(Excerpts from this blog entry came from the Climate Reality Project and the Migration Policy Institute)
Will Dix and Dale Asis enjoying unseasonably warm weather during Chicago’s winter season February 2017
On February 18, 2017, Chicago and the Midwest was hit with record-breaking temperatures reaching 64 degrees Fahrenheit (CBS Local News, February 2017). Winter temperatures normally hover around the freezing mark, 32 degrees Fahrenheit. So Will Dix and I went outside and enjoyed the unseasonably warm weather. Is this just an anomaly? Or is this part of larger climate change happening worldwide?
Climate Change is Real
Many critics agree that climate change is happening and will affect cities and countries around the world. In 2015, the Climate Reality Project, a non-profit Washington, DC based organization involved in education and advocacy related to climate change reported the Global Climate Risk Index. They listed the Philippines as the number one most affected country by climate change. This is thanks, in part, to its geography. The Philippines is located in the western Pacific Ocean, surrounded by naturally warm waters that will likely get even warmer as average sea-surface temperatures continue to rise.
To some extent, this is a normal pattern: the ocean surface warms as it absorbs sunlight. The ocean then releases some of its heat into the atmosphere, creating wind and rain clouds. However, as the ocean’s surface temperature increases over time from the effects of climate change, more and more heat is released into the atmosphere. This additional heat in the ocean and air can lead to stronger and more frequent storms – which is exactly what we’ve seen in the Philippines over the last decade.
Geography
The Philippines also lacks natural barriers; as a collection of over 7,000 islands there is almost nothing standing between them and the sea. In addition to their coral reefs, one of the best buffers against typhoons are the Philippine mangrove ecosystems. These mangroves help mitigate the impact of storm surge and stabilize soil but have disappeared by almost half since 1918 due to deforestation (an issue for another day). Since 2010, the Bayanihan Foundation has been planting over 30,000 mangrove seedlings in Liloan, Cebu to combat deforestation and climate change.
(standing second from right): James Castillo, foundation board member, leads youth participants in planting mangrove trees in Cebu, Philippines
Other natural factors, like regional wind patterns or currents, can also increase the risk of tropical storms. Geography again plays a role here, as these factors affect different areas of the country differently, due to their unique circumstances. The graphic below from a report by the Philippine Department of Environment and Natural Resources shows how the various regions in the Philippines can face a range of climate threats, based on where they sit on the map.
The map also shows the regions most vulnerable to sea-level rise, another detrimental effect of climate change that can be exacerbated by the storm surge from tropical storms. Sea levels in the Philippines are rising at about twice the global average. And when especially strong storms like Typhoon Haiyan make landfall, this higher sea level contributes to storm surge that can rise upwards of 15–20 feet, displacing thousands or even millions of citizens in coastal communities. Which brings us to our next topic: development in the Philippines.
Development
Developmental factors have made it difficult for the Philippines to prepare and respond to disasters. Evacuation plans, early warning systems, and shelters are critical to dealing with extreme weather events. Warning and relocating thousands or millions of citizens when a storm is approaching would be a massive hurdle for any country – and in the case of a developing nation like the Philippines with nearly 100 million citizens spread out across thousands of islands, the hurdle becomes bigger still.Then there’s what these storms mean for the Philippines’ economy. According to a 2013 statement from government officials, a destructive typhoon season costs the nation two percent of its gross domestic product (GDP). It costs another two percent to rebuild the infrastructure lost, putting the Philippines at least four percent in the hole each year from tropical storms. And when you’re a nation aspiring to grow and create better lives for your citizens, this regular hit to the economy is the last thing you can afford.
James Castillo (standing center) leads youth in a film making workshop
This is not an easy problem to fix, but we need to try. The first step is educating citizens both in the Philippines and around the world about what the nation is facing, and about the practical clean-energy solutions available that can begin to address the harmful effects of climate change in the Philippines and beyond.
Since 2010, Bayanihan Foundation board member James Castillo has been conducting youth leadership and education workshops on environmental sustainability and climate change.
Climate-related displacement is not hypothetical
Since 2008, an average of 21.5 million people per year have been displaced by natural disasters, and thousands more have fled slow-onset environmental hazards. While migration can serve as a safety valve to adapt to changing conditions, few orderly, legal channels exist for climate migrants (also known as environmental migrants) (Migration Policy Institute, 2017).
