Intricacies, Challenges and Implications: The Governance of Tadlac Lake, Los Banos, Laguna, Philippines

Intricacies, Challenges and Implications: 

The Governance of Tadlac Lake, Los Banos, Laguna, Philippines

CITE AS: Brillo, B.B. (2017). Intricacies, Challenges and Implications: The Governance of Tadlac Lake, Los Banos, Laguna, Philippines. International Journal of Water, vol. 11, no.4, pp. 376–394.

Bing Baltazar C. Brillo

UP Scientist and Deputy Director

Institute for Governance and Rural Development,

College of Public Affairs and Development

University of the Philippines Los Ban͂os

Email address: bbbrillo@yahoo.com; bcbrillo@up.edu.ph

Abstract

Grounded on the lacuna in literature— the scarcity of scholarly works on lake governance and small lakes in the country, and the notable transformation of Tadlac Lake— from a threatened and poorly regulated lake to a potential model for governance and ecotourism development, this article documents the small lake and examines its governance specifics, challenges and implications. It argues that the governance of Tadlac Lake can be characterised as intricate, watershed-based, hierarchical, participatory and centralised. It also contends that the lake’s development— its transformation from an aquaculture-based lake into an ecotourism-oriented lake— illustrates a key lesson for developing small lakes in the country. To close, the article hopes to instigate more governance studies on lakes, particularly small lakes, due to their number (in the country and globally) and the fact that in the country, many are surrounded by impoverished communities.

Keywords

Development, Governance, Philippines, Lake, Small Lake and Tadlac Lake (Alligator/Crocodile Lake or Enchanted Lake)

Introduction 

Tadlac Lake and the seven crater lakes of San Pablo City (i.e. Sampaloc Lake, Bunot Lake, Palakpakin Lake, Mohicap Lake, Pandin Lake, Yambo Lake and Calibato Lake) comprise the eight small lakes of the Laguna de Bay region under the administration of the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) (see Figure 1). Among the eight small lakes, Tadlac Lake is geographically considered as “the odd man out” because it is the only one located in Los Baños and is the closest to Laguna de Bay, with only a narrow strip of land between them. What used to be a poorly regulated lake that suffered from overcrowded fish pens/cages and water quality degradation has since improved to one that has a master development plan, no fish pens/cages, better water quality, and started venturing in ecotourism. This is a remarkable transformation since small lakes are generally not the focus of administrative agencies’ attention. Tadlac Lake’s nascent development journey – from its problems in the eighties that led to an ecological crisis (i.e. fish kills and water quality degradation) in the nineties to a long road towards recovery starting in the last decade or so – offers a case for illustrating and evaluating the effects of “positive” governance on a small lake in the country.  

In the Philippines, many articles have been written about governance, but few on its actual operation and practice in water governance, and a lot fewer in lake governance (especially in small lake governance). Under this premise, this article examines the intricacies of the governance of Tadlac Lake; particularly, by documenting the small lake and assessing its governance specifics, challenges and implications. Overall, it contends that the governance of Tadlac Lake can be characterised as intricate, watershed-based, hierarchical, participatory and centralised. It further contends that the lake’s transformation from a aquaculture-based lake into an ecotourism-oriented lake offers a promising lesson for developing small lakes in the country (e.g. seizing and exploiting a window of opportunity, generating awareness and understanding, and offering a cogent alternative to those who are negatively affected by the change). The article proceeds to discuss the following: firstly, a review of lake studies in the Philippines and the significance of lake governance and small lake studies; secondly, the status of Tadlac Lake and its administration; thirdly, the development trajectory of the lake; and lastly, the governance challenges and implications.

Figure 1: Tadlac Lake of Los Banos and the Seven Crater Lakes of San Pablo City             (Google Maps 2015)

Philippine Lake Studies: Deficit on Governance and Small-Lake Studies

Lakes are a vital resource for ecology and humanity. This natural resource is critical to the maintenance of ecosystems, biodiversity and natural processes such as climate mediation and nutrient cycling. It has served humans’ basic needs, from drinking water, source of food and means for transportation. In a modern society, lakes are highly valued for their scenic-recreational qualities and development properties, as they have been used for sports, tourism, aquaculture, domestic/industrial water, agricultural irrigation, flood control and hydroelectric power. Moreover, the importance of lakes to mankind is encapsulated in the fact that over 90 percent of the liquid freshwater on the earth’s surface is contained in lakes (International Lake Environment Committee [ILEC] 2007, Nakamura and Rast 2011 and 2012). 

Over the years, human activities, such as aquaculture, tourism, industrial development and human settlements, have increasingly contributed to the degradation of lakes around the world. As a consequence, many lakes today suffer from an array of problems, such as eutrophication, acidification, toxic contamination, water-level changes, salinisation, siltation, overfishing and exotic species/weed infestation (World Lake Vision Committee 2003, ILEC 2005). A comprehensive study of 28 major lakes around the world from 2003 to 2005 by the Global Environment Facility-Lake Basin Management Initiative (GEF-LBMI) has concluded that the condition of many lakes is not improving (ILEC 2007, World Lake Conference 2009 and 2011). The Philippines mirrors the global situation, as many lakes in the country are also ecologically threatened. The First National Congress on Philippine Lakes held in 2003 conceded that lakes in the country are environmentally threatened because of indiscriminate utilisation (Aralar et al. 2005). The Second National Congress on Philippine Lakes held in 2011 acknowledged that lakes in the country remain at risk of ecological decline due to the growing demands of development (Fernandez 2011, Aralar et al. 2013, GNF 2014). 

The literature on Philippine lakes has been gradually increasing through the years. However, the overwhelming majority of studies are from the natural sciences and on the major lakes. A recent survey of Philippine lake studies revealed that: (1) 77 percent of the scholarly materials are classified under the natural sciences and only 23 percent under the social sciences; and (2) 80 percent of the scholarly materials are studies on major lakes and only 8.7 percent on minor lakes (Brillo 2015a). The natural science studies are mainly about limnology and aquaculture, and the major lake studies are substantially concentrated on the largest lakes in the country (e.g. Laguna de Bay, Taal Lake, Lanao Lake and Buhi Lake) (see also Guerrero III 2001, Guerrero III 2005). On the whole, the literature in Philippine lake studies suggests that there is scarcity on two fronts: (1) social science studies, especially governance, management, development, socioeconomic and cultural studies; and (2) small lake studies, specifically lakes with a surface area of 200 hectare or less. Thus, in addressing the literature gaps, governance studies (and the other fields in the social sciences) and small lake studies must advance to complement the progress in the natural sciences and the major lake studies. 

Lake Governance

Governance studies are crucial since physical-biological-environmental problems and administrative-management-development problems are intertwined and cannot be effectively dealt with in isolation. It is globally recognised that many water resource issues are traceable to the failure of governance (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation [UNESCO] 2012, World Water Council 2012, United Nations World Water Assessment Programme [UNWWAP] 2015). Thus, advancing governance studies is essential to better understand and to offer sound solutions to the multitude of problems confronting lakes today. As a concept, lake governance can be defined (following the well-circulated definition of water governance [see Rogers and Hall 2003, Nowlan and Bakker 2007, United Nations Development Programme-Water Governance Facility (UNDP-WGF) 2015]) as the range of political, social, economic and administrative systems that are in place for the utilisation, allocation, management and development of the lake. 

A crucial element in governance is decision making, specifically the ways decisions are made and actions taken to properly manage the water resource. In particular, it underscores the role of stakeholders (i.e., individuals, nongovernment organisations and government agencies) and the various interest they represent in making decisions, and the existing administrative arrangements through which stakeholders operate and engage each other (see Simms and de Loë 2010, Melnychuk, Murray and de Loë 2012). Governance is central to lake management and development; the former defined as operational activities designed to regulate and impose conditions on its use to ensure the conservation of the water resource (Nowlan and Bakker 2007), and the latter, defined as economic growth and social progress in the lake and its locality that is sustainable and inclusive (i.e., providing benefits particularly to the poor inhabitants, such as expanding their livelihood opportunities) (Global Monitoring Report 2015).

Governance concept and issues have been written about since the 1980s, but the literature does not cover much on governance of water resources, as the topic was only seriously discussed in the 2000s (Biwas and Tortajada 2010). Contemporarily, water governance is hampered by the lack of usable, context-specific indicators since the existing broad indicators for governance used by the various international agencies have limited applicability to the water sector (Biwas and Tortajada 2010, see also Arndt and Osman 2006, Tortajada 2010, UNDP-WGF 2015). By implication, lake governance, a key subgroup of water resources governance, is in the same situation. This problem is acute in lakes since they are generally not sufficiently studied (ILEC 2005, Downing 2010), and severe in small lakes since they are either little studied in the country and usually ignored in global water fora discussions (Downing 2010, Brillo 2015a). Thus, similar to water governance, there is a need for in-depth case studies on lake governance that can delineate the quality of governance on individual lakes, particularly to identify the enabling environment and critical factors of good governance practices.

A recent approach in lake governance is the Integrated Lake Basin Management (ILBM), an approach promoted globally by the International Lake Environment Committee Foundation (ILEC). In principle, the ILBM approach is committed to the integrated management for sustainable use of lake ecosystem services via gradual, continuous and holistic improvement of basin governance (Nakamura and Rast 2011). The ILBM’s emphasis is on the natural basin system, following the character of lentic-lotic water linkages (i.e. standing-moving water dynamics such as lake-river system or lake-spring system). In particular, the ILBM is anchored on the three distinct features of lake basin system: (a) integrating nature (i.e. various forms of pollutants from diverse sources, e.g. water-based, land-based, or airborne, end up in lakes); (b) long retention time (i.e. pollutants stay on the lakes for a long time due to the lakes’ depth, water volume, and stagnant nature); and (c) complex response dynamics (i.e. as the “mixing bowl” of various pollutant inputs, changes and interventions in the lake are intertwined, complicated and multifaceted (see ILEC 2007, Nakamura and Rast 2011). The latter two features (long retention time and complex response dynamics) result in a non-linear response (i.e., lag) of lakes to inputs (hysteresis), which complicates both their assessment and management efforts.

The ILBM approach is premised on the contention that the lake basin governance for most developing countries (and to some extent developed countries) is dysfunctional. Based on the lessons learned from the GEF-LBMI project (i.e. the experiences from the management of 28 global lakes), the ILBM suggested six interrelated areas of intervention— (1) institutions (i.e. developing effective organisations), (2) policies (i.e. broad directions and specific rules), (3) participation (i.e. expanding the involvement of people), (4) technology (i.e. possibilities and limitations of technological interventions), (5) information (i.e. tradition and scientific knowledge) and (6) finance (i.e. sustainability of funds— to improve the lake basin governance (see ILEC 2007, Nakamura and Rast 2012). These areas of intervention would need to be substantiated by case studies to delineate context-specific governance practices on the ground. 

Since the ILBM approach is derived primarily from the experiences of and lessons from  managing some of the largest lakes in the world, there is strong reason to conduct case studies on small lakes. The dynamics of small-lake governance is distinct from large-lake governance; it is like comparing an aircraft carrier with a canoe. For instance, many large lakes are transboundary (i.e beyond national borders or covering multiple regional/provincial domains) and are administered by the national government or a national agency which usually has ample resources; while many small lakes are situated within a single or multiple municipalities and are administered by local governments which usually has inadequate resources. These differences suggest governance demands differ between small lakes and large lakes, especially in terms of the nature and complexity of the challenges. Furthermore, each lake (large or small) can exhibit some unique properties; a lake’s limnological properties, ecosystems and governance dynamics cannot be fully understood based on information and generalisation from other lakes (see Garn, Elder and Robertson 2003).

Small Lakes

Small lakes must be studied to broaden the knowledge base on lakes, in general, and Philippine lakes, in particular. The concentration of studies on large lakes fosters bias and depicts an incomplete image of the water resource. Small lakes are abundant worldwide, and in the country, they are numerous and largely surrounded by impoverished communities; yet, little is known or written about them (Brillo 2015a, see also Downing et al. 2006, Oertli et al. 2009). This deficiency makes for a compelling reason to document and study small lakes in the country. In general, small lakes are least studied since they are deemed to have minimal economic value (Brillo 2015b, Brillo2015c) and considered to have little contribution to ecosystem cycles and processes (Downing 2010, see also Lehner and Doll 2004, Oertli et al. 2009). In turn, this translates to tangential interest from government agencies, private research institutions, and individual scholars.

Compared to big lakes, small lakes are inherently more fragile and vulnerable to environmental deterioration. Their small physical size and water volume equate to less absorptive capacity in counteracting pollutants, and hence, shorter timeline for ecological degradation (Brillo 2016a, Brillo 2016b, Brillo 2016c). Small lakes are also more prone to extinction than big lakes, as they have small capacity against loss or drying of water and/or infilling by sediments (Choiński and Ptak 2009, Lane 2015). Moreover, since the 2000s, a number of limnological-environmental studies have argued for the need to reassess the ecological value of small lakes and to correct the century-old misconception that large lakes are solely the most important (Lehner and Doll 2004, Downing et al. 2006). For instance, recent inventories have shown that small lakes in aggregate dominate the size distribution of lakes in the world, which imply that they cumulatively have disproportionate role in global processes and cycles, as well as in the maintenance of regional biodiversity and stability (Hanson et al. 2007). In addition, small lakes are substantially more biologically active than big lakes (Downing 2010), as they have high hydrologic and nutrient processing rates (Smith et al., 2002), more intense carbon processing rate (Kelly et al. 2001), and a lot more species (of virtually all taxa) per unit area (Scheffer et al. 2006) compared to big lakes. They are also an integral component of other natural system, whether ground water, spring, river or big lake system. Altogether, these attributes and information strongly reinforce the importance of studying small lakes.

Summing up, anchored on the need for studies on small lakes and on the specifics of lake governance in the Philippines, this article directly addresses the lacuna in literature by conducting a case study on the governance of a small lake in Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines— Tadlac Lake. Consistent with the gap in literature, the scholarly works on the Tadlac Lake is scarce. The few materials found are three unpublished undergraduate theses assessing the water quality of the lake (see Gonzales 1996, Obalan 1999, Nase 2001), and the only work found that touches on governance is a report submitted by the LLDA to the ILEC (see Borja 2008).

Tadlac Lake and Its Administration

Tadlac Lake is a small freshwater lake located in Barangay Tadlac, Los Baños, Laguna. Together with the seven crater lakes of San Pablo City, Tadlac Lake comprises the eight small lakes of the Laguna de Bay region under the supervision of the LLDA. The lake is discrete being situated around 30 kilometers away from the seven crater lakes, and is adjacent to Laguna de Bay (i.e. the country’s largest lake), situated on its southern tip and merely separated by 50 meters wide strip of land on its northeast side. The lake is accessible via two lateral roads; from the northeast and south side is Barangay Tadlac road, and from the west side is Bagong Kalsada street of Barangay Masili, Calamba, Laguna. Dwellings and residential areas (including a subdivision) run along both roads and several privately-owned resorts exist along Barangay Tadlac road. Since the lake is surrounded by privately owned lots, it suffers from easement encroachment as landowners built illegal structures along its banks (i.e. within the 20-meter easement prescribed in the Master Development Plan). 

Like the seven lakes, Tadlac Lake is oval-shaped and considered a maar of the Laguna Volcanic Field (PHIVOLCS 2015). The lake is believed to be volcanic in origin, which was formed through a phreatic eruption when shallow lava and groundwater got into contact causing an explosion that resulted in a crater-like depression (LLDA 2008). It has a surface area of approximately 24.7 hectares, an average mean depth of 27 metres, and a perimeter of 1.79 kilometres (LLDA 2007). It has no natural springs, water outlets and inlets. The lake discharges via seepage and evaporation, and gets replenished by rainfall and surface runoff. In the past, Tadlac Lake was considered an oligotrophic lake (i.e. possesses low nutrient content and low algal production) (Borja 2008) and an area thriving with native crocodiles, as it was called Laguna de los Caimanes or Alligator Lake (during Spanish colonial era), Cayman Lake (in 1901), Crocodile Lake (in 1946) (LLDA 2007, Barangay Tadlac 2015, Wikipedia 2015).

Tadlac Lake is managed by the LLDA and the Local Government of Los Baños. The authority of the LLDA comes from Republic Act (RA) 4850 (as amended by Presidential Decree 813, October 1975), which is the principal law governing Laguna de Bay and its watershed area which includes Tadlac Lake and the seven crater lakes. RA 4850 created the LLDA and designated it as the main agency to administer the water bodies in the Laguna de Bay region (see Figure 2). The Laguna de Bay region refers to the provinces of Rizal and Laguna; the cities of San Pablo, Tanauan, Tagaytay; the cities of Pasay, Caloocan, Quezon, Manila, Marikina, Pasig, Taguig, Muntinlupa, and Pateros in Metro Manila; the municipalities of Sto. Tomas and Malvar in Batangas; the municipalities of Silang and Carmona in Cavite; and the municipality of Lucban in Quezon. In particular, the LLDA’s primary responsibility is promoting the development of the Laguna de Bay region, while providing for environmental management and control, preservation of the quality of life and ecological systems, and the prevention of undue ecological disturbance, deterioration and pollution (LLDA 2005). This mandate was enhanced by Executive Order no. 927 issued by then President F. Marcos in December 1983, which gave the agency the exclusive water rights over the lakes in the Laguna de Bay region. 

Figure 2: Tadlac Lake and Laguna de Bay Region (Google Maps 2015)

The authority of the Local Government of Los Baños emanates from RA 7160, which gives it jurisdiction over Tadlac Lake, being municipal water. Since RA 4850 confers the administration of Tadlac Lake to the LLDA and RA 7160 bestows the local government the territorial dominion, the institutional arrangement implies “coordinative-supplementary” relations between the two government agencies. The LLDA lays down the overall development framework and approve/disapprove the plans submitted to it by the local governments and other stakeholders; while the local government executes projects/programs and legislates ordinances consistent with the LLDA’s development agenda. On regulations, the LLDA usually initiates and the local government implements, as it controls the local enforcers— the police and the barangay officials. 

The LLDA taps the Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Council (FARMC) in administering Tadlac Lake. FARMC is the principal organisation mandated by RA 8550 to assist government agencies in the management, development and conservation of the water resources throughout the country. In the Laguna de Bay region, FARMC was devolved from the Department of Agriculture to the LLDA in recognition of its exclusive jurisdiction by virtue of RA 4850. FARMCs are established from the national level to municipalities and formed by mostly fisherfolk organisations/cooperatives in the locality with the assistance of the government agencies. In Tadlac Lake, FARMC is composed of members representing the fisher folks, the Barangay Development Council, the Chairperson of the Municipal Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries, and a non-governmental organisation based in the locality (Borja 2008). FARMC partners with Tadlac Lake’s Barangay unit to perform its tasks. Under RA 7160, a Barangay is under the local government unit and is the smallest and lowest-level administrative-legislative unit in the country. It is composed of elected councillors and headed by a Chairman who usually takes the lead role in supervising the implementation of ordinances and regulations on the ground. Moreover, in managing Tadlac Lake, FARMC and the Barangay unit are assisted by Ugnayan ng mga Samahang Pamayanan ng Los Baños or Coordinating Council of Community Organisations of Los Baños (Ugnayan-LB), a non-governmental organisation that has long been active in the locality; and in securing the lake, the community stakeholders are augmented by Bantay Lawa or Guardians of the Lake, a volunteer organisation whose members receive allowance from the Provincial Government of Laguna.

Besides RA 4850, RA 7160 and RA 8550, the other major law that has direct bearing on Tadlac Lake’s development is RA 9593.This law underscores tourism as a key engine of the national economy in promoting socio-economic development. RA 9593 encourages ecotourism development in the country’s many lakes. In Tadlac Lake, community stakeholders strongly advocated for ecotourism in light of the aquaculture crisis and water degradation issue in the late 1990s. Transforming the lake into a major tourist destination was deemed as a viable alternative to commercial aquaculture. The administrative agencies— the LLDA and the Local Government of Los Baños— have also recognised the potential of the lake for ecotourism, as a way to augment livelihood opportunities and improve the economic stature of the locality, as well as to preserve the water resource (LLDA 2009, LLDA 2015). 

Development in Tadlac Lake

In the late 1970s, Tadlac Lake was mainly utilised for recreational activities, and in the early 1980s, for aquaculture, particularly tilapia farming via floating pens/cages (LLDA 2007). In the eight small lakes of the Laguna de Bay region, tilapia pen/cage farming was first introduced in Bunot Lake in 1976 after the LLDA’s successful introduction in Laguna de Bay in 1974 (Radan 1977, MNR 1982). In Tadlac Lake, tilapia pen/cage farming legally started when the LLDA authorised its introduction in 1986, and the Provincial Government of Laguna offered financial assistance to locals who wanted to venture in it (Borja 2008). The LLDA’s authorisation was precipitated by the request of the Barangay unit to allow local aquaculture farmers from Laguna de Bay, which at the time was suffering from algal bloom, to use Tadlac Lake. With the tilapia boom in the 1980s, commercial aquaculture spread out extensively in the lake. The number of aquaculture farms multiplied with the influx of “outsider” investors which displaced many local operators and relegated them as farm caretakers and workers (Barangay Tadlac 2015). This condition occurred despite the LLDA’s order to reduce the fish pens/cages in 1992 and to ban the construction of structures and regulate fishing activities in 1997. The expansion continued until the late 1990s; from the LLDA-approved 150 fish pens and cages, the number ballooned to around 500 pens/cages, covering almost the entirety of the lake (Barangay Tadlac 2015). In 1998, the total area occupied by fish pens and cages is around 58,700 meter square of Tadlac Lake (Borja 2008), which is an area well beyond the 10 percent limit allowed for aquaculture structures in a lake pursuant to the Fisheries Code of the Philippines (see Republic Act [RA] 8550, section 51). 

The overcrowding of aquaculture has affected the water quality of Tadlac Lake. Aquaculture discharges, particularly the decomposition of unconsumed commercial feeds and fish wastes, have polluted the lake (LLDA 2007). These inputs eventually set off the eutrophication (i.e. the depletion of oxygen level in the water) of the lake (Barangay Tadlac 2015). This transformation was manifested in the late 1990s when the dissolve oxygen (DO) level of Tadlac Lake dropped to an alarming level, as the LLDA posted the worst DO reading of less than 3 milligram per liter (versus the 5 milligram per liter standard based on the Class C classification of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources on fresh surface water [see DENR 1990]). Moreover, the change in the water makeup has intensified the effects of the annual upwelling or overturning of the lake (locally known as “langal”), when water from the bottom of the lake, loaded with toxic substances (such as hydrogen sulfides and ammonia), comes up to the surface (Araullo 2001, Borja 2008, LLDA 2014). This ecological phenomenon usually occurs in the cool months (i.e. December to February) in Tadlac Lake (as well as in the seven crater lakes) which, combined with the overcrowding of fish pens/cages, have magnified the fish kills in the lake, just like what happened in 1999 which virtually wiped out the fish stocks in the lake.

The unprecedented scale of and monetary losses from the fish kill in 1999 triggered the change in how the community used Tadlac Lake. FARMC, the Barangay unit and Ugnayan-LB appealed to the aquaculture farms owners to postpone operations to give time for the lake to recuperate. The Barangay Council also issued an order halting the further construction of fish pens and cages in the lake (LLDA 2007). In support, the LLDA (which was previously unsuccessful in regulating the aquaculture farm operations in the lake) strategically offered an alternative site for fish pens/cages in the adjacent Laguna de Bay, and the Provincial Government offered financial assistance to aquaculture farm operators who would relocate (Borja 2008). Furthermore, the LLDA issued board resolution no. 140 series of 2000 which prohibits aquaculture operations in Tadlac Lake for a period of two years, and implemented lake seeding (in cooperation with the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources [BFAR][e.g., “Punla sa Lawa” program]) and fishing limitation programs in the lake (Borja 2008); and the Local Government of Los Baños, together with the Barangay officials, spearheaded the general cleaning of the lake, particularly the dismantling of structures and remnants of pens/cages. Eventually, these efforts led to the eradication of commercial aquaculture operations in the lake. Presently, Tadlac Lake is entirely free of fish pens and cages (see Figure 3), an exceptional achievement among the small lakes of the Laguna de Bay region.

Figure 3: Satellite Photo of Tadlac Lake (Google Maps 2015)

The complete removal of aquaculture in Tadlac Lake paved the way for the community stakeholders to seriously consider ecotourism development in the lake. In particular, the Barangay Council, Ugnayan-LB and FARMC conceptualised the transformation of the lake into a nature park. In 2000, they formally proposed the establishment of Tadlac Lake Nature Park to the LLDA and the Local Government of Los Baños. Initially, the LLDA was supportive, as the agency allotted a budget of PHP 1 million and organised workshops for the preparation of the master plan for Tadlac Lake (Borja 2008). However, with the change in leadership and priorities in the LLDA in 2001, the move to formulate a master plan for Tadlac Lake was relegated on the agency’s agenda resulting in its indefinite deferment. In 2007, with the continued lobbying by the community stakeholders and the change of leadership in the LLDA, the agency’s interest in Tadlac Lake was rekindled and the move to formulate a master plan for ecotourism was revived (LLDA 2007). In particular, the LLDA facilitated the crafting of the Tadlac Lake Nature Park Project Master Development Plan and the establishment of the Tadlac Lake Nature Conservation Association Incorporated (TLNCA) which is designated to lead the development of the lake into an ecotourism destination (LLDA 2009). After eight years, in 2015, the LLDA and the Local Government of Los Baños, together with the community stakeholders, officially launched the Tadlac Lake Nature Park (LLDA 2015). Unfortunately, at present, its construction still has to make decent progress due to lack of funds. 

Governance Challenges and Implications

Tadlac Lake’s governance is anchored on four overlapping major laws— the Laguna Lake Development Authority Act of 1966 or RA 4850; the Local Government Code of 1991 or RA 7160; the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998 or RA 8550; and the Tourism Act of 2009 or RA 9593. In principle, these laws are interlinked and supplementary to each other in dealing with the management, development and conservation of a lake, as plans, programs and projects on the water resource are framed within the context of these interlocking laws. Conversely, each law advances distinct agenda over the utilisation of the lake: the Laguna Lake Development Authority Act (embodied by the LLDA), is principally focused on national-level agenda; the Local Government Code (embodied by the Local Government of Los Baños), is oriented towards local-level agenda and is sensitive to pleas from its constituents; the Philippine Fisheries Code is inclined to prioritise the interest of the fishefolks and fishing industry; and the Tourism Act is about promoting ecotourism for socio-economic development. These diverging priorities have created tensions in the administration of the lake. For instance, in the seven crater lakes, the competition between aquaculture and ecotourism is a major source of discord among stakeholders (see Brillo 2015b, Brillo 2015c, Brillo 2016a, Brillo 2016b, Brillo 2016c). In Tadlac Lake, this pattern was evident, as in the onset, the lake was mainly utilised for aquaculture and only upon its phasing out did ecotourism start to take foothold in the lake.

Although the complete removal of commercial aquaculture paved the way for ecotourism development in Tadlac Lake, aquaculture and ecotourism should not be viewed as mutually exclusive but rather as complementary to each other. For instance, the aquaculture farmers can supply the fish requirements and lease out rafts needed by the ecotourism enterprise. Simultaneously pursuing both initiatives has huge implications on small lakes in the country, as aquaculture and ecotourism are the two primary ways most of them are developed. To enable aquaculture and ecotourism development, it is critical to have a master plan that clearly and equitably allocates specific areas for aquaculture farms and ecotourism development, and strictly regulates the expansion of fish pens and cages; as the lack of a master development plan and the overcrowding of fish pens/cages are a common problem among many small lakes in the country (e.g. Brillo 2015b, Brillo 2015c, Brillo 2016a, Brillo 2016b, Brillo 2016c).

In regulating the aquaculture farms, the crucial provision is Section 51 of the Philippine Fisheries Code which states: “That not over ten percent (10%) of the suitable water surface area of all lakes and rivers shall be allotted for aquaculture purpose like fish pens, fish cages and fish traps; and the stocking density and feeding requirement which shall be controlled and determined by its carrying capacity.” This 10-percent limit is the basis for controlling the expansion of fish cages/pens and restricting its detrimental effects on the water quality of lakes in the country. This provision is particularly consequential to small lakes; their size means smaller carrying capacity and ability to counteract pollutants. By implication, this limit rule for aquaculture also serves as starting point for the development of the water resource for other purposes, especially for ecotourism which is basically anchored on halting the degradation of the lake. This instance is evident in the developmental transformation of Tadlac Lake from an aquaculture-based to an ecotourism-oriented lake. With the indubitable importance of Section 51, an issue that needs to be addressed is the seeming ambiguity between the 10 percent rule and carrying capacity principle (see LLDA 2014). In particular, the two clauses must be reconciled by updating the scientific grounding of the ten percent rule and delineating a standard formula for measuring carrying capacity. Resolving the issue is essential for the development and proper regulation of small lakes due to their limited space.

In managing the Laguna de Bay region, the LLDA adopts a watershed-based approach consistent with the Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) and the Integrated Lake Basin Management (ILBM) models. In principle, both management models are committed to sustainable development of the water resources. In particular, IWRM model promotes the coordinated development and management of the water, land and related resources (GWP 2010), while the ILBM model is a governance improvement process that focuses on the lake and its natural basin system (Nakamura and Rast 2011). In this approach, Laguna de Bay is the centrepiece and the eight small lakes in its region are components of the watershed. On the ground, this translates to Laguna de Bay taking precedence being the main lake, and Tadlac Lake (as well as the seven crater lakes) taking incidental consideration being an auxiliary lake to the basin system of the principal lake. 

The drawback in practice of this “governance hierarchy” is that the LLDA’s administrative success is predicated on the success in managing Laguna de Bay, which would translate to this lake getting the lion’s share of attention and resources of the agency, and Tadlac Lake receiving a residual share. Tadlac Lake had suffered from inattention and inadequate resource allocation over the years, as can be discerned in the LLDA’s annual reports from 2009 to 2013 where the lake was featured only once in 2009 (see LLDA 2009, LLDA 2010, LLDA 2011, LLDA 2012 and LLDA 2013). The limited resource allotted to Tadlac Lake is evident in the lack of personnel assigned to the lake which leads to insufficient presence of the LLDA (Borja 2008). In the small lakes of the Laguna de Bay region, a single individual is typically assigned by the agency as surveillance and monitoring officer which usually conducts quarterly visits/inspections in a year on each lake. Consequently, these deficiencies have restricted the LLDA’s actions in Tadlac Lake, as seen in the agency’s failure to arrest the expansion of fish pens/cages and the easement infringement of private resorts in the lake.

The frequent turnover of leadership in the LLDA has also affected the governance of Tadlac Lake. Primarily a consequence of the general managers being a political appointee of the President of the Philippines, the agency had five different general managers from 2001 to present, which usually bring about varying set of development priorities (Borja 2008). The failure to complete the formulation of the master plan for Tadlac Lake in 2001 was principally attributed to the shift in priority caused by leadership change in the LLDA (LLDA 2007, Borja 2008). Even in the seven crater lakes, the change in leadership in the LLDA was also cited as a reason for the past inaction on the submitted master plans for Sampaloc Lake (Brillo 2016c). Overall, this praxis runs counter to contemporary governance literature which suggests that an administrative agency needs continuity for consistency in programs and to significantly improve water resource management since to realistically make progress in water governance, an agency manager typically needs to have a minimum tenure of six to eight years, with corresponding checks on performance (Biwas and Tortajada 2010). 

In terms of administration, the completion of a master development plan in 2007 is a significant achievement in Tadlac Lake. The LLDA has long acknowledged the need for such a plan among the small lakes in the Laguna de Bay region (e.g. LLDA 2008). Despite failures early on in 2000s, the stakeholders of Tadlac Lake managed to get one, unlike in the seven crater lakes where the majority have yet to have a master development plan (except for Pandin Lake and Sampaloc Lake as both are in the process of fully completing each master plan [LLDA 2014, City Government of San Pablo 2015]). A master plan is basic for the administration of a lake, as it serves as the framework for programs/projects and precipitates subsequent initiatives for the water resource. The move to have a master development plan demonstrates the existing governance practice in Tadlac Lake. In principle, the LLDA (as well as the Local Government of Los Baños) adopts a collaborative governance approach, where the stakeholders are given the opportunity to be involved in managing and developing Tadlac Lake. This approach was evident in the preparation of the Tadlac Lake master plan for ecotourism in 2007, where the key stakeholders (i.e. the Barangay Council, Ugnayan-LB and FARMC) actively participated. But despite the participation afforded, decision making is highly centralised. The LLDA ultimately determines the outcome, particularly since the agency decides when to tackle such a plan and approves/disapproves it. Overall, the centralised decision making setup underscores the importance of sustainable commitment “on the top” of the administrative agency. To make headway, the overwhelming involvement/participation of the community stakeholders is not enough; it must be accompanied by long-term support and dedication from the leadership of the institutional stakeholders (i.e. the administrative agencies).

Commitment from the other administrative agency of Tadlac Lake, the Local Government of Los Baños, is also critical. For instance, the quarrying of a hill on the northeastern side of Tadlac Lake proceeded in the late 1980s because the Local Government of Los Baños did not intervene (Borja 2008). A similar incident happened in Bunot Lake, where the LLDA-led move to demolish the illegal fish pens/cages and settlements in the mid-2000s was not enforced without the support of the Local Government of San Pablo (Brillo 2015b). Conversely, in Sampaloc Lake, the demolition of the illegal structures in the early 2000s was carried out with the strong backing of the local government unit (Brillo 2015c). These experiences demonstrate the essential role of the local government unit for crucial initiatives/regulations to materialise in the lake.

Funding is a major concern in the governance of Tadlac Lake. This issue is a continuing problem for the lake, particularly among the community stakeholders. The leaders of the Barangay unit and FARMC have often complained that the funds they receive are inadequate to effectively carry out their responsibilities. The yearly income of Tadlac’s Barangay is around PHP1 million and usually 20 percent of it is allocated as development funds which, in turn, is divided among the projects/programs of the barangay (LLDA 2007). On the other hand, the operational funds of FARMC mainly come from a share in the fish pen/cage fees and from donations. The share is via Municipal Ordinance 2001-10 which allots 10 percent of the Local Government of Los Baños’ share from the LLDA’s collection of fees from aquaculture farms operating in Laguna de Bay. Donations, however intermittent, are usually tapped to fund key projects in the lake (such as the construction of fish landing which was financed by the PHP50,000.00 given by the Filipino Community in Thailand [Borja 2008]). Combined, the development funds of the Barangay unit and FARMC’s regular share are simply too small to finance the Tadlac Lake Nature Park, which is aimed to be a world-class ecotourism destination. This problem is evident in TLNCA’s ongoing drive to establish an ecotourism park in the lake. In 2007, the master development plan estimated the total development cost of the ecotourism project at PHP40 million and envisioned an implementation period of six years (i.e. from 2008 to 2013) (LLDA 2007). At present (i.e. after 8 years), the ecotourism project still has to make a decent progress due to lack of funds; in particular, the community stakeholders need to settle the issues of financial sources and strategies. All in all, these problems underscore the importance of developing and institutionalising a sustainable funding mechanism for the community stakeholders of the lake in the long run; and the critical role of the institutional stakeholders, specifically the administrative agencies (i.e. the LLDA and the Local Government of Los Baños) in generating and/or facilitating the necessary funds, in the short term.

Tadlac Lake’s embrace of ecotourism illustrates a promising way to develop small lakes in the country. Beyond conservation, ecotourism offers a viable source of revenue and employment. This is an encouraging proposition in a country abundant of small lakes, most of which have high potential for tourism (see Brillo 2015a, Brillo 2015c, Brillo 2016a, Brillo 2016b, Brillo 2016c). The transformation of Tadlac Lake from an aquaculture-based lake into an ecotourism-oriented lake offers a lesson in pursuing such an undertaking. In explaining how it came about, three factors were deemed instrumental: one, taking advantage of a window of opportunity via the occurrence of a massive fish kill; two, realising the futility of continuing the aquaculture farming business ; and three, offering a cogent alternative to the aquaculture farm owners via a transfer offer to Laguna de Bay. In the first factor, when Tadlac Lake suffered an unprecedented scale of fish kill in 1999, it gave the stakeholders a chance to act and a persuasive justification to call for change in the status quo. In the second, aquaculture operators realized that it was risky to continue operating with the deterioration of Tadlac Lake’s water and the strong probability of the reoccurrence of fish kills. In the third, when the LLDA offered a relocation site in Laguna de Bay, this afforded some aquaculture farm operators (particularly the locals) an opportunity to continue their business and recover their losses. In effect, these three factors worked in conjunction and served as catalyst in convincing the aquaculture farmers and overcoming their resistance; eventually leading to the eradication of fish pens and cages in Tadlac Lake and the recognition that ecotourism as the way to go for the lake. 

Conclusion

Over the years, the governance of Tadlac Lake has been confronted by a number of problems, such as diverging agendas (i.e. the perennial aquaculture vs ecotourism tension), technical (i.e. ambiguity in the ten percent limit rule), attention and resource allocation (i.e. big-lake bias), commitment (i.e. sustaining the agenda amid leadership changes), funding (i.e. establishing a sustainable financial mechanism). Despite this, Tadlac Lake was able to have a master development plan, turn the lake into a potential ecotourism destination (i.e. the Tadlac Lake Nature Park), and more importantly, move the lake out from the state of degradation into gradual recovery. Its development illustrated a key lesson in developing small lakes in the country.  For instance, Tadlac Lake’s transformation from an aquaculture-based lake into an ecotourism-oriented lake suggests the importance of seizing and exploiting a window of opportunity, generating awareness and understanding among stakeholders, and offering a sound alternative to those negatively impacted by the change.

In looking at the nitty-gritty of what transpired, the governance of Tadlac Lake can be characterised as intricate, watershed-based, hierarchical, participatory and centralised. It is intricate since the administration of the lake involves four interlocking major laws (i.e. RA 4850, RA 7160, RA 8550 and RA 9593) embodying distinct priorities, and multitude of stakeholders (e.g. the LLDA, the Local Government of Los Baños, FARMC, Barangay officials, Ugnayan-LB, and Bantay Lawa) representing distinct interests. It is watershed-based since, in principle, the management approach focuses on the lake and its natural basin system following IWRM and ILBM. It is hierarchical since, in practice, Laguna de Bay greatly dominates the attention and resources of the administrative agencies, while Tadlac Lake (as well as the seven crater lakes) takes incidental attention, as auxiliary or “watershed” lakes. It is participatory since, in principle, the administrative agencies employ a collaborative approach where local stakeholders are given the platform for involvement, particularly to outline the development of the water resource. And it is centralised since the administrative agencies, at the end of the day, dominate decision making and outcome of development initiatives, notwithstanding the active involvement/participation by the stakeholders. In turn, this indicates that the progress of small lake governance lies heavily on the action or inaction of the administrative agencies.

In closing, this article advances two key agendas in Philippine lake studies. One, it directly addresses the identified gap in literature (i.e. scarcity of scholarly work on lake governance and small lakes) by conducting a study on the governance specifics of a small lake in the country; particularly, by documenting Tadlac Lake and examining its governance challenges and implications. And two, it hopes to instigate and expand development-governance studies on small lakes, which are numerous in the country (as well as worldwide) and are surrounded by mostly impoverished communities.

Acknowledgement

Many thanks to the welcoming residents and leaders of Tadlac Lake, especially to Marites de Mesa, Matilde Erasga, Gloria Abanilla, Jeanette Toririt, Edgar Leano, Jasmin Gonzales and Juan Marvin Bautista.

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