MANILA: Philippine fisheries are projected to lose 30-50% of their Maximum Catch Potential (MCP) and 30-50% of their Maximum Revenue Potential (MRP) by the year 2050—relative to their value in the year 2000 due to climate change, if carbon dioxide emissions continue under “business as usual”. Global MCP is projected to decrease by 7.7% and MRP by 10.4% by 2050. The study was done by researchers from the University of British Columbia and published in the journal Scientific Reports.
The fisheries sector including municipal capture, commercial capture, and aquaculture—contributed 1.6% or P197 billion to Philippine GDP in 2014 and employed up to 1.6 million Filipinos as of 2002.
However, climate change and subsequent changes to ocean conditions are predicted to change the current range and distribution of important fishery species. Such changes in distribution are already being observed, with tropical species moving poleward as the oceans warm up. Global marine fisheries landings earn annual gross revenues of around US $100 billion per year.
