A bill aimed at enhancing the protection of the Las Piñas Parañaque Wetland Park (LPPWP), a wetland of international importance and the last remaining viable wetland ecosystem in Metro Manila, has been approved by the Senate.

On 26 January, Senate Bill No. 1536, known as the LPPWP Protection Act, passed with a 21-0 vote. The bill proposes a three-kilometer seaward expansion to protect the wetland’s land and water ecosystems, preserve its biodiversity, and shield it from development pressures.

The bill amends Republic Act 11038, the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System Act (ENIPAS), to expand the LPPWP’s coverage.

Senator Cynthia Villar, chairperson of the Committee on Environment, Natural Resources, and Climate Change, said that with the bill’s unanimous approval, senators take on their patriotic as well as their global duty to ensure that all steps are taken to fulfill international commitments under the Ramsar Convention, the World Heritage Convention, the Convention on Migratory Species, and the ASEAN Agreement on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, among others.

The mangrove forest will protect Las Piñas and Parañaque from disasters, provide the fingerlings necessary to support the livelihood of 300,000 members of the fisherfolk community in Manila Bay, and contribute to food security for Metro Manila residents.

“With the buffer zone expansion provided by the bill, the LPPWP will be better conserved, and more ecosystems can be conserved with a buffer zone that will broaden the scope of protection, ensure the integrity of its ecosystems, and ensure the free flow of water coming from four rivers — Parañaque River of Parañaque, Las Piñas and Zapote Rivers of Las Piñas, and Molino River of Bacoor — which are connected with each other.”

In its present state, the LPPWP is composed of shallow waters, tidal marshes, mudflats, and mangrove swamp forests. The various ecosystems within host at least 5,000 individuals of about 159 species of migratory and resident birds, 23 species of true and associate mangroves, and several economically important fish species and mollusks. The waterbirds include those threatened with extinction, such as the Philippine Duck, the Chinese Egret, and the Black-Winged Stilt.