Electricity and Water for 1000 Typhoon Victims

As shared in the last report, the orientation on Disaster and Resiliency Preparedness conducted to our MHP communities last November 2019 has opened realizations that with climate change, adverse implications could happen within the community’s ecosystem.  Their natural resources constitute their lifeline.  Their rivers are not only providing water sources for domestic and farm use.  It is also where aquatic resources like fish and fresh water shrimps provided them with additional protein food sources.  Their forest , still lush and verdant green  is still home to wild boars and deers which are their sources of food and income as well.

The point was driven home, that without preparedness of sort they could be highly vulnerable to the vagaries of the changing climate.   With the emergence of virulent storms unheard of in the past, they have to do something to prevent damages.  It is where their customary law of protecting their natural resources called “lappat” has never been doubly significant.  As stated previously, this is their first line of defense.  Among others , the law’s provision of a local policy protecting the forest by banning the cutting of trees out of season has rendered sustainable growth of trees that preserve the flora and fauna of the area.

It is through this where community members became fully aware of determining areas of vulnerabilities where important resources are located or traversing.  Here, some members of SIBAT including one of its board members who is a medical doctor, specializing in toxicology and a strong advocate of herbal medicine, did a transect walk with community members.  Along their route, he identified some endemic herbal crops and explaining its anatomical and pharmacological properties to some community members.  Herbal medicines are important preventive health care measures in fur flung areas for preventable and treatable diseases.   He emphasized the importance of protecting and propagating the species and locate production in areas away from erosion and flooding trails.

Looking at their river systems, and small tributaries, the community emphasized to add on to their lappat system provision, the prohibition of the cutting of trees along creeks and to start planting endemic species to ward off  overflows during strong floods that could damage rice production areas.

Also, the community took a configuration of the larger part of the ecosystem and identified erosion prone areas or flooding pathways that could potentially damage crops.  Farmers are now aware to synchronize planting and harvesting periods to avoid the onslaught of the typhoon months.

Importantly, the community is now aware of saving food supply especially rice when longer drought or rainy periods happen so as to lessen their vulnerabilities to hunger due to crop damage.

In all, the disaster and resiliency preparedness has created greater awareness of climate change negative impacts on their life, food and natural resources.  It has created a new dimension of community-generated risk reduction plan that not only prepare them for any eventualities but also foster strong community bond for their  mutual protection and eventually sustainability. 

As mentioned in the last report, we are preparing for a series of resiliency  workshop orientation with the CBRES communities to  provide them with greater awareness on the risk associated with climate change and what can be done  at least at their levels to mitigate its adverse impact.

Last November 11-14,  five (5)  CBRES communities (Pacgued, Dulao, Malibcong, Kili,Buanao)  represented by  3-5 community members totaling  35 people gathered at the Brgy Hall of Baranggay Kili, Tubo, Abra  to listen and learn about climate change and its consequences such as virulent storms causing floods, erosion and damage to crops and properties  that destroyed their microhydro systems recently.  The community capped the activity with a workshop about action plans to address the climate change concerns. The training venue is about nine (9) hours drive from Manila.

The  various topics  included  orientation on climate change and the reason behind this phenomenon, the aspect of climate change justice followed  by the concepts and principles of appropriate technology.   Being  farming communities , the  practices of sustainable agriculture technologies were also presented these  being deemed as significant mitigating  components to reduce vulnerabilities and risks associated with the vagaries of erratic climate patterns.

When asked how the communities would address and minimize their  damage exposure to destruction from storms, flashfloods and erosion as a result of climate change ,  almost everyone agreed  from the results of their workshop that  their Lappat System  is key to their survival. It is their resiliency anchor amidst the continually distorting climate structure.  

The “Lappat” System is a customary law that governs the protection, utilization and sustainable management of their water, land and forest results and the built- in flora and fauna living within these environmental domains.   For indigenous peoples, their web of life  rest on the stability of their forest reserves, rivers and streams and  ancestral land itself.  Lappat is their mechanism  to ensure that these main resource components are  at equilibrium.  There are strict rules on cutting and replanting trees and stiff penalties for violators, seasons for  hunting and gathering games and even instituting sanctuaries on their rivers and streams  to sustain fresh water fish and other aquatic food resource availability.    As they learned during the   orientation workshop how the forest serves as nature’s lungs that assimilate carbon and gives off oxygen, the more they resolved to double efforts  on  forest protection enforcement.

As to other mitigating measures aside from the “lappat” system, they committed to interface with the local government for local policies and programs  for climate actions.

As for SIBAT, we will continue building robust systems and to hopefully respond to immediate calls for trouble shooting of system to avoid further downtimes and systems power failures of the hydro systems.