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The municipality of Mogpog in the Philippines was one of the severely hit areas during the 1993 mining disaster in the province of Marinduque. After three (3) decades, the aftermath of the disaster still lingers in the municipality and even in the whole province. This study was conducted to assess the relationship between the social demographics of the residents of Mogpog and their knowledge about heavy metal (HM) pollution and its associated health risks. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among the 314 residents of Mogpog. Six (6) social demographics were considered, such as age, sex, marital status, highest education attainment, monthly household income, and whether the respondents were government employees or not. Results of the binomial logistic regression analysis showed that the social demographics affecting the respondents’ knowledge about HM pollution were marital status and monthly household income (significant at the 0.05 level). Married individuals may have larger and more diverse social networks, which could expose them to a wider range of information, including environmental issues. On the other hand, those with lower incomes may have limited access to formal education or information resources, which could result in lower environmental awareness. The results underscore the need for specific interventions and educational initiatives to enhance the understanding of the adverse health impacts associated with HM pollution among residents in Mogpog

3Environmental Remote Sensing and Geo-Information Laboratory, Institute of Renewable Natural Resources, College of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of the Philippines, Los Baños, Laguna 4031, Philippines 4Early Childhood Education Department, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Indonesia 5Department of Geological Engineering, Institut Teknologi Nasional Yogyakarta, Indonesia *Email: nadisuprapto@unesa.ac.id ABSTRACT Geohazards are often present in highly populated areas. Dynamic changes in population exposure to geohazards have resulted from shifting population numbers, spatial dispersion, and mobility. In addition, the changing vulnerability distribution of the population is a crucial consideration when establishing an effective evacuation strategy. Therefore, exploring the link between geohazards and population exposure is vital to avert disasters. This paper reviewed geohazards around the world based on a dynamic population approach. It identifies and synthesizes evidence of links between certain parts of the dynamic population and geohazard risk management. The major search engine in this investigation was Google Scholar. “Geohazards”, “dynamic population”, and keywords related to geohazards like landslides, floods, drought, earthquake, and tsunami were used, followed by terms related to dynamic population. The review shows that geohazards based on a dynamic population approach include socioeconomic status; gender and gender relations; migration, residency, and mobility; education and knowledge; and religions and beliefs. Understanding those elements is essential to managing geohazard risks because it can assist the government in its financial commitment and allocation in the event of a disaster, constructing effective policies and adaptation plans, and including communities in managing geohazard risks.

Palawan Island is home to one of Southeast Asia’s largest, oldest, and most diversified rainforests hence it was called the «Last Frontier.» However, the island province’s forest is contending with increased conversion of forest lands to plantation and household-level agriculture, intensive mineral mining, illegal logging, and other pressures on its ecosystems. Understanding these factors in relation to the prevalence of deforestation and forest degradation in Palawan is imperative. This paper analyzed these drivers of deforestation and forest degradation in Palawan using the social-ecological systems (SES) and institutional analysis development (IAD) frameworks. A literature review was conducted using a variety of web-based databases and sources and additional data were collected from official websites and reports. The identified major drivers of deforestation and forest degradation in the province include increasing population, migration from lowland to upland areas, illegal logging, mining, wide-scale kaingin and oil palm plantation, wildlife poaching, and weak policy implementation and enforcement. These identified drivers can be the target of the government of Palawan for their forest management plans. Additional findings and recommendations of this paper will also aid in the forest management planning in Palawan and other areas where similar settings exist.

Fish is an important source of protein in human meals around the world. However, the fish that we are eating may be contaminated with toxicants such as metals and metalloids (MMs), which may pose health risks to consumers. Information on MMs content in fishes and their potential spatial distribution scenarios would provide knowledge to the community to create strategies and protect human health. Hence, this study assessed and determined the health risk levels of MMs in both brackish and marine water fish (BMF) in Puerto Princesa City (PPC), Palawan Province, Philippines. PPC has an existing abandoned open mine pit near the PPC coastline called the “pit lake”. The concentrations of As, Ba, Cu, Fe, Mn, Hg, and Zn in fishes were analyzed using portable Olympus Vanta X-ray Fluorescence (pXRF), and the spatial distribution of MMs concentrations in BMF was analyzed using a GIS (geographic information system). Fishes were sampled from fishing boat landing sites and nearby seafood markets. The results revealed that the concentration of MMs in marine fish was generally higher than the brackish water fish. It was recorded that the Hg concentration in marine water fish meat was higher than in brackish water fish meat. The Mn concentration in marine water fish exceeded the permissible limits set by international bodies. An elevated concentration of Mn in BMF was detected across the northern part of PPC, and an elevated concentration of Hg in marine fishes was recorded in the southeast area, where the fish landing sites are located. Ba was also detected in BMF across the southern part of PPC. Moreover, an elevated concentration of Cu was detected in MBF in the northeast and in marine fish in the southeastern area of PPC. Further, this paper elaborates the non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks of these fishes to the PPC population and tourists with respect to the MMs content in fish meat.

