The Laguna de Bay Masterplan

Executive Summary

1.2.1

As its overall framework, the Master Plan should provide the vision for the development of the Laguna de Bay Region consistent with the national goals under the Philippines 2000, particularly with the sustainable development thrusts of the Medium Term Development Plan.

1.2.2

Towards this vision, short and long term objectives should be set in the Plan together with the strategies and mechanism to attain them.

1.2.3

Discussion on:  (a)  potentials of the region, including alternative uses for lake;  (b)  the attributes and characteristics of the Region;  (c)  assessment of the present state of the lake Region, including its implications on the other sectors and to national life;  (d)  issues affecting the Lake, including policy and structural concerns; and  (e)  status of the existing government’s initiatives to address these issues, to serve as basis for the Plan objectives and activities.

1.2.4

Central part of the Plan should be the discussions on the specific programs and measures to be implemented, including concrete government interventions to address the issues and concerns on Laguna de Bay (such as environment degradation, water pollution, management problems, etc.)

1.2.5

Inclusion of the appropriate organizational framework for effective Plan administration.  This should clearly define the role and responsibilities of the concerned agencies in the implementation of the Plan.  Part of this, should be the system for monitoring and reviewing the Plan implementation to ensure the attainment of the Plan objectives.

1.2.6

The Plan objectives and activities for Laguna de Bay Region should be complementary with those in Mt. Makiling Reserve Area to allow their integration into the blueprint for development of both areas as envisioned in Executive Order No. 121.

1.4.1

LAND RESOURCE COMPONENT

This component deals with the investigation of the natural and physical attributes of the lake watershed and includes agriculture, industries, built up areas, forest areas, pedology/geology, land use, protected areas, reserve areas and natural parks.

1.4.2

WATER RESOURCE COMPONENT

This component is of fundamental importance in the implementation of measures for the rehabilitation of the Laguna de Bay environment and for sustaining development activities.  This includes the lake and its tributaries, air and water quality, chemical and biological attributes, fisheries, pollution, lake uses, benthos, hydrologic and hydraulic conditions.  The conflicting and competing uses and the associated socio-economic and environmental problems are also investigated.

1.4.3

SOCIO - ECONOMIC  STRUCTURES/ PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT COMPONENT

This component deals with the investigation of the sociological and economic aspects in the study area.  This includes demography, political and economic structures, regional economy and existing programs and projects.

1.4.4

INSTITUTIONS AND INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS

This component deals with an analysis of existing institutional arrangements in managing the Laguna de Bay Region and its basin resources.  Legal and policy instruments, inter-agency coordinations, organizational problems and structural constraints are investigated to come up with appropriate institutional changes.  Of major importance are the institutional issues and constraints within LLDA - the agency mandated to manage the development of the Laguna de Bay Region.

The project components and corresponding activities of the Master Plan Project was prepared by an integrated team headed by the Project Manager, the LLDA Technical Support Staff and the Project Staff specifically hired for the purpose.

The first activity undertaken by the project staff included the collection of data and information based on major studies conducted on Laguna de Bay Region since the 70s and a multi-sectoral consultations with stakeholders.  The second phase was the analysis and synthesis of the recommendation of these studies by the LLDA technical support staff.  The third phase involved the presentation of the LLDA divisional concerns, projects and activities.  The last phase was the formulation of specific programs and strategies for the development of the Laguna de Bay and its watershed basin.

1.5.1

REPORT STRUCTURE

This is the Final Report of the Master Plan for the Laguna de Bay Region.  To achieve the objectives set forth, the Master Plan has focused on the development and formulation of different programs and projects.  Ten appendices are attached to this report.  Nine (9) programs are proposed to address specific sectoral issues and concerns in the Region.  These are as follows:

A.

Environmental Management Program

B.

Watershed Management Program

C.

Fisheries Development Program

D.

Agricultural Development Program

E.

Cottage Industries Development Program

F.

Institutional Development Program

G.

Community Development Program

H.

Research Agenda

J.

Contains a compilation of the proposed plans and programs of the different agencies concerned with the Laguna de Bay Region.

