Backgrounder
San Pablo City is a chartered city in the province of Laguna, only 70 kilometers from Metro Manila. It is most famous for its seven lakes - Sampaloc Lake, Bunot Lake, Mojicap Lake, Pandin Lake, Palakpakin Lake, Yambo Lake and Kalibato Lake. All seven lakes are interconnected by underground tunnels. These are freshwater lakes, which has been known for the tasty grilled or smoked local fish delicacy called tilapia, as shown in this picture.
Many years ago, families swam in their clear waters and held picnics on the lakeshore, while others held boat races on the lake. Joggers ran safely around the perimeter road enjoying the fresh morning air. But years of neglect led to the deterioration of these beautiful lakes. In the 1980s and 90s, illegal structures sprouted along the lakeshore and fishcages mushroomed on the lake covering as much as 70% of the surface area. The remaining area was filled with waterlilies, so much so that some areas looked like fields of grass from a distance.
above: tilapia caught at Palakpakin Lake
left: trash along the lakeshore
right: a house built by illegitimate lakedwellers at Sampaloc Lake
This sad condition of Sampaloc Lake has improved a little since the removal of some illegal structures like restaurants, nightclubs and shanties. Still many more structures line the shores with no provision for proper sewage disposal. In addition, fishcages still occupy more than 40% compared to the allowable 10% of the surface area set by law. The sad part of it all is that majority of the big fishcages owners are not even our own local fisherfolks and, therefore, have little regard for the welfare of our community. The supposed moratorium setforth by Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) for the renovation and establishment of new fishcages is obviously not being enforced as the numbers of new or renovated fishcages are beginning to rise up again. What is worse is that the new cages have makeshift huts built on them, almost the size of a small house. All these illegal developments will again contribute to the degradation of our lake to the point of killing aquatic life. This is evidenced by the occasional fishkills and the overgrowth of waterlilies, which are directly related to the pollution level of the water.
left: a field of waterlilies
right: what's left of a two-storey house by the lake.
San Pablo City is a chartered city in the province of Laguna, only 70 kilometers from Metro Manila. It is most famous for its seven lakes - Sampaloc Lake, Bunot Lake, Mojicap Lake, Pandin Lake, Palakpakin Lake, Yambo Lake and Kalibato Lake. All seven lakes are interconnected by underground tunnels. These are freshwater lakes, which has been known for the tasty grilled or smoked local fish delicacy called tilapia, as shown in this picture. Vision-Mission-Strategies
THE VISION
FSLF, Inc. envisions a healthy and beneficial seven lakes of
THE
FSLF, Inc. is an environmentalist advocacy group that promotes conservation, protection and rehabilitation of the seven lakes of
Strategies:
1.
2.
3. Information/Education Campaigns;
4.
5. Public-private partnerships;
6. Collaboration with environmental public servants, academe and civil society groups
7. Promotion of Eco-tourism
Information on the Seven Lakes
San Pablo City has seven freshwater lakes. These lakes (with area in sq.km.) are Sampaloc Lake (1.04); Palakpakin (0.43); Calibato (0.42); Bunot (0.35); Yambo (0.28); Pandin (0.20 ) and Mohicap (0.14). Its catchment area is Mt. San Cristobal with an area of 27.5 sq.km.
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In 1975-76, salinity in Sampaloc Lake was reported to average 42 ppm. Latest measurements in 2004 show a salinity range from 100 to 200 ppm.
The seven freshwater lakes of
These lakes occur along the paths of migratory birds from the north (
The legal regulations are not enforced by the local government, and/or there is a lack of law enforcement on the lakes where crimes against persons and property are committed.
Available Documents/Studies: