Nature of risks and efficacy of risk adaptation measures of farming communities in selected community-based watershed management project in the Philippines

The growing threats facing farming communities and their vulnerability to climate-related hazards under 3 different watershed conditions in the Philippines, namely, lowland-hilly, downstream and hilly-mountainous areas are examined in th is paper. Because farming communities are heavily dependent on agriculture for livelihood which is very vulnerable to extreme climatic conditions, then they are most exposed and vulnerable to risks and hazards associated with extreme weather and climate occurrences, the kind and nature which vary across different sites. The paper thus discusses the farmers' risk management strategies across varying bio-physical locations within the context of a risk, hazard and capacity framework. This is based on the analysis of data gathered through a rapid appraisal using FGDs of different watershed areas and risk mapping to determine the current issues and concerns related to farmers' risk situations. Simple statistical and regression analysis was also used to assess the current vulnerability of farming communities for each site and the factors that determine their ability to adopt specific risk mitigating measures. The efficacy of specific adaptation measures was examined in terms of its impact on the farm income per hectare, the selected impact variable. The results show that farmers are exposed to multiple hazards which include typhoons, drought and plant pests. Water shortage and lack of capital also affect farmers most severely. The effects of extreme rainfall, soil erosion, strong winds and dry spells vary by location. The farmers' responses to these hazards vary and range from development of small water systems to modifying land use. These decisions on the kinds of risk-mitigating measures to adopt are influenced by their socio-economic conditions and physical attributes of their farms. The implication of these findings is that there is a need to get a very good understanding of the conditions of these communities within the watersheds if effective strategies are to be developed to reduce their vulnerability to extreme climatic conditions.