Reclamation touted as a shield against flooding is threatening to take away the very waters that sustain lakeside communities, a Philippine fisherfolk group said Tuesday as it backed an investigation into alleged unauthorized works in Taguig City’s portion of Laguna de Bay.

The Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) said the reclamation threatened the livelihoods and environmental rights of fisherfolk and urban poor families living around the lake.

“We express support to any investigation that will hold accountable the officials who pushed for the destructive reclamation projects in Laguna de Bay,” Pamalakaya Vice Chairperson Ronnel Arambulo said.

Senator Panfilo Lacson said on Monday that Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano had allegedly pressured Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA) officials to stop an inquiry into a reclamation project in Taguig.

Lacson has also alleged that some projects described as flood-control or slope-protection works were actually reclamation activities. He said his inquiry had identified at least 32 infrastructure projects in Taguig that he considered anomalous, including projects he described as disguised reclamation.

Last week, Lacson said documentary and testimonial evidence gathered by his inquiry had been submitted to the Office of the Ombudsman.

Cayetano has disputed Lacson’s allegations and defended the projects as measures to address flooding and protect communities around Laguna de Bay.

Pamalakaya rejected that justification, saying reclamation could obstruct waterways and reduce the lake’s ability to absorb floodwaters.

“May we remind Senator Cayetano that the reclamation project can never be a flood control, nor a protectionary measure to the lake’s ecosystem,” Arambulo said.

“Scientific records and our actual experiences already point to a different reality to what Senator Cayetano is saying,” he added.

Pamalakaya said fisherfolk had reported declining catches and the loss of traditional and endemic fish species as reclamation and other development activities expanded along the lakeshore.

“Whether it be unauthorized or compliant with the proper procedures, reclamation is never beneficial to the coastal residents and aquatic resources,” Arambulo said.

Arambulo also accused the Cayetano political clan in Taguig of promoting reclamation under the guise of flood control and called for officials behind the projects to be held accountable.

The alleged reclamation is linked to the 37-kilometer Laguna Lakeshore Road Network (LLRN), which will connect Lower Bicutan in Taguig with Calamba, Laguna, along the western shore of Laguna de Bay.

The allegations remain under investigation.