Coastal communities in Saint Bernard will be given sustainable and environment-friendly livelihood projects to increase their income, address food insecurity and malnutrition, and adopt a fish farming method to mitigate the effects of climate change through regenerative aquaculture and Ecosystem-Based Adaptation.

Hitting several birds with one stone, the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) in cooperation with the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) 8, and the Local Government Unit (LGU) of Saint Bernard Southern Leyte entered into a Memorandum of Agreement to jointly implement the Regenerative Aquaculture and Ecosystem-Based Adaptation Project in Saint Bernard, Southern Leyte from 2023-2024.

Through the said project, coastal communities in Saint Bernard will be given sustainable and environment-friendly livelihood projects to increase their income, address food insecurity and malnutrition, and adopt a fish farming method to mitigate the effects of climate change through regenerative aquaculture and Ecosystem-Based Adaptation.

Regenerative ocean farming is a climate-friendly model of aquaculture where seaweeds and/or shellfish are grown in a way that requires no freshwater, feed, or fertilizer (Regenerative Ocean Farming, n.d.). Whereas, Ecosystem-based Adaptation is a nature-based solution that harnesses biodiversity and ecosystem services to reduce vulnerability and build resilience to climate change (Ecosystem Based Approach, November 2017).

Emilie Litsinger, the Associate Vice President, Asia Pacific, Climate Resilient Fisheries and Oceans of the EDF expressed her warm gratitude to LGU Saint Bernard and the BFAR for opening their doors in undertaking the project. “We look forward to our partnership. We’re hoping to take our learnings and partnership from St. Bernard to look at other opportunities in Fisheries Management Area 8, to drive the livelihood project to help the communities of this region,” she added.

Further, Mayor Edito L. Mulig expressed his and LGU Saint Bernard’s commitment to proactively engage and provide necessary assistance to ensure the successful implementation of the project.

BFAR through its Provincial Fishery Office in Southern Leyte appreciates the opportunity given by the EDF to provide doors of opportunities for the coastal fishers of the said municipality. The Office also pledged to be an active ally in the realization of the objectives of the project and its future replication in nearby coastal towns in the province. “We express our full support on the implementation, monitoring, and replication phase of the project,” Fervina Avorque, PFO Southern Leyte remarked.

The EDF visited Saint Bernard in 2019 for its preliminary assessment. Thereafter, the area was chosen as the model site for the Regenerative Aquaculture and Ecosystem-Based Adaptation Project because of its rich marine habitat and other natural resources.
Mussel spat lines were initially installed in January 2023 within the waters of Saint Bernard to secure the mussel spats transported from the Iloilo and Negros Oriental private mussel hatcheries, while seaweed (sargassum) propagules were planted in March 2023 to assess their adaptability and survival rate within the waters of Barangay Lepanto, Saint Bernard, Southern Leyte before its mass propagation. Withal, necessary permits, quarantine procedures, and inspection were undertaken by the EDF before these activities to ensure the safe and legal transportation of the mussel spats and seaweed propagules.

Through this initiative, the EDF, BFAR, and LGU Saint Bernard envision creating a plan for the restoration of the coastal marine habitat complex of Saint Bernard Southern Leyte, operationalize a prototype demonstration farm to raise seaweeds and shellfish for research on climate mitigation while providing livelihood and development of additional revenue generation pathways from the cultured products for the benefitting communities through the Regenerative Aquaculture (RA) project, and showcase an integrated community-based climate adaptation and climate mitigation projects.