Sometimes findings of international or multilateral studies can really get into your nerves.

Especially when they validate previous findings of the country’s faults, weaknesses or vulnerabilities.

But then again the country’s being prone to disasters is primarily a function of geography. We are trapped along the Typhoon Belt and the Asia-Pacific Rim of Fire.

If not inundated by torrential rains, blown by powerful winds or swept by rampaging floodwaters, most parts of the country are regularly shaken by earthquakes or threatened by volcanic eruptions.

Considering these harsh conditions, we should have by now institutionalized our collective coping mechanisms or a disaster-mitigation  program – monitoring, readiness, search, rescue, and rehabilitation -- like the Japanese who are similarly situated.         

Failing this we again needed to be told: The Philippines ranks third in the list of countries most vulnerable to climate change, a study by a United Nations agency has warned.

The report by the United Nations University’s Institute for Environment and Human Security and the German Alliance Development Works said the top 10 countries facing the highest risk are: Vanuatu, Tonga, the Philippines, the Solomon Islands, Guatemala, Bangladesh, Timor-Leste, Costa Rica, Cambodia and El Salvador.

Vanuatu, which is experiencing a fresh-water shortage, ranks number one with a 32-percent disaster risk. Tonga in the second spot has 29.08 percent. The Philippines ranks third with a 24.32-percent disaster risk.

What this simply tells us is that we are now ranked as a Pacfic Island nation in terms of such risk exposure.

The risk index used in the report analyzed each country’s exposure to natural disasters like storms, floods, earthquakes, droughts, and sea-level rise.

It also estimated that their susceptibility to damage based on the state of their economy and infrastructure, and the countries’ ability to respond to these disasters through preparedness measures and early warning systems. It also stunted their ability to adapt to future disasters due to climate change.

The floods and landslides from typhoons Pedring and Quiel recently emphasized the country’ vulnerability to extreme weather.  Almost a week since Quiel left the country, many towns in Central Luzon were still underwater.

The Climate Reality Project, which is backed by former United States Vice President Al Gore, said the study confirmed what we already know from their experience.

“This is reality. Lives and livelihoods lost are not a hoax. These are all realities brought about by the biggest crisis this world has ever faced. As the study shows, the Philippines ranks third in exposure to natural hazards like earthquakes, storms, floods and droughts, as well as the exposure of populations to sea-level rise by one meter,” said Rodne Galicha, Philippine country district manager of The Climate Reality Project.

TCRP stressed that climate change is not the only culprit as Galicha noted that man-made factors, such as land conversion, deforestation, and mining activities, worsen the effects of climate change and have a multiplier effect on disasters.

“Massive land conversion, long-term deforestation, mining in island ecosystems and forests and lack of solid waste management are just some of the culprits,” TCRP disaster risk reduction and management expert Miguel Magalang said.

He added that a comprehensive land use plan based on principles of climate-change adaptation and disaster-risk reduction should be strongly adopted by the government.