Surprise, surprise. Forests now cover over half of the
Philippines.
It actually increased from
23.9 percent in 2003 to 52.6 percent of the total land area in 2006, according
to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
This is among the country's
major achievements toward achieving international biodiversity targets by 2020,
says a CBD country profile citing the Philippine Millennium Development Goal
report of 2007.
Protected areas increased
from 8.5 percent in 1992 to 12.8 percent of total land area in 2008, including
1,169 marine protected areas (in the form of reserves, sanctuaries and parks).
Improvements in the management effectiveness of these sites rose from 15
percent in 2000 to 30 percent in 2007.
The number of confiscations
of illegally traded wildlife species regulated increased from 513 heads in 2005
to 11,124 heads in 2011; measures such as fish farming and eco-tourism in
protected areas are being implemented.
The Philippines started
formulating its National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan in 1994.
By 2006, 228 key biodiversity
areas covering an estimated 10.56 million hectares were identified.
Indigenous knowledge and the
practices of 16 tribes were documented by the National Commission on Indigenous
Peoples between 2005 and 2008. Access and benefit-sharing have been
institutionalized through the process of free and prior informed consent from
indigenous and local communities.
The Philippines is one of 18
mega-biodiverse countries of the world. These countries contain two-thirds of
the earth’s biodiversity and up to 80 percent of the world’s plant and animal
species. The Philippines ranks fifth in the number of plant species and
maintains 5 percent of the world’s flora.
Species endemism is very
high, covering at least 25 genera of plants and 49 percent of terrestrial
wildlife. The country ranks fourth in bird endemism.
The Philippines is also one
of the world’s biodiversity hotspots with at least 700 threatened species, thus
making it one of the top global conservation areas.
The national list of
threatened fauna species was established in 2004 and includes 42 species of
land mammals, 127 species of birds, 24 species of reptiles and 14 species of
amphibians. The Philippines counts at least 3,214 fish species, of which about
121 are endemic and 76 threatened. In 2007, the Department of Environment and Natural
Resources established a national list of threatened plant species, indicating
that 99 species were critically endangered, 187 were endangered, 176 vulnerable
as well as 64 other threatened species.
The country’s agricultural
ecosystem is remarkable. It is part of the center of diversity of rice,
coconut, mungbean, taro and yam, as well as the center of origin and diversity
of bananas in Southeast Asia.
The Philippines derives large
benefits from ecosystems, supporting fisheries, recreation and tourism. A
watershed with adequate forest cover provides water that supports lowland
agriculture, prevents soil erosion and siltation of coasts and water bodies,
and sustains the supply of surface and groundwater for domestic use. Forests
provide benefit agriculture, industries, water and power needs; tree
plantations and agroforestry provide jobs and revenues, with agriculture
representing 18.4 percent of the country’s GDP in 2007. (SciencePhilippines)
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