The Department of Science and Technology-National Research Council of the Philippines (DOST-NRCP) recommended possible courses of action that government agencies can collaborate on to help improve the conditions of Laguna lake. The recommendations were borne out of consultations with various environmental experts.
“Funding in the area of policy assessment and researches on destructive fish species can go a long way,” said Joselito A. Carteciano, project leader and co-organizer of Lake Ecosystem Assessment in the Philippines.
Studies have shown that “fish quality is the recurring major issue of the fisheries sector in Laguna de Bay”.
Among the major causes of the decline in fish quality are the waste accumulation from households, industries and factories; the settlements’ construction and urbanization; and climate change.
Current studies show that the lake is getting worse despite the intended measures (policy, relevant institution/s, programs, regulations), thus, there is an impending need to assess the relevance of existing policies and measures.
There is a need, for instance, to review the extent of implementation of regulations, identify the stumbling blocks, and to determine the proper course of actions for the lake to get better for the next 20 to 50 years, according to DOST-NRCP’s recommended course of action.