Concentrations of heavy metals (HMs) were assessed in Tilapia spp. from selected communities in Calapan City, Philippines. Eleven (11) inland farmed tilapia samples were collected and analyzed for HMs concentration using X-ray fluorescence (XRF). The 11 fish samples were cut into seven pieces, according to the fish body parts, constituting a total of 77 samples. These fish samples were then labeled as bone, fins, head, meat, skin, and viscera. Results showed that the mean concentration of Cd in all parts of tilapia exceeded the Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization (FAO/WHO) limits. The highest concentration was recorded in the fins, which was sevenfold higher than the limit. The trend of the mean concentration of Cd in different parts of tilapia was fins > viscera > skin > tail > head > meat > bone. The target hazard quotient (THQ) recorded a value less than 1. This means that the population exposed to tilapia, within the area where fish samples originated, were not at risk to non-carcinogens. The concentrations of Cu, Pb, Mn, Hg, and Zn in different parts, particularly in skin, fins, and viscera, also exceeded the FAO/WHO limits. The calculated cancer risk (CR) in consuming the fish skin, meat, fins, bone, viscera, and head was higher than the USEPA limit. This indicated a possible carcinogenic risk when consumed regularly. Most of the correlations observed between HMs in various parts of the tilapia had positive (direct) relationships, which were attributed to the HM toxicity target organ characteristics. Results of the principal component analysis (PCA) showed that most of the dominating HMs recorded in tilapia were attributable to anthropogenic activities and natural weathering within the watershed of agricultural areas. The agriculture area comprises about 86.83% of the overall land area of Calapan City. The identified carcinogenic risks were associated with Cd. Therefore, regular monitoring of HMs in inland fishes, their habitat, and surface water quality shall be carried out. This information is useful in creating strategies in metals concentration monitoring, health risks reduction program, and relevant guidelines that would reduce the accumulation of HM in fish.

The domestic water (DW) quality of an island province in the Philippines that experienced two major mining disasters in the 1990s was assessed and evaluated in 2021 utilizing the heavy metals pollution index (MPI), Nemerow’s pollution index (NPI), and the total carcinogenic risk (TCR) index. The island province sources its DW supply from groundwater (GW), surface water (SW), tap water (TP), and water refilling stations (WRS). This DW supply is used for drinking and cooking by the population. In situ analyses were carried out using an Olympus Vanta X-ray fluorescence spectrometer (XRF) and Accusensing Metals Analysis System (MAS) G1 and the target heavy metals and metalloids (HMM) were arsenic (As), barium (Ba), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), lead (Pb), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), and zinc (Zn). The carcinogenic risk was evaluated using the Monte Carlo (MC) method while a machine learning geostatistical interpolation (MLGI) technique was employed to create spatial maps of the metal concentrations and health risk indices. The MPI values calculated at all sampling locations for all water samples indicated a high pollution. Additionally, the NPI values computed at all sampling locations for all DW samples were categorized as “highly polluted”. The results showed that the health quotient indices (HQI) for As and Pb were significantly greater than 1 in all water sources, indicating a probable significant health risk (HR) to the population of the island province. Additionally, As exhibited the highest carcinogenic risk (CR), which was observed in TW samples. This accounted for 89.7% of the total CR observed in TW. Furthermore, all sampling locations exceeded the recommended maximum threshold level of 1.0 × 10−4 by the USEPA. Spatial distribution maps of the contaminant concentrations and health risks provide valuable information to households and guide local government units as well as regional and national agencies in developing strategic interventions to improve DW quality in the island province.