Coastal Areas as Safe Zones for Shelter? A Case Study on the Municipality of Daanbantayan, Cebu, as Basis for Coastal Community Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Strategies

Flooding and storm surges are now experienced in coastal communities that were previously believed to be safe havens from such hazards and extreme climate events, manifesting signs that the Philippines is in a state of climate emergency. If nothing is done to address this, apart from the loss of lives and destruction of property from disasters, government resources will be dissipated on recovery and rehabilitation programs rather than the country’s other priority areas for development. This chapter examines perceptions of former coastal residents in Daanbantayan, Cebu, who were hard hit by Super Typhoon Haiyan, on the danger of residing in coastal areas, their reasons for relocating, and the different modes of assistance they received to cope with the impact of the super typhoon. This chapter also covers problems encountered by the LGU in relation to the classification of coastal residents whether they are residing in an unsafe or danger zone vis-à-vis the guidelines on the implementation of the government’s Emergency Shelter Assistance program. Recommendations are made, using the Building Sustainable and Resilient Coastal Communities Framework, by applying the governance and technological adaptive measures, which can be mainstreamed to address climate change problems.