Relationship between Land Conversions and Land Use Policy Processes in the

San Cristobal Micro-watershed, Laguna Lake Basin, Philippines

CHAKRABORTY Shamik
Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, Beppu, Japan, 874-8577

tsubakurodake2003@gmail.com

Abstract
Laguna de Bay, the largest lake in the Philippines
and the second largest lake in Southeast Asia has long
been reported as `dying` due to water quality
deterioration leading to its constantly decreasing
fisheries and other vital ecological functions. It is
conceptualized that the deteriorating ecological state of
the lake is directly related to the land conversion
practices associated with the micro watersheds of the
lake basin leading to greater pollution runoffs to the lake.
However, little study has been done on these micro
watersheds taking their functional significance to the
lake water quality deterioration. This paper analyses the
nature of land use policy processes in the newly
urbanized spaces of San Cristobal micro-watershed
region of the lake basin to understand how the interplay
of the formal as well as the informal land use policy
processes and their overlaps cause particular land uses to
get established in the concerned micro watershed. It was
found out that absence of land use plans in the micro
watershed taking a bio-regional approach with sound
interagency policy dialogues, vested interests of the
ruling political parties and an overwhelming priority
given to the instrumental value of the land for
development along-with a greater population increase in
the watershed has led to severe water pollution in the
concerned micro-watershed making the river-water dead
for any ecological significance.
Keywords: Bio-regional approach, land conversion,
land use policy, urbanization.

waters when compared to the runoffs from the more

rural eastern parts of the lake basin. The contributions of
the micro watersheds of the urban and semi urban areas
are thus quite considerable as far as lake water quality is
concerned. However, from the review of literatures on
the importance of micro-watersheds, it seemed that little
importance is given to the sound management of them,
as much of the literatures concentrate on the lake itself
with no consideration in the lake basin as a whole
thereby taking a an integrated approach as far as the
socio ecology of the lake basin environment is concerned
(Sendana and Mand, 1937; Delmendo and Gedney, 1976;
Gonzales, 1988; Francisco, 1993; Santiago, 1993; Sly,
1993; Beril and Tumlos, 1995).

1. Introduction
Laguna de Bay, the largest lake in the Philippines
and the second largest in the Southeast Asia has long
been reported as a dying lake because of the decrease in
its fisheries and water quality parameters for the past
three decades (ADB, 2004; Lasco & Espaldon, 2005). It
is conceptualized that the health of the micro-watersheds
draining to the lake is of utmost importance to the health
of the lake as these river basins are primary sources of
nutrients for the Lake Flora and Fauna. As seen in the
NASA`s Terra Modis Satellite in 2003 (see Fig. 1), the
sediment runoffs from the urban spaces of the Laguna
Lake basin is simply overwhelming (NASA, 2003).
Although these images were from the 2003 flooding
events in Philippines, when the sediment runoffs were
much more enhanced by the flooding events, they do
show the considerable cumulative effects of nutrient and
sediment runoffs from the urban spaces to the lake

Fig. 1 Sediment runoffs (below image) from the more

urbanized western margins of the lake as seen by NASA`s
Terra Modis Satellite in 2003.

The San Cristobal River consists one of the 24

tributary river systems draining into the Laguna Lake
form the Southwestern side, characterized by the newly
urbanized spaces of the lake basin. The basin area of the
river is 14,100 ha, with 17 tributaries and 44 river
reaches. The river has a drainage density of 5.75 km/ km2
(LEAP, 2000), which is quite high compared to the other
Western margin rivers of the lake basin. There are 23
barangays of Calamba municipality and 8 barangays
from the Cabuyao municipality that either partially or
fully falls inside its watershed (NSO, 1990; 2000).

Fig. 2 Location of the study area in the Laguna de Bay

basin (Courtesy: LLDA 2003).

watershed as a case study. The principal questions

answered here are; how do the land use policies take
effect in the concerned micro watershed? What particular
development aspects does these land use policies
consider most? What is the approach of such policies
towards institutionalizing the human-nature interactions?

2. Methodology
2.1 Methods and materials
This paper takes a multi methodological approach
with the use of both quantitative as well as qualitative
data which were gathered during the fieldwork
conducted from June 5 to June 30, 2009, in the Laguna
de Bay region. Quantitive data include, the water quality
data in time series, census statistics and land use
statistics, whereas qualitative data include, the use of in
depth interviews, interpretation of maps and satellite
images and photographs taken during the field visits. For
analysis, newly urbanized spaces of Calamba and
Cabuyao have been taken into consideration. The data
then are presented with descriptive statistics and content
analysis of the primary and secondary data.
2.2 Limitations
Unavailability of micro level census and housing
statistics up to village level in time series, along with
unavailability of topographical maps during the
fieldwork were some of the major limitations in this
paper. As a result, analysis by going back in time was
interrupted by this patchy nature of data. To deal with
this in depth interviews and photographs taken during
field visits were used to interpret the phenomena under
inquiry. Also due to unavailability of barangay level data
in the Municipality of Cabuyao, only those barangays of
Calamba municipality that falls fully or partly in the San
Cristobal river basins have been considered for land use
statistics during 1980s. Whereas for Cabuyao,
interpretations had to be made from the land use
planning maps only. .

