Daily battle against rising sea on disappearing island in Philippines – but many refuse to bail out for good

Pugad is losing 11cm a year due to overuse of groundwater and rising sea levels

An aerial view of Pugad, north of Manila. Sea levels across the Philippines are rising three times faster than the global average. AFP

On the Philippine island of Pugad, street food seller Maria Tamayo wakes before her grandchildren to begin the back-breaking work of bailing seawater from her home with a plastic dustpan.

The chore has been the same since the rising tides of Manila Bay began swallowing the island – a seven-hectare speck of land in danger of sinking completely.

The 65-year-old said she can spend up to three hours a day bailing water.

“I have to scoop out the water before my grandchildren wake up, or else they'll slip on the floor,” she says. “But it's no use … there's still water.”

Maria Tamayo scoops water with a plastic dustpan in her home. AFP

Mrs Tamayo is one of 2,500 people living in Pugad's only village.

The island is not the only one at risk in coastal Bulacan, the province directly north of Metro Manila.

Parts of the province are sinking at a rate of almost 11cm a year, the fastest in the Philippines, according to a study led by geologist Mahar Lagmay.

The gradual sinking, known as land subsidence, is an phenomenon caused by the over-extraction of groundwater. It is being exacerbated by rising sea levels due to climate change.

“The rates of subsidence [on Pugad Island] are quite high,” Mr Lagmay says. While studies specific to the tiny island were lacking, existing data on surrounding areas told the story clearly, he added.

Rolling with the tide

Workers line up sandbags outside a church in a flooded street on Pugad. AFP

With high tides flooding the streets at least three times a week, the sea dictates the rhythm of daily life on Pugad.

School timetables are adjusted daily based on tide charts to prevent children from contracting flood-borne diseases.

Homes have been raised on stilts to keep floors dry, while small businesses use high tables to keep their wares above the murky water that can rise by 1.5 metres on the worst days.

Sea levels rise faster than global average

Sea levels across the Philippines are already rising three times faster than the global average of 3.6mm per year, and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources has said this could accelerate to 13mm annually.

“Sea-level rise is being experienced in many parts of the country,” said Karlo Queano, geosciences chief at DENR. He warned coastal areas could disappear without large-scale intervention.

While piecemeal efforts are in place in some areas – groundwater extraction has been banned in parts of Bulacan since 2004 – a broad national strategy has yet to take shape.

A government study on the path forward was not expected until 2028, Mr Queano said.

Climate change making life on Pugad 'impossible'

William Gregorio and his son Yamry on the spot where their ancestral home used to stand. Getty Images

Emily Juliano outside her home on stilts with her children Charlenelyza, Leemark and Lexies, and her grandchildren Rebecca Nicole and Athena Tazzana. Getty Images

Rolando Laudiangco and his wife Bernadette stand in floodwaters outside their home. Getty Images

“I think it's already impossible for our lives in the village to go back to normal because of climate change,” said Pugad village captain Jaime Gregorio.

Mr Gregorio said roads were being raised every three years to keep the community viable, but leadership changes meant the implementation of long-term flood mitigation projects was inconsistent.

For Ms Tamayo, who has lived on the island all her life, the constant adjustment to the tide has drained what little savings her family had.

Since 2022, they have been elevating their house each year, adding more gravel and concrete to stay above water, so far spending about 200,000 pesos (Dh12,800).

“I love this island so much, this was where my mum and dad raised me … but sometimes, I think about leaving because of the high tide,” Ms Tamayo said.

Her husband Rodolfo, a boatman, insists their livelihood depends on staying.

Wooden boats moored beside cramped houses on Pugad in Hagonoy town, Bulacan province. AFP

“We can't go to [other places], we won't have jobs there. We will go hungry,” he said.

Mr Lagmay said land subsidence could be reversed with effective government policies governing the over-digging of wells.

But addressing the rise of sea levels was impossible without a concerted effort by the world's industrialised countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, he said.

A UN climate fund established in 2023 to help countries like the Philippines address damage caused by climate change, meanwhile, remains unimplemented.

“We are talking of climate justice here. We have very little contribution to climate change, but we are very affected by its adverse effects,” said Elenida Basug, the DENR's climate change service director.

Crouching in the doorway of her flooded home, Ms Tamayo urged the world's polluters to take responsibility for what she and her neighbours were experiencing.

“We are the ones who are suffering … They are rich, so we cannot do anything. Even if we speak against them, who would listen?” she said.

-With AFP