1.5.2 

ORGANIZATION OF THE FINAL REPORT

The remaining part of the Final Report is structured in the following order.  In Chapter 1 the overview of the Master Plan is presented.  This includes the rationale and impetus for which the Master Plan was formulated.  The policy statement expressed under Executive Order No. 121 issued by the President on August 24, 1993 as translated in the parameters set forth by the Executive Department was presented.  Following from the parameters identified, the ultimate objective of the Master Plan is the development of strategies and program, for the protection, rehabilitation and/or enhancement of the environment and natural resources in the Laguna de Bay region in order to ensure an efficient, equitable and sustainable development.

Chapter 2 presents the general overview of the Laguna de Bay Basin.  It describes the general features of the lake and its watershed in terms of its origin, geology, topography, climatology, location, hydrology and land uses.

The socio-economic profile of the lake region is also presented focusing on the demography and regional economy.  This chapter highlighted the central focus of the regional resource which is the lake itself and the multifarious uses for which it is intended.

A special treatment of the existing institutions and institutional arrangements in managing the Laguna de Bay is presented in Chapter 3.  The evolution of Laguna Lake Development Authority as a special regional agency was presented.  The policy and legal framework (Republic Act 4850 and its amendments) were clarified whereby the mandates, jurisdiction, powers and functions of LLDA were defined.  The second part of this chapter deals with the institutional issues and concerns facing LLDA as it manages the resources of the Laguna de Bay region.

Chapter 4 presents the regional development issues, problems and constraints.  These include environmental concerns such as water quality issues, pollution and declining fisheries; constraints on land resources focusing on land use and conversion, deforestation, urbanization, land titling of shorelands and ground water contamination; and ; socio-economic concerns such as conflicting uses of the lake, lake fishery problems, livelihood and skills training.

Chapter 5 is the presentation of the proposed regional development plans and programs.  A regional development framework, as a guide to the development of sectoral program formulation is presented as the first part of this chapter.  The overall plan is presented based on sectoral program areas namely:  Environmental Management, Watershed Management, Fisheries Development, Agricultural Development, Cottage Industries Development, Institutional Development, Lake Environmental Education and Communication Support, Community Development and Research Agenda.  The objectives, strategies and components for each program are also presented.  The details and profiles of the project components for each program are annexed in the appendices of the Master Plan.

Chapter 6 contains a summary of the implementation schedule of the proposed programs and projects in the Master Plan.  A summary of the estimated costs for the implementation of the proposed programs and projects is presented in Chapter 7.

2.0   THE LAGUNA DE BAY BASIN

Contents:

2.1   GENERAL OVERVIEW

Contents:

2.1.1

ORIGIN OF LAGUNA DE BAY

2.1.2

GEOLOGY

2.1.3

TOPOGRAPHY

2.1.4

CLIMATOLOGY

2.1.5

LOCATION

2.1.6

HYDROLOGY OF THE LAKE

2.1.7

LAND USE

2.1.1

Varied opinions have been advanced by early geologists regarding the origin of Laguna de Bay. The idea that the bay was formerly a volcanic crater or that it originated through subsidence of a volcano, remains unresolved.  The most generally accepted theory, however, based on recent findings, is that the basin was once part of Manila Bay.  The drill cores uncovered various layers of marine shells which are of the same species as those shells living in Manila Bay waters today.  Remnants of almost identical species of marine shells were also found in the upper shores of the town of Bagumbayan (Luneta Park), and in the Marikina fault in Pasig-Marikina river junction (SOGREAH, 1974).

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2.1.2 

GEOLOGY                                                                                       

The Laguna de Bay watershed is underlain almost entirely by Quarternary (Pliocene-Pleistocene) clastic, pyroclastic and volcanic rocks, except for the extreme northern portion of the region, which is occupied chiefly by Tertiary rocks and a few erosional remnants of Cretaceous rocks.  A group of volcanic cones and small crater-lakes characterizes the southern Laguna de Bay watershed.  These volcanoes experienced intermittent eruptions, both quiet and explosive types of varied intensities, during the Pleistocene time.  They ejected large volumes of volcanic and pyroclastic materials, particularly tuff and agglomerate that blanketed extensive areas of the older Tertiary rocks (SOGREAH, 1974).  

