settlements
will not be
allowed in
high
disaster
risk areas
and
appropriate
disaster
mitigating
measures are
installed in
moderate and
low risk
areas.
All local
government
units will
have
disaster
management
offices
responsible
for disaster
preparedness,
response,
mitigation,
and
recovery.
The disaster
management
offices will
automatically
operationalize
disaster
guidelines
during
calamities.
Communities
will be
pro-active
such that
they can
determine a
looming
disaster
using early
warning
systems (EWS)
in their
respective
areas. The
EWS include
rain gauges
in strategic
areas within
a cluster of
barangays
with
homogenous
physical
characteristics.
Residents
will be
trained how
to implement
the
community
communication
system and
evacuation
procedures.
Evacuation
centers and
hospitals
will be safe
from
hazards.
At the
regional
level, a
weather-forecasting
office to
determine
weather
disturbance
and
disseminate
timely
information
through
media shall
be
established
in the
region.
back to top
Strategic
Interventions
-
The
region
shall
establish
a
regional
weather
station
equipped
with
world-class
atmospheric
and
meteorological
facility
that can
give
real
time
information
on all
aspects
of the
weather
especially
temperature,
rainfall,
and
wind.
The DOST
Research
and
Development
Program
shall
address
the
development
of
Filipino
capability
for
weather
sciences
and
attract
the best
Filipino
minds to
remain
and work
for the
Filipino
people.
Doppler
radar
system
shall be
established
in Virac,
Catanduanes.
It will
accurately
measure
wind
velocity
and
rainfall
intensity.
State of
the art
flood
forecasting
and
warning
system
shall be
established
in the
Bicol
river
basin.
-
Vulnerability
of
coastal
communities
to
climate
related
hazards
shall be
reduced
by the
re-planting
of
mangroves
that
will
serve as
buffer
in times
of storm
surges.
Communities
located
in areas
fronting
the open
sea
shall be
relocated
to safe
higher
grounds.
Settlements
in high
risk
areas
shall be
relocated
to safe
areas
where
access
to basic
social
services
and to
livelihood
opportunities
shall be
provided.
Growth
of new
settlements
shall be
redirected
in safe
and low
risk
areas
where
appropriate
facilities
and
services
shall be
provided.
-
A safe
school
build
program
shall be
implemented
to
ensure
that
school
buildings
are
ready to
be
evacuation
centers
and are
sturdy
to
withstand
strong
wind and
rain.
Likewise,
a safe
hospital
program
shall be
implemented
to
ensure
that
hospitals
can
effectively
deliver
its
services
during
the
occurrence
of
disasters.
Insurance
of
schools,
hospitals
and
other
public
buildings
shall be
done for
risk
transfer
and
resilience
during
disasters.
-
Measures
will be
done to
reduce
the
impact
of
climate
change
on the
lives of
Bicolanos.
Rainwater
collection
system
shall be
established
especially
in areas
highly
vulnerable
to
drought.
Recycling
of used
water
should
also be
pursued.
This can
be used
for
irrigation
and
household
consumption.
The use
of neon
and
high-wattage
lights
on
billboards
and
outdoor
advertisements
shall be
regulated.
These
shall be
shut off
at a
considerable
time to
conserve
on
carbon
footprint
emissions.
-
Urban
spaces
like
rooftops,
vacant
and idle
lands
shall be
converted
into
urban
gardens.
Ornamental
and
medicinal
plants
shall be
planted
to help
mitigate
the
effect
of
pollution,
flooding
and
improve
the
urban
scenery.
Climate
field
schools
shall be
established.
These
will
serve as
venue
for
discussion
among
farm
managers
on
appropriate
farm
practices
given
weather
forecasts.
-
Climate
change
adaptation
will be
integrated
into
development
planning,
policies,
budget
and
accounting
through
the
passage
of local
ordinances.
An
innovative
financing
mechanism
and
funding
allocation
for
disaster
risk
reduction
and
climate
change
projects
like
providing
incentive
package
for
those
engaging
in
climate
change
designed
infrastructure;
investments
on
carbon
sequestration
and
intensify
research
and
extension.
-
Capability
building
on
carpentry,
masonry,
welding
and
other
skills
will be
given to
the
unemployed
youth
and
adults
in the
barangays
to
provide
the
labor
for the
construction
of
houses
and
buildings
especially
in times
of
calamities.
New
methods
in
construction
and
design
will be
taught
to speed
up work,
lower
cost of
construction,
and make
houses
disaster
proof.
-
Data
collection
on the
weather
at the
household
level
should
be
adopted
by LGUs.
An
example
of this
is the
local
weather
data
using
home-based
stations
that
make use
of
simple
gadgets.
The
information
collected
can be
sent to
a
central
station
using
SMS for
collation,
analysis
and
forecasting.
This
data
collection
procedure
has
already
been
undertaken
in the
BRBWMP
areas.
-
Engineering
solutions
for
flood
control
and
drainage
shall be
continuously
implemented
in the
region.
Efforts
to shift
from
flood
control
to flood
management
(mitigation)
will be
pursued
and
piloted
in the
Bicol
river
basin
with the
implementation
of the
BRBWMP
Flood
and
Hazard
Mitigation
and
Watershed
Management
component.
The
Bicol
River
Basin
Watershed
Management
Project
(BRBWMP)
shall
address
the
extreme
flooding
at the
basin
area.
Watershed
rehabilitation
and
construction
of
appropriate
flood
control
facilities
(sheet
piles)
particularly
in the
basin
area and
along
the
rivers
where
Mayon
lahar
flows
will be
done.
-
The
Bicol
River
Basin
Watershed
Management
Project
(BRBWMP)
shall
address
the
extreme
flooding
at the
basin
area.
Watershed
rehabilitation
and
construction
of
appropriate
structural
flood
control
measures
such as
the
sheet
piles,
particularly
in the
basin
area and
along
the
rivers
where
Mayon
lahar
flows,
will be
installed.
Coco-coir
geo-textile
or
inter-locking
blocks
technologies
will
replace
most
structural
flood
and
erosion
control
measures.
-
Urban
forests
will be
established
for
carbon
sink,
flood
control
and
windbreak.
Biological
engineering
will
encouraged
for soil
erosion
and
river
control.
Structural
measures
will
still be
used.
The
government
shall
buy out
properties
in
severely
flooding
areas to
prevent
disasters
to
happen.
Because
flooding
can
bring
benefits,
such as
making
soil
more
fertile
and
providing
nutrients
in which
it is
deficient,
the
government-purchased
lands
will be
planted
with
cash
crops
for food
sufficiency.
-
A single
telephone
access
number,
SMS, and
email
address
for
disaster
related
emergencies
(crimes,
fire,
accidents,
typhoon,
earthquakes,
etc) in
the
region
with
24/7
call
center
support
will be
adopted.
This
emergency
information
system
shall be
established
by the
government
in
collaboration
with the
private
sector
and non
government
organizations.
