‘Shifting Sand Frontiers’: An impact analysis focusing on disaster resilience of fisher communities after the Boskalis near shore dredging in Cavite Province
Summary
In the Manila Bay the New Manila International Airport is being constructed having
substantial impacts within and beyond the geographical location. This research focuses on the
near shore dredging done at the coast of Cavite province, in the south of the Manila Bay. The
goal of this research is to study how the Community Disaster Resilience of small fisherfolk
communities living at that coast and fishing at the dredging site, is being affected by the near
shore sand extraction. By using qualitative methods, such as semi-structured interviews and
participant observation, this study shows what the impact of the dredging is on the daily lives
of small fisherfolk. First, this research elaborates on the livelihoods in the small fisherfolk
communities, that mainly depends on the income from fishing in the area surrounding the
dredging site. This is followed by examining the different forms of impact, including the
impact on Community Disaster Resilience. Both the physical impact of the removal of a
natural buffer zone protecting the coast, and the environmental impact of habitat destruction
have massive ramifications for the Community Disaster Resilience of small fisherfolk.
Consequences such as coastal erosion, income loss and Increased storm surges turned a stable
livelihood into an insecure existence. By researching this impact and the meaning of this
impact to small fisherfolk, this research intends to reveal dynamics at play on our global Sand
Frontiers.