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2.1.3

TOPOGRAPHY                                                                                               

The surface feature of the area is characterized by mixed topography.  The area is 35% gentle, 45% rolling, 15% steep and 5% very steep (Pacardo et.al., 1988).  The northern part of the watershed is characterized by a series of rolling hills with high to moderate reliefs.  Among these are the Binangonan peninsula, Talim Island, Jala-Jala peninsula and the Famy valley, which is flanked to the east by the Caliraya plateau (SOGREAH, 1974).  However, the southern portion of the watershed can be described by the presence of a group of volcanic cones with numerous smaller cinder cones and crater lakes.  Some of the prominent features of this part are Mt. Banahaw, the highest in the whole region at elevation 2165 meters, Mt. San Cristobal, Mt. Nagcarlan and Mt. Makiling.  The major part of the remote places or thinly inhabited areas is covered mostly with forest which includes most of limestone hills.  The lower land areas and valleys are normally planted to seasonal rice, vegetables, fruit trees, other short-season crops.  

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2.1.4

CLIMATOLOGY 

The prevailing climatic conditions are the Type I for the Rizal province and Metro Manila, having two pronounced seasons (i.e. dry from November to April and wet from May to October) and Type IV for the Laguna and Cavite provinces (i.e. having an even distribution of rainfall throughout the year (NEDA,  1987).  In the cool season (December to February), the lowest air temperatures and peak wind velocities occur, causing high water turbidity that even with the presence of large amounts of free nutrients, primary production and fish growth is at its lowest for the year.

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2.1.5

LOCATION                                                                                                      

Today, Laguna de Bay cover almost one half of the 190,000 ha. total area of all existing lakes in this country.  It is known as the second largest inland body of water in Southeast Asia next to Lake Toba in Indonesia (Santos-Borja, 1994).  It has a total surface area of about 90,000 has. and an average depth of 2.8 m.  Laguna de Bay stands unique in the sense that it is right in the middle of its upper watershed.  It lies just east and generally south of Metropolitan Manila.  The lake has a total volume of 3.2 billion cubic meters with a  shoreline of 220 km.  There are 21 tributaries that drain into the lake;  35% of freshwater that drain comes from Pagsanjan River while 15% comes from Sta. Cruz River.  The only outlet of the lake is the Napindan Channel which at its confluence with the Marikina river, forms the Pasig river, which meanders along a 24 km. long course westward through a major part of Metropolitan Manila, before eventually discharging into Manila Bay (Francisco, 1985).  Other lakes in the region also include the Seven Crater Lakes in San Pablo City with a total surface area of 289.6 has. and Tadlak Lake in Los Baños with only 22.6 ha. area.

Laguna de Bay Region occupies 1.3% of the total land area of the Philippines.  It encompasses the whole provinces of Rizal and Laguna, the cities of San Pablo, Pasay, Caloocan, Quezon, Manila and Tagaytay, the towns of Tanauan, Sto. Tomas and Malvar in Batangas, the towns of Silang and Carmona in Cavite; Lucban in Quezon province and Marikina, Pasig, Taguig, Muntinlupa and Pateros in Metro Manila.  To sum it up, Laguna de Bay Region boundaries include 6 provinces, 60 municipalities of which 28 towns are lakeshore covering 177 barangays and 32 non-lakeshore towns.

Laguna de Bay is trilobate lake with three corporate bays:  The West Bay, Central Bay and East Bay that converge towards the South carving out what resembles a large bird or dinosaur.  The West and Central Bays are separated by Talim Island, the largest and most populated of the nine islands within the lake.  It is bordered by the ruggedly high Sierra Madre mountain ranges on the Northeastern portion, the high Caliraya volcanic plateau in the East and the chains of mountains of Laguna and Batangas province to the South and Southeast, which includes Mt. Banahaw and Mt. Makiling.

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2.1.6

HYDROLOGY OF THE LAKE

The hydrology of the lake has a natural stage regime which in the dry season results in a minimum lake elevation of about 10.5 m. controlled by mean level in Manila Bay.  At the end of the dry season, the lake level may drop below the level of high tide in Manila Bay, resulting in the intrusion of seawater up the Pasig river.  With this diurnal reversal, the highly polluted waters of the Pasig river system are carried in the lake.  The tidal influx is also the primary cause of elevated salinity in the lake during this part of the year (Francisco, 1985).

During the wet season, precipitation results in an annual mean high water elevation of 12.5m. and a peak elevation which may reach as high as 14.6m for a 100 year recurrence interval.  During extremely wet years, widespread flood damage occurs along the lakeshores because the land is relatively flat for several kilometers inland in most areas.  Also during this period, the Marikina river floods the Pasig river and overflows into the Laguna de Bay via the Napindan Channel because the Marikina river can generate floodflows of about 200 m³s to 4000 m³s, and because the Pasig river bank full channel capacity varies from as little as 50 m³ to only about 750 m³s.  Depending upon the tide and local inflow, the Marikina river causes flooding in and around Metropolitan Manila.

