The findings of this project show that the expansion of the pen and cage culture in Laguna de Bay necessitates the support of a number of actions essential to the shortand long-term aquaculture interest of the area.
4.1 The Laguna de Bay ecosystem is so complex that it is extremely difficult to assess its potential fish biomass carrying capacity due to the dynamic role of the predominance of pollutants and the complexity of their interactions. The current undertaking of the LBFDP in this consideration, impliedly assumes that the present level of domestic, agriculture and industrial waste loads including the present and future level of metabolic wastes from fish culture activities was still below the critical level of aquatic pollution, and therefore, that by virtue of this assumption, the present aquatic environment was still acceptabile to the LBFDP. The present environmental conditions should therefore be expected to give rise to wide fluctuations in yield rates. In addition, the inevitable adverse effects of typhoon, poaching and other problems concerned with possible losses of the stocked fish should also be expected. Under these circumstances, the LBFDP formulate functional and effective contingency and crisis management measures, in addition to the usual management scheme for fishpen and cage culture. These measures written in manual form should be disseminated to its extension workers and fishermen clientele.
4.2 It would be in the long-term interest of the LBFDP under the circumstances to introduce a water management scheme for the bay with the object of controlling, and if possible, minimizing the current level of pollution. Under the scheme, pollution should be controlled at source as far as possible. Considerations should also be given to minimize the present and future nutrient loads by the introduction of herbivorous fishes for continuous cropping of nutrients.
4.3 As indicated from the socio-economic study, most of the fishermen prefer 2.5 ha or smaller sized fishpen with 21 percent opting for fishcage culture. It seems logical to develop such an alternative culture system for fishermen interested in the pure cage culture of Tilapia nilotica. The clustering of tilapia cages adopting the proposed dimension (10 × 30 × 3 m) by the BRI consultants and to be enclosed also by a common barrier may be given serious consideration as an option for fishermen sub-borrowers to engage in.
There are advantages for small fishermen's engagement in cage culture only. It is less risky, fish harvesting is easier, and the initial capital investment is much less compared with that for the fishpen. Other perceived benefits are: possibility for fishcage owners to produce their own tilapia seeds which would significantly reduce production cost; less prone to poaching as a fishcage culture area is significantly smaller and hence guarding against poachers is more manageable; tilapia being hardier than milkfish and therefore more tolerant to the lake's present environment; and the price of tilapia being competitive against the latter.
4.4 The amount of fish to be sold through the PFMA being 70 percent of the harvested milkfish, should be changed to a specified quantity by module type. It also seems desirable that fishermen associations be strengthened to generate an interest among members to participate in production and marketing activities cooperatively. Linkages with the Food Terminal Inc. (FTI) and the Kadiwa Centres be established by the LBFDP with the object of shortening the channel of distribution. Fishermen sub-borrowers may be allowed to market all their harvests through the best market outlets available provided their loan amortization is upto-date.
4.5 There is a need to institutionalize a training programme with fish production/processing/marketing, quality control, and the monitoring of information on supply and market demand as a whole.
Designated landing sites (DLS) be established by the authorities concerned to provide among other facilities, a temporary cold storage for ready-to-market fish products and also to serve as a monitoring point for the supply and demand trend and the corresponding values of the product in relation to time and other fish supply sources.
For documentation purposes, it is also necessary that all fishpen/cage operators in the lake be registered and required to submit reports of their fish production. This will make the monitoring of supply and demand in relation to the values of milkfish and tilapia more accurate and reliable.
4.6 The PMO-LBDFP also help its extension division develop fishpen and cage culture as a highly competent production/processing/marketing enterprise involving whole families in order to sustain and accelerate effective fishpen/cage development and utilization. Being a newly organized office, the extension personnel of the PMO-LBFDP are at present still inexperienced in barangay-based project management.
While the PMO-LBFDP is in a transition stage of strengthening its rapport with its clientele and enhancing its internal capability to meet their needs, the services of a Technical Assistance Group (TAG) to assist the PMO-LBFDP on a continuing basis become essential. The major function of the TAG is to bridge the technological delivery system gap by working directly with fishermen sub-borrowers and a barangay multi-disciplinary team of the LBFDP. This kind of service becomes much more relevant when the project is fully implemented, and will continue until PMO-LBFDP becomes ready to absorb the responsibility. The proposed TAG composition may be headed by one aquaculturist/aquaculture engineer, one socio-economist, one extension expert and one marketing expert. It may be employed by the LLDA or may come as a complementing support from an external agency. The group's terms of reference are specified as follows:
To document/monitor the ongoing project;
To provide expert advice in aquaculture, extension, communications and management needs of the LBFDP marketing/cooperation development;
To conduct external evaluation of the project