Mayors unite to conserve Taal Lake

Asia Africa Intelligence Wire

 | February 24, 2005 | Copyright

(From Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Byline: Mei Magsino-Lubis, Sta. Teresita, Batangas

TAAL, the deepest lake in the Philippines and the third largest with an area of 23 sq km, is being threatened by large-scale illegal fishing, inappropriate development for tourism and settlements on the Tagaytay ridge, and solid waste and agricultural runoff.

A study of the Tanggol Kalikasan (TK), a public interest environmental law office, shows that the number of floating cages of cultured tilapia and bangus (milkfish) have increased, threatening endemic species in the lake and causing pollution.

Decayed fish feeds are depleting the lake's supply of dissolved oxygen, it says, while discarded feed bags litter the waters.

The study warned that tapping a billion cubic meters of lake water for irrigation and urban use could weaken the ecosystem, which supports a variety of marine life, and restrict aquatic migration.

Realizing urgent action to counter the threats, mayors of the 10 towns and three cities

surrounding Taalsigned a covenant to conserve and protect one of the world's most active volcanoes on Jan. 26 at the Sta. Teresita municipal covered court.

The move, initiated by the TK, aimed to ensure pollution control, regulated operations of fish cages, and the apprehension of illegal fishers in the lake. Hopefully, the measures will result in the return of endemic fishes that have been on the country's list of vanishing species for decades.

Lawyer Asis Perez, TK area director, said the covenant should have been signed several years ago, but he was positive that the effort was not yet too late.

Signatories

Mayor Vilma Santos-Recto of Lipa City was the first to sign the covenant on Jan. 21. Other city mayors who signed it are Abraham Tolentino of Tagaytay and Alfredo Corona of Tanauan.

The rest of the mayor-signatories were Glorioso Martinez of Agoncillo, David Pamplona of Balete, Danilo Sombrano of Mataas na Kahoy, Adorlito Ginete of Sta. Teresita, Guillermo Reyes of Alitagtag, Enrique Comia of Cuenca, Cristeta Reyes of Malvar, Napoleon Arceo of San Nicolas, and Florencio Manimtim Jr. of Talisay.

Batangas Gov. Armando Sanchez challenged the local chief executives to put their covenant into action.

"When you signed that covenant to conserve Taal Volcano, you have already committed yourself," Sanchez told the mayors in a speech.

"In Batangas, your word means action because your governor wants things done as they should be. Gone are the days of broken promises," he added.

Environment Secretary Michael Defensor was represented by his regional director, Ernesto Adobo.

Taal Lake

Taal Lake is located within a complex volcanic area. A small volcanic island lies in the middle of thelake, which has been the site of 33 documented volcanic eruptions since 1572.

The island is a main viewing attraction of tourists from the Tagaytay ridge and Mt. Maculot.

Taal Volcano itself has a lake of its own inside the crater.

A 1927 fish inventory of Taal Lake identified 76 migratory species and many endemic species. But a 1995 study showed only 15 species of migratory fish and only four endemic fish species remaining in thelake.

In 2002, the volume of tawilis, a freshwater herring found only in Taal Lake and which the fishermen used to catch by the tons, had been reduced to less than a thousand.

The sensitive fish was the first to die due to frequent temperature changes and water pollution brought by wasted feeds in the big fish cages.

Freshwater sharks used to thrive in the lake before they were totally driven away as a result of overfishing in the 1930s.

Rosa Macas, regional director of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, said 30 percent of the fish feeds settled at the bottom of the fish cages. When the feeds rot, they deplete the oxygen level of the waters, threatening fish species.

Aside from the tawilis, the endemic fishes that are endangered are the duhol or sea snake, maliputo (freshwater mackerel), igat (freshwater eel), the three-millimeter pygmy goby (Pandaca pigmaea), apta and yapya (freshwater prawns), and the paros and suso, two types of mollusks.

Protected landscape

The government declared Taal Lake a national park on July 22, 1967, through Presidential Proclamation 235.

In 1996, it was declared a protected landscape under the National Integrated Protected Areas Systems Act.

Three lake-wide institutions authorized by different laws share the governance of the lake. These are the Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) under the protected areas law, the Integrated Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Board under the Fisheries Code, and the Lakewide Development Council.

But the only entity that has undergone a management planning was the Presidential Commission on Tagaytay-Taal in 1993, which was abolished in 2000 allegedly because the PAMB had already been created.

Because of the number of management bodies exercising overlapping jurisdictions over the lake, they are unlikely to make any dent on the major issues affecting it.

The Kilusan ng Maliliit na Mangingisda sa Lawa ng Taal, a lake-wide organization, has also been helping to conserve the lake during the last 18 years.