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2.1.7

LAND USE

The total basin area of the lake is about 382,000 has. and this is commonly referred to as the Laguna de Bay Region.  The land being used for agriculture is approximately 198,640 has. which comprises 52% of the total land resources. At present, the forest area includes only 73,000 has.  Extensive deforestation has been reported (BCEOM, 1984)  where 54,000 has. between 1966 and 1977 had been transformed into unproductive grassland, with serious erosion hazard, involving sediment transport siltation problems thus, the remaining forest cover is only 19,000 hectares.

Moreover, around 83,620 has. is now being used for industries; 26,740 has. as built-up area, and 14,000 has. as lakeshore area.  The drainage basin includes about 3,600 square meters kms. of land composed of: urbanizing suburbs, spilling over from the Metropolitan Manila area: flatlands bordering the lake which are intensively farmed, predominantly for rice and sugarcane production; mountainous areas where bananas and coconuts are grown, and where timber is harvested and a large patch of hilly scrub and grassland in the lake’s denuded northern side (Francisco, 1985).

The lake region is also endowed with rich natural resources within its inland basin.  The Mt. Makiling Forest Reserve (MFR) approximately situated 6 kilometers from South Bay and 20- kms. from Talim Island is the nearest resource of its kind to the seat of government.  It is a 4,244-hectare resource designated primarily as a training laboratory under Republic Act 6967 for the advancement of scientific knowledge on natural resources.  It serves as a wildlife sanctuary and a pool for genetic diversity.  As an educational resource, the MFR has been the setting of floristic studies in the country by internationally famous botanists.  It is also the home of various academic, research and tourism institutions such as the UP Los Baños (UPLB), International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Boy Scouts of the Philippines (BSP), National Arts Center  (NAC) and “Pook ni Maria Makiling”.  (A Master Plan for the Mt. Makiling Reserve Area is currently being prepared by a counterpart Committee).

As a natural resource, it is considered a very important watershed providing irrigation, industrial and domestic water supply to numerous population of its surrounding communities.  The Reserve serves as an important catchment area for Laguna de Bay.  Along with forest lands, other resources include extractive opportunities for both metallic and non-metallic deposits.  Geothermal potential has also been established.  The Mt. Makiling-Banahaw geothermal resources is already developed and is being utilized to supplement the nation’s energy needs.

The natural resource endowments of Laguna de Bay Region being affected by rapid urbanization of Metropolitan Manila, such as rapid population growth, intensive agriculture, and industrialization, present a challenge to development planning.  The lake is the single most important resource of the region and to which all aspects of resource exploitation are vitally linked. (For greater detail of this subject, see Gedney, 1973; Lee and Adan, 1976 and Francisco, 1985).

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2.2.1

DEMOGRAPHY

The Region represents about 1.3% of the country’s land area, where about 13.8% of the nation’s population is concentrated.  In 1990, the actual population of the region, including Metropolitan Manila, was 8.3million (Table 2.01) with a growth rate of 3.13% and a population density in 1992 of 23.36 per ha. (LLDA, 1992).  The non-lakeshore areas’ population of 6.4 million as of 1990 will reach 10 million by the year 2000 (Table 2.02).  URSI projections (1989) also reveal that the 2 million lakeshore population will change significantly.

Based on the 1985 NSO Family Income and Expenditures Survey, the average annual family income in the Basin ranges from P35,000 to P116,566.  The main Basin areas, Rizal and Laguna, have average annual family incomes of P38,547 and P41,249 respectively.  These would generally apply to the lakeshore areas with individual incomes per lakeshore municipality within these baseline levels.  The average annual family incomes in Rizal and Laguna are significantly higher than the national average.  In 1985, the national income for the country stood at P31,052 (MEIP, 1994).

By the year 2000, the projected population by City, province and municipality is 12 million.  This growth and distribution in the watershed area is strongly influenced by the proximity of Metro Manila.  The more densely populated municipalities are located within or close to Manila.  The rate of increase in the province of Rizal and Laguna which, comprise the main portion of the region, was 5.8% and 3.9% respectively.  The high population growth rate is largely attributed to in-migration from the other regions of the country which results mainly from the perceived economic opportunities in Metropolitan Manila (Francisco, 1985).

