Professional Documents
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Purposes:
ensure sustainable productivity of land through conservation of
water resources
the prevention or reduction of soil erosion, land slides and debris
flow.
All soft top soils when exposed to rains or streams are subject to
erosion. Washed off soil, when carried away by runoff water will
bring polluted material upon downstream and drainage. Therefore in
addition to the maintenance of fertility soil conservation should also
anticipate those problems.
Geological and Geographical Information of the Philippines
Physical Conditions
Atmosphere, climate and weather
factors: geography and topography, principal air streams, ocean currents,
linear systems, such as the intertropical convergence zone, and tropical
cyclones.
Country climate types according to rainfall distribution (DOST-PAGASA 2014).
- Type I - characterized by two distinct seasons, namely, dry season from
November to April and wet season for the rest of the year.
- Type II - no dry season but is marked with maximum rainfall in November
and December.
- Type III. Seasons are not pronounced but are relatively dry from November
to April and wet for the rest of the year for areas with.
- Type IV climate has an even distribution of rainfall throughout the year.
Corona climate classification
Status of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines
Status of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines
Hydrographical characteristics
70% of the total land area in the Philippines can be considered as watershed
areas.
principal river basins : 419 ; drainage areas: 21 million hectares (DENR
2010).
Source of irrigation water for agriculture, electricity for industries and
households, and drinking water for the general population.
Status of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines
Status of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines
Soil characteristics
It serves as a habitat to different organisms, supports various natural cycles, helps
regulate the Earth’s temperature, cleans and stores water, and detoxifies
pollutants (Asio et al. 2009).
Bureau of Soil and Water Management (BSWM) currently recognizes nine soil orders
in the Philippines, i.e., alifsol, andisol, entisol, histosol, inceptisol, mollisol,
oxisol, ultisol, and vertisol.
causes of declining soil quality : Accelerated land use conversions, deforestation,
kaingin (slash and burn) farming and other unsustainable farming practices, and
poor land and water management are some of the factors contributing to soil
degradation.
Status of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines
Soil erosion is the most common type of soil degradation in the Philippines. It has
affected the productivity of land, limited the rehabilitation or restoration of degraded
lands, lowered the quality of surface water, and modified hydrologic conditions by
changing land
Other types of degradation are dehumification, acidification, salinization,
compaction, water logging, and fertility degradation (BSWM 2013).
Status of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines
Land Cover
Note: No data on area damaged and corresponding estimated value were reported in 2011.
Biodiversity and Ecosystem
Biodiversity and Ecosystem
Air Quality
Pursuant to RA No. 8749, or the Philippine Clean Air Act of
1999, the pollutants monitored to measure ambient air
quality include pollutants at various concentrations,
including but not limited to Total Suspended Particulate
Matter (TSP), Particulate Matter with mass median
diameter less than 25-50 µm matter (PM10 and PM2.5),
carbon monoxide (CO), sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen
dioxides (NO2), and Photochemical Oxidants as Ozone
(O3).
Water Quality
1. Contour canal.
Contour canals are constructed on farmlands
where the soil is deep.
They hold water longer and allow it to seep
slowly into the ground, thus increasing soil
moisture and draining excess water away from
the field.
Soil and Water Management and Conservation in the Philippines
2. Contour bunds
In the process of digging a contour canal, place the soil on the upper
edge of the canal until a mound or bund is formed. (Note: The soil dug
out from the cane/ may also be placed on the lower edge of the canal).
3. Bench terrace.
Bench terraces can be dug at the hillside. The steeper the hillside' the
smaller the terraces. It is recommended that the topsoil be removed first,
the terraces constructed and then the topsoil placed evenly on the
terrace.
4. Contour hedgerow.
The simplest soil erosion control structure for a
hillside is a contour hedgerow.
Soil and Water Management and Conservation in the Philippines
3. Bench terrace.
Bench terraces can be dug at the hillside.
The steeper the hillside' the smaller the
terraces. It is recommended that the topsoil
be removed first, the terraces constructed
and then the topsoil placed evenly on the
terrace.
Farm Management Practices
Crop Rotation
--Two or more crops alternating on same land
--provides continuous soil cover provides
continuous soil cover
Relay intercropping
-- A technique in which different crops are planted
at different times in the same field, and both (or
all) crops spend at least part of their season
growing together in the field.
Farm Management Practices
BALABAG/BABAG OR ITSAKA
obstruction (of any kind) usually oriented perpendicular to a known and
recuing path so as to stop or control entry, passage, movement or, in this
case, water flow.
This practice of the Naaladnons in Naalad, Cebu, primarily aims to arrest
the downward movement of soil, especially after heavy rains, thus
extending the productivity of the marginal slopes.
Traditional soil and water conservation
(SWC) technologies
Soil and water conservation is achieved by harvesting the crops in blocks. In addition
to the yield benefits for several varieties managed separately, the harvesting of small
• Ojekunle, O., & Eruola, E. (n.d.). Principles of Soil and Water Conservation.