Fishers’ group calls for dismantling of fish cages in 8 other lakes

LUCENA CITY, Philippines—A national fishers’ group urged the government to also prohibit the operations of large-scale fish pens in at least eight other lakes in different parts of the country to prevent more cases of fishkill.

Fernando Hicap, head of the militant fisherfolk alliance Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya, National Force of the Fishers’ Movement of the Philippines) asked concerned government agencies to also prevent large-scale aquaculture in Lanao Lake (34,700 hectares) in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur; Lake Mainit (14,000 hectares) connecting the provinces of Agusan del Norte and Surigao del Norte; Naujan Lake (11,000 hectares) in Mindoro Oriental; Buluan Lake (6,500 hectares) connecting Sultan Kudarat and Maguindanao; Lake Bato (3,800 hectares) and Lake Buhi (1,800 hectares) in Iriga City Camarines Sur; Lake Dapao (1,000 hectares) in Lanao del Sur; and Lake Sebu (964 hectares) in South Cotabato.

“For the last 24 years, Pamalakaya had been telling the national government to refrain from awarding fishpond lease contracts to big-time fishing groups and individuals to prevent overcrowding, exploitation and fishkill, but our 24-year-old proposals always fall on deaf ears,” Hicap said in a statement Saturday.

Hicap said the granting of contracts and other forms of lease agreement awarded by the national and local governments through Fishpond Lease Agreements to aquaculture concessionaires must be stopped to prevent fishing monopolies from maintaining large-scale fishpens.

“We hope President Aquino will come to his senses and stop government authorities from bargaining fishpond contracts to the highest bidder at the expense of small fisherfolk and the marine environment,” Hicap said.

The fishers’ group urged the government to immediately dismantle large-scale fishpens and fish cages in fishkill-affected areas in Western Pangasinan and Taal Lake in Batangas.

Hicap said the fishkills in Anda and Bolinao in Pangasinan and in Taal Lake were a result of long-running abuse, coupled with the dumping of waste waters from industrial and commercial establishments, which was further worsened by “grandslam privatization and conversion” of coastal areas.

Pamalakaya also reiterated its call to the government to demolish large fish pens in Laguna Lake. The group claimed that almost 60 percent of the 94,000-hectare lake was leased for a long time to big fishpond operators by the Laguna Lake Development Authority.