AGRICULTURE Secretary Emmanuel Piñol on Sunday ordered the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources to ensure the steady supply of fish in Metro Manila.
He gave the order following President Rodrigo Duterte’s order to dismantle the fish pens on Laguna Lake that are inundating the river but are Metro Manila’s main sources of fish.
“While the order to dismantle the fish pens was directed at the DENR [Department of Environment and Natural Resources] secretary, the DA [Department of Agriculture] and its line agency—the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources—will be actively involved in the effort because of the order’s impact on the fish supply of Metro Manila,” Piñol said in a statement.
The 911-square-kilometer Laguna Lake is the largest in the Philippines and one of the largest in Southeast Asia.
But the lake has suffered increasing levels of pollution as a result of high population growth and environmental degradation.
Piñol said the fish pens in Laguna Lake or Laguna de Bay were the sources of 36 percent of the fish requirements of Metro Manila, so that their dismantling would have an adverse effect on the supply and prices of fish in the area.
“I have never really liked the smell and taste of fish from Laguna de Bay,” Piñol said.
“Given the shortage of fish supply, however, Metro Manilans have long accepted the Laguna de Bay fish as part of their table fare.”
Duterte has said he wants the lake to be “transformed into a vibrant economic zone showcasing eco-tourism by addressing the negative impact of the watershed destruction, land conversion and pollution.”
He also wants huge portions of the lake developed for small fishermen.
As of June 30, 2016, there were 357 registered and unregistered fish pen owners operating in the lake, according to the Laguna Lake Development Authority.
Environment Secretary Regina Lopez earlier said she would implement a massive reforestation program around the lake and make sure that Laguna de Bay stopped being the “septic tank” of the communities around it.
She said the municipalities around the lake would also be required to put up water treatment facilities so that their waste water would be cleaned before it flowed into the lake.