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Because Metropolitan Manila is almost totally urbanized, the spill over into the rapidly urbanizing suburbs of Rizal and Laguna provinces has now resulted in the expansion of the Metropolis.  This expansion was concentrated in the Western Bay and has since extended to the southern extremity of the lake.  At present, the province of Rizal is about 85% urbanized while Laguna province is 50% urbanized.  This rapid urbanization, coupled with the high rate of in-migration, is associated with the region’s growing economic and social problems, as well as, the worsening environmental problems.

In terms of economic output, selected economic indicators reveal that Laguna de Bay Region produces a Gross Regional Domestic Product of P101.3 billion (GRDP, Region IV), a potential labor force of 6.1 in 1990 NCSO and is projected to reach 8.5 million by the year 2000 (Table 2.03). In addition, the total number of industrial establishments is increasing rapidly with a total number of 1,481 (LLDA, 1994).  The high trade export receipts of US$257.073 million covers 41.14% export receipts in the whole Region IV not to mention the output of P38.84 billion from industrial establishments of local and foreign investments (Sectoral Performance Report, 1991).  All these factors led to the suitability of the region for economic development.

In the early 80’s the region also produced more than 60% of nation’s total manufacturing.  In the region itself, the projected manufacturing and services for the year 2000 account for almost 86% while primary production (agriculture) accounts for only 6.6% (see Table 2.04).  The economic significance of this large difference in output should not, however, be over emphasized, for with more than three-fourths of the land in agrarian use, agriculture still retains considerable socio-economic importance.  Again, this should be fully appreciated when considering the present trend of rapid urbanization that is continually reducing the area of agricultural land.

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2.3.1

The fisheries of Laguna de Bay have been an outstanding economic resource from the lake since historic times, providing food for the lake basin population and the means of livelihood for approximately 17,000 fishermen residing in the various municipalities around the lake (LLDA Registration of Fisherment, 1992).  In 1970, the LLDA introduced an innovation in aquaculture technology to improve fish productivity of the lake.  Better known as the fishpen culture, this innovation proved to be highly profitable.

Today, the fishpen industry averages an annual yield of 6.7 metric tons/ha/cropping.  The industry attracted private investors which subsequently saw the lake teeming with fishpens.  With about 13,700 has. of the lake surface devoted to fishpen culture in 1994, approximately 91,809 tons of fish was produced from the lake (LLDA, 1994).

The boom in the lake fishery production has led to continuing conflict in the region.  The large scale fishpen culture has threathened the economic conditions of fishermen dependent upon open water catch.  Because investment in fishpen culture requires considerable amount of capitalization, the marginal fishermen could not afford to establish their own fishpens.  Traditional fishermen are battling for fishing grounds in the open water and this has been a major social conflict since the early eighties.  

Aside from lake occupancy, the fishermen are also demanding for the removal of the fishpen structures which, according to them, are affecting water circulation and contributing to water pollution.  This affects the distribution of nutrients such as nitrate and phosphate which are essential for the production of natural food in the lake.

Fishpen ownership is also an issue in the fisheries of Laguna de Bay.  Because fishpen industry has proven to be highly profitable, the small fishermen question the legitimacy of fishpen ownership, thereby demanding for proper allocation and distribution of the aquaculture area to include fishermen through cooperatives.  To date, there are 62 fishpens owned by fishermen cooperatives, equivalent to about 2,382 has., 187 structures owned by corporations or about 10,485 has. and 104 fishpens belong to individual-owners or an equivalent area of about 833 has. (LLDA, 1994).

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The lake also provides a transport route for lakeshore dwellers.  In 1982, there were over 4,162 motorized and non-motorized watercraft operating on the lake as a form of transport for lakeshore communities which are not easily accessible by road (Centeno, 1982). In addition, 19 barges are using the lake for barging an average of 73,078 lbs. of oil and oil products daily.

Residents from Talim Island travel by boat to various destinations around the lake.  The major routes, however, are the wharfs in Binangonan and Cardona in Rizal province and Calamba and Sta. Rosa in Laguna.

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The increase magnitude and uncontrolled flood in the Metropolitan Area paved the way for the construction of the Manggahan Floodway.  This floodway was constructed to connect Marikina River with the Laguna de Bay with the objective of easing up and mitigating the floods in Metropolitan Area, thus making the lake as a reservoir of flood waters.

As