3. Results

Fig. 3 The San Cristobal micro watershed. (Courtesy:

LLDA 2003).

The present paper analyzes the particular attribute

of land use policies in the micro watersheds of the
Laguna de Bay basin with taking the San Cristobal

3.1 Background
San Cristobal river water quality has been severely
deteriorated. The river is said to be the second most
polluted in the Laguna de Bay basin. As exemplified by
the BOD loadings taken by water quality monitoring unit
of the Laguna Lake Development Authority, every year
for 156 times from 1996 to 2008. The river is often
stated as ecologically `dead`. The high BOD loadings of
the river put its water quality a step better than domestic
sewage discharge channels (see Fig. 4 below) in the
lower reaches.

rate in the secondary level education. Acording to the

2000 census of population and housing, the main
economic activity in most of the municipalities is derived
from the service sector, followed by industry and
agriculture (NSO, 2000).

Fig. 4 BOD loadings in some selected rivers of Laguna

de Bay basin (Note: The vertical axis counts the BOD, the
horizontal axis shows the number of times of water quality
monitoring).

However, the river still has some significance in its

upper reaches for direct human consumption, as the river
water is a source of domestic potable water to some
200,000 inhabitants in the upstream municipalities of
Cabuyao, Sta. Rosa and Binan. In the lower reaches the
river water is used mainly for industrial water to the
commercial establishments and factories, mainly in
Calamba; besides providing irrigation waters to the
National Irrigation Administration service areas. It is to
be noted that much of the land use in the San Cristobal
watershed region was dominated by agriculture. Evident
from the comprehensive land use planning reports of
Calamba in 1981 (see Fig. 5), plantation agriculture
mainly consisting coconut, sugarcane accounted for
about 800 ha in the barangays inside the watershed of
San Cristobal, which was more than 50% of the San
Cristobal`s basin area. Residential, commercial,
industrial and institutional areas on the other hand,
accounted for about 610 ha. consisting little more than
4% of the basin area.

3.2 Characteristics of land use change and its policy

perspective
To understand the mechanisms of land conversions
as institutionalized in the formal land use policy
processes in the study area, the comprehensive land use
plans were analyzed, along with key interviews with the
government officials and locals. Based on the analysis,
the following characteristics have been understood.
1. Unabated and significant growths of
settlements have taken place in the land parcels
which were previously rice lands.
2. One of the main triggering effects for the grater
pollution loads is the unabated growth of
settlements in the land water interface regions,
thereby deteriorating the vital buffer zones that
previously existed (Carandang, et al., 1988)
along the land water interface regions that
trapped excessive nutrients as well as sediments
from draining into the water channels and the
lake (Chakraborty, 2009). This kind of land
conversions often starts from the making of
provincial roadways along the lakeshore
regions and river banks. Once the roads are
built, the strips of land between the road and
the river or lake becomes unused open land,
and are readily occupied by the informal
settlers who work either for the road
constructions or other nearby construction
activities for their daily income. As they do not
have direct stakes in the river and lake water
and their resources they unknowingly
deteriorate the water by putting solid and liquid
wastes in the waters.

Fig. 5 Land use (in ha.) in the selected barangays of

Calamba Municipality, San Cristobal micro watershed
(1980).

High discharges of industrial effluents and

landslides from farming in the steeply sloped riverbanks
are two most unsustainable land use practices which
deteriorates the river ecology to significant levels.
The literacy rate of the population living in the
watershed is an impressive 97% with 89% participation

Fig. 6 Heavy trucks often accompanied by bulldozers

which are beyond the grasp of informal settlers, reflect the
involvement of power and politics for converting the
vulnerable land water interface regions of the lake
(Photograph taken by the researcher).

3.

4.

Based on the interviews with the key officials

in LLDA, HLURB and local residents it was
found out that a major stimulus for such
occupancies are the unwillingness of the local
Mayors to stop the shore land communities
from occupying these lands; as they comprise
quite a large population, the Mayors get a
healthy number of voting from these people.
The greater need for space were due to an
exponential growth in the population in the two
provinces (see Fig. 7) as population increased
from 14407 to 78333 in 1960 to 387776 in
2000 (NSO, 1990; 2000).
10.

11.

