Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Other established ecological principles that can be used for PES include: plant-
ing trees which leads to carbon sequestration and thereby helps mitigate climate
change (Watson et al. 2000); planting trees helps stabilize watershed functions
(FAO 1989); incorporating forest trees in pastoral land will help increase the biodi-
versity of the area (Pagiola et al. 2005). It is on the basis of these principles that
actual payments for environmental services are currently being made in the
Philippines. We illustrate the use of Tier 1 methods with four cases below.
17.2.1.1
Case 1: Baticulan Watershed, Negros Island
The Baticulan watershed is located within the boundary of San Carlos City at the
northeastern side of Negros Island. It lies between the towns of Palampas and Rizal,
covering a total of 428 ha. Part of the main Mandalagan Watershed, it is one of the
six main water sources that supplies for both domestic and agricultural use in and
around the city.
Historically, the whole of Negros Island was naturally covered with rainforest,
however due to massive logging during the 1950s and 1960s, and continuous shift-
ing cultivation, its original natural vegetation coverage has reached below five percent.
Currently, the watershed is mostly farmed using shifting cultivation. Both past and
current land use practices have resulted in serious soil erosion, flooding particularly
during the rainy seasons and degradation of agricultural land.
The widespread degradation in the uplands has urged the City Government of
San Carlos to incorporate in the City Ordinance No. 37 Series of 2004, a special
levy for an environmental fee of PhP = 0.75 (US$1 = PhP 52 at the time of writing)
to be taken for every cubic meter of water billed. This amount has been included in
the restructured water rates imposed on the consumers. The proceeds of the special
levy for the environmental fee will accrue to form a special account known as the
“Watershed Development and Environmental Protection Fund” under the “Baticulan
Watershed Management and Development Project”. The concept of this fund is that
inherent with the use of water are the negative externalities incurred in the produc-
tion and consumption of water. The price of water should include the cost of exter-
nalities to address the negative impacts on the environment. It is estimated that the
budget allocation per year for the project is approximately 1.2 million pesos.
In this case, there is site-specific data on the role of watersheds in the production
of water for the city. Payments are made based on the implicit assumption that a
forested watershed is desirable.
17.2.1.2
Case 2: Manupali Watershed in Northern Bukidnon
The municipality of Lantapan is located in a river valley that is crossed by
Mindanao's major north-south highway some 100 km southeast of Cagayan de Oro
City. The left bank of the Manupali River bounds Lantapan on the south, and to the
north lies the Mt. Kitanglad Range Natural Park. Several sub-watersheds drain from
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