THE fishermen’s group Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas pushed the government on Monday to rehabilitate Laguna de Bay so as not to lessen the lake’s fish yield.
According to the data of Pamalakaya, Laguna de Bay produces almost 100,000 tons of fish annually, of which comprises 40 percent of the fish supply in Metro Manila.
Fish pen proliferation has taken its heavy toll not just on the ecology of Laguna de Bay but also on small fishermen and poor families dependent on the lake’s fishing resources.
Fish pens emit 38.6 tons of nitrogen in Laguna de Bay per year through its chemical feeds used in culturing fish, particularly milkfish (bangus).
The group said corporate fish pens deploy armed security guards that harass fisherfolk and there are reports that fishermen were being gunned down if they sail near the guarded fish pens.
Legally, a corporation and an individual can only lease up to 50 hectares of fish pens for 25 years and renewable for another 25 years but some corporations violate the law by using dummies and through the connivance of crooked officials.
Before the fish pen invasion, the daily average fish catch of a municipal fisherman is 10-15 kilos, but since Laguna de Bay degraded at the beginning of 1990s, the fisherfolk’s daily average catch drastically dropped to 3-5 kilos.
The data said it all that if Laguna de Bay would be restored into its abundant state, mere open fishing itself can sustain the domestic consumption of fishing and urban poor communities situated along the lake and fish supply in Metro Manila even without the congestion of vast-tract, corporate fish pens, Pamalakaya said.