Preview

Saving Precious Remains

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
420 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Saving Precious Remains
Environmental problems in the Philippines

There are few signs today of the Philippines' once sprawling rainforests. With a growing trend in human population, it is hoped that the country's marine environment will not suffer the same fate.
Overfishing and destructive fishing

Fishers in the Philippines are increasingly coming home with pitiful catches. Of a number of factors which have led to this situation, one stands out: over-fishing in many areas. According to the Asian Development Bank (ADB), there has been a drop of 90% in the quantity of marine organisms that can be trawled in some traditional fishing areas of the Philippines.

This isn’t just a question of declining fish stocks and biodiversity, but also of social impacts and economic losses. Mismanagement of fisheries resources is estimated to cost US$ 420 million annually in lost revenues.

At the root of the overfishing problem is weak fisheries management, ineffective policies and poor enforcement of fishery laws.

Coastal infrastructure development

Coastal zone development has been particularly damaging to the Philippines’ marine environment, especially to coral reefs, mangroves, and seagrasses.

As populations have increased, so have their needs for construction materials and living space. Excavation, dredging, and coastal conversion to accommodate coastal development have seen corals being extracted for reclamation and construction, especially in coastal villages.

Mangroves have particularly suffered from coastal development, notably at the hands of the aquaculture industry. In the Philippines, aquaculture has reduced mangrove stands to only 36% of 1900 levels.
Deforestation

After decades of deforestation, which has left about 3% of the original cover, forests continue to be under threat from agriculture and urbanization, illegal logging and forest fires.

Sustained forest loss in the Philippines is causing severe soil erosion, and is threatening the country’s rich

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    The fundamental problem associated with overfishing of the oceans is the possible a lack of supply. Although fish are considered a renewable resource, there must be enough members of that species available to reproduce.…

    • 341 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    One major problem we are facing as a country is the rapid decline in several different species of fish in the ocean. Some specialist have actually looked into this to determine the cause for the decline in fish in the ocean. One of the major causes is that some species of fish are being fished more than others. It is even stated that more fish than the species are being able to actually reproduce. This alone could eventually lead some of the species into extinction. This is definitely something that can be controlled by humans. Typically, fishing period could stop any and all declines however that is not going to happen. Fishing is harder on the ocean environment then toxic pollution or degraded water quality. As human the only thing we can do if we aren’t going to stop fishing is stop targeting the same fish species to prevent extinction. We need to want to keep the environments balanced and as the primary cause of the decline fish stock in the ocean.…

    • 730 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Fishing can disrupt food chains. For example krill fishing in the southern ocean is depleting food supplies for whales and penguins. Overfishing of a species can severely deplete its population, sometimes beyond recovery. Overfishing of the patagonian toothfish in the Antarctic is currently a concern. Bottom trawling catches fish by dragging nets along the sea-bed. This disrupts the eco system by reducing light levels thought increasing turbidity and catches other species as well as the target one. Its carried out in the gull of Alaska, the greenland sea and the barents sea. Fishing quotes have been introduced to limit the number of fish caught and prevent overexploitation of the resource.…

    • 338 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    On the other hand, Daniel Pauly believes that humans have already destroyed our fish stocks in an unsustainable manner. Due to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, countries became able to fish up to 200 metres out to sea which decreased fighting over the traditional fishing ground. This led to an increased interest in the fish market and consequently over-fishing.…

    • 1093 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Science

    • 713 Words
    • 4 Pages

    o Other problems, besides declining fish stock, that result from fishermen’s techniques for catching fish.…

    • 713 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Also destabilized food chains, which cause over populations of some species and the decline in several others. Another problem is harming the economy, if jobs are lost due to fishing companies shutting down due to the lack of fish, then many people will lose their jobs. This results in less tax money that the government receives and growing the amount of unemployed people worldwide. Trawling vessels have progressed to now contain a large capacity of fish and have several plants to package fish into tins, reducing the time the vessels have to return to shore and maximise the time spent in the ocean collecting more fish. Fishing industries are reducing fish reproduction by capturing and killing fish who have not yet matured or reproduced, are not the proper weight, have no market value or are illegal to catch. This quickens the amount of fish unable to continue to reproduce, which then drives the specific fish specie to become endangered. They use severe methods and equipment that is non-selective to fish, that unintentionally harm habitats or catch and kill other inhabitants that are of no value to fishing companies, meaning fishing industries are injuring or killing fish with…