Fig. 7 Increase of population in the municipalities of

Cabuyao and Calamba. (Courtesy; NSO, 1990; 2000).

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

No comprehensive land use planning exists that

is based on a watershed basis, taking a
bioregional approach which is of utmost
importance for an integrated management of
land and water (Mazur & Urbaneck, 1983).
The master plan for land use decisions done in
1995 (LLDA, 1995) gives a primarily
descriptive approach in macro scale about the
then existing land uses in the watershed, with
no consideration of functional spaces during
development agendas for ensuring ecological
integrity of the watershed.
As a result, the instrumental values for the
using of land has been overwhelming in the
river basin with no bio-physical resource
appraisal have been found by the researcher in
the literature of the formal institutions in the
river basin. The intrinsic values of nature
therefore, do not exist.
This has a disastrous effect of `change first and
inform later` effect. As changes in the land use,
although needed due to an exponential
population growth in the study area, does not
take into account the functional ecological
spaces, as noted above, such as developments
of settlements within the land water interface
regions of the lake and rivers.
The existence of forest cover were noted in the

12.

13.

Calamba Municipality to the upstream of San

Cristobal watershed in the in the 1980s
Comprehensive Land use Planning Maps.
However, in the 2003 land use maps these
forest lands do not exist (HLRUB, 1981; NSRC,
1981; LLDA, 2003). Although the quantitative
assessments of such forest cover loss are not
available at the barangay level, this trend does
show a primarily instrumental approach to river
basin management in the study area as
protective forest cover for soil stabilization is
removed with agriculture in steeply sloped
lands with greater vulnerability to landslides
which is a common problem in this watershed.
In case of barangays of Cabuyao municipality
which are inside the San Cristobal watershed,
built up areas were primarily located alongside
the roadways and lakeshore regions
accompanied by national and provincial
roadways during the 1980s (HLURB, 2000).
However, by 2003 the built up areas moved
much
inward
from
these
roadside
establishments, drawing a greater numbers of
stream reaches under direct runoff from these
lands (LLDA, 2003).
For the province of Cabuyao, the Land use map
of 1980 shows extensive areas of open
grasslands predominated by land water
interface regions by the lake with provincial
roadways dividing these buffer zones from the
extensive agricultural tracts inward and away
from the lake. Land use was quite similar to
this during 1940s as well.
Thus, the distribution of land use decision
making institutions in the watershed has policy
gaps as far as institutionalization of functional
ecological spaces is concerned. Even in the
urbanized watersheds where a large number of
institutions work for regional development,
there is a gap of systematic database for
understanding the ecological status of the
watershed.
The formal institutions that are responsible for
much of the land use decision making in fact
institutionalizes risks that are hidden within the
society
(Beck,
1992),
such
as
institutionalization of unsustainable human
behavior like the removal of forests in the
upstream and replacing with agriculture in the
precipitous slopes and eliminating the
functional significance of the buffer zones of
nutrient and sediment runoffs to the lake from
the planning literatures.

4. Conclusion and recommendations

Based on the above discussion it is evident that the
land use decision making is not much integrated between
the formal institutions that are accountable for land use

policies. There is a lack of integration between the

institutions and the local people who unknowingly bring
spontaneous changes to the landscape, unaware.
Furthermore, the vested interests in the local politicians
have a significant role to play in these spontaneous
changes to the landscape which are characterized by
alteration of functional ecological spaces like the buffer
zones between the lakes and rivers. As the river basin is
characterized by high drainage density, such changes in
the land use are quickly reflected in the water
environments. In fact, the institutions which are
accountable for the sustainable management of human
and natural resources institutionalizes risks that are
within the society itself, characterized by utilization of
unsustainable human behavior. A greater interaction
between the formal resource management institutions,
politicians and local residents is the crying need for the
sustainable management of the micro watersheds,
thereby approaching the sustainability of the lake basin
as a whole.
Much of the pollution in the river comes from the
lower reaches where the residential and industrial
establishments predominate, which grew at the expense
of previously rice lands. This is evident from the fact that
the river still serves some 200,000 people with potable
water from its upper reaches. The upper reaches of the
river, thus, has more potential for restoration of its
present status by more sustainable agricultural practices
especially in the precipitous slopes.
As studies based on watershed basis to address the
problem of environmental and resource degradation in
the Laguna de Bay basin, further researches are needed
to be done, especially, which quantifies the land use
changes and resource degradation in the lake`s
watersheds.

Acknowledgment
The funding for the fieldwork was made available
by Makita International Scholarship Foundation, Tokyo
and my supervisor, Prof. Francisco Fellizar, Jr.
I would like to thank the Assistant General Manager
of Laguna Lake Development Authority for her kind
cooperation and help during the fieldworks.

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