Ecology, Environment and Conservation Paper

INDIGENOUS ECOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE (IEK) ON THE UTILIZATION AND CONSERVATION OF COASTAL RESOURCES IN SIQUIJOR ISLAND, CENTRAL PHILIPPINES

Billy T. Wagey and Abner A. Bucol

Abstract

Fishers’ indigenous ecological knowledge on the utilization of marine and coastal resources in San Juan, Siquijor is assessed and described. Local fishers, especially those accustomed in using the traditional gears,have developed skills to harmoniously utilize coastal resources amidst hardships such as during extreme weather conditions. The potentially sustainable fishing and gleaning practices are briefly annotated. Indigenous ecological knowledge has been successfully passed on to several generations of fishers until recently when fishing, as an occupation, becomes obsolete and most gears have been modified.