    • 810 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Overfishing Research Paper

    • 2177 Words
    • 9 Pages

    One of the additional problems caused by overfishing is diminished food supply for animals and humans. This hurts the marine ecosystem of oceans and seas all around the globe, which in turn directly impacts human nutrition. Overfishing has increased greatly over the past decade (Nuttal 1). According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, "over 70% of the world 's fish species are either fully exploited or depleted" (Nuttal 1). This problem will continue if people around the world do not change their ways soon to prevent extinction of all of the fish in our planet 's waters. Overfishing of the world 's oceans is rapidly destroying sea life, all of which act as renewable natural resources. As a result, the destruction of such natural resources negatively impacts the quality of…

    • 2177 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    Overfishing has been an issue since humans started fishing for profit. As long as there is a…

    • 1144 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Coral Reef Decline

    • 600 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Over the past several hundred years the conditions of our oceans have decreased drastically. Coral reefs are home to more species than all other marine environments, and many other species rely on the coral reefs for their own survival. Today coral reefs face multiple threats such as pollution, unsuitable fishing practices, global climate change, and other human activities. If humans don’t take action to conserve and improve the conditions of the oceans the coral reefs will suffer. There are many factors that contribute to the death of coral reefs.…

    • 600 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Located in tropical ocean waters, coral reefs provide priceless resources to both human and marine life. The leading natural cause of destruction among the coral reefs is global warming. Other natural causes are earthquakes, hurricanes, cyclones, and typhoons. The destruction to the coral reefs from these natural disasters is minimal compared to the dangers caused by man. Man-made destruction has a much wider impact on the health of the coral reefs. This destruction includes over-fishing, damage from anchors, aquarium industry, overgrowth of seaweed, and being smothered by sediments.…

    • 805 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    According to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) the country has now only about seven million hectares of forest land left. The illegal logging has contributed to the rapid deforestation not to mention the continuous release of permits to big logging companies.…

    • 305 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Coral Reef Research Paper

    • 1846 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Hodgson, G. 1999. A global assessment of human effects on coral reefs. Marine Pollution Bulletin. 38(5): 345-55.…

    • 1846 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Examine three measures that Caribbean countries can implement to minimize the danger posed to coral reefs in the region.…

    • 4206 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The Philippines is home to more than 90 million people as of 2013. Overpopulation and industrialization could perhaps be the major contributors to environmental problems being experienced in the country. With overpopulation and industrialization, our natural resources have a higher demand than supply. Our country is rich in natural resources. We have abundant gold, copper, sulphur, and nickel reserves. We are also surrounded by waters due to our archipelagic state which makes us one of the top fish producing countries in the world. Our vast forests also house a lot of plants and trees which help prevent or decrease the amount of flood in our lands. However, in just a short amount of time, our country’s natural resources are quickly diminishing due to environmental problems experienced in the Philippines. Here are some of the major environmental problems in our country today.…

    • 1064 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Deforestation has been a hot topic throughout the first world now for some years and it's commonly stated that this is one of the worst environmental problems on the planet, yet we aren't even there experiencing the problem, or doing a lot to help rectify it. Rainforests are being destroyed at a rate of 1.5 acres per second throughout Asia, Central and South America, and Africa. Rainforests cover less than 6 percent of the Earth, yet 70 percent of the Earth's species are found within them. For example: Panama has as many plant species as all of Europe combined, and a single island in the Philippines contains more woody plants than all of the US. There are many factors that play in the game of deforestation, the main ones being the growing population and farmland, logging, and cash crops.…

    • 770 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays