The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has given illegal fishpen operators in the Laguna Lake and in the seven other lakes in Laguna three months to voluntarily demolish their illegal fish cage structures, otherwise the government would do it for them and apply sanctions.
DENR Secretary Angelo T. Reyes and Dr. Casimiro Ynares III, general manager of the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA), approved this move in order to save the Laguna Lake, the largest inland body of water in the Philippines and the second largest in Asia, from being totally polluted and being declared a dead lake.
The LLDA board of directors approved the proposal.
Reyes explained that the government would allow the owners of the illegal fishpens, who include individuals, cooperatives, associations, and corporations, to harvest their fish produce within three months, after which they would be obliged to voluntarily demolish their fish cage structures.
If they fail to do so, the DENR would cause the demolition of the aquaculture structures and confiscate the materials, aside from imposing administrative and criminal sanctions in accordance with the law.
The illegal fish cage structures are those constructed outside the designated fish cage or fish pen belts, and or were built without an operation permit from the LLDA, Reyes said.
In a dialogue with the fishpen operators recently, Reyes announced that the DENR would eradicate the illegal fish cage structures in order to preserve the required carrying capacity of the lakes in accordance with existing laws, rules, and regulations.
He added that those who failed to comply with the DENR directive to voluntarily demolish their aquaculture structures would be subjected to administrative and criminal sanctions.
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