The illegal reclamation was discovered recently during the dismantling of illegal fishpens in Rizal by a task force.

One of the members of the demolition team, who asked not to be identified, said that the areas reclaimed by the unscrupulous developers and other persons are located in Bagumbayan and Pututan, Muntinlupa City.

But the same source said there are also some areas on the shoreline of Laguna de Bay, particularly in Rizal, which are being illegally reclaimed.

Recently, the task force, composed of personnel of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) demolished illegal structures in the bay.

More than 100 illegal fishpens, including those operated by companies that failed to follow the rules on safety and protection of the environment, were either dismantled or padlocked.

The source said that some of the employees of LLDA were in cahoots of the illegal reclamation being done by unscrupulous land developers.

"It was good that this time our demolition team did not compromise with the violators even though the illegal structures are owned by powerful and influential people," the source said.