Category: Nature for Climate

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Mt Mantalingahan, Philippines

Mt. Mantalingahan Protected Landscape. Photo by Jeanne Tabangay.

Today and in the next blog post, I am going to share about UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the Asia-Pacific region: Mount Mantalingahan Protected Landscape in Philippines and Lagoons of New Caledonia.

What do you need to know about Mount Mantalingahan Protected Landscape? Below are some excerpts from the UNESCO World Heritage Convention site and references from Conservation International:

  • The protected landscape declared as the protected area in Palawan through Presidential Proclamation 1815 signed on June 23, 2009. It covers a total area of 120,457 hectares within the territorial jurisdiction of the municipalities of Bataraza, Brooke’s Point, Quezon, Rizal, and Sofronio Espanola.
  • The peak of Mt. Mantalingahan towering at 2085 meters above sea level is the highest peak in the province and considered sacred by the indigenous Palawan people.
  • The mountain’s substantial forest cover plays an important role in absorbing and storing carbon. Like many forests in this region, it faces considerable threats — including illegal logging and wildlife poaching, conversion to agricultural land, mangrove loss and unsustainable mining.
  • Mount Mantalingahan provides more than US$ 5.5 billion in ecosystem services to people. It is a key biodiversity area where new species are still being discovered.
  • It holds over half its original forest cover and provides an essential watershed for the 200,000 people that depend upon it

State of Biodiversity in Asia and the Pacific

The Asia Pacific region is rich in biodiversity, but the reservoirs of nature face great pressures and is in fast decline. In order to address global biodiversity loss, the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 was adopted by countries, including those from the Asia Pacific. Here is “The state of biodiversity in Asia and the Pacific, a mid-term review of progress towards the Aichi biodiversity target”. Tracking the progress can helps identify the next steps to accelerate progress towards target.

Some excerpts from the report about the state of biodiversity in the region are:

  • The exceptional biodiversity in Asia and the Pacific continues to decline.
  • Combinations of human-induced factors are a key driver of biodiversity loss.
  • Asia and the Pacific continue to experience deforestation and forest degradation.
  • Rapid growth in demand for wildlife products is fuelling unsustainable trade, with impacts inside and outside of the region.
  • Invasive alien species create pressures on the oceanic islands.
  • Marine ecosystems are vulnerable to growth in commercial and artisanal fisheries.
  • The negative impacts of climate change on species and ecosystems are exacerbating the effects of other pressures on Asia and the Pacific’s biodiversity.

There is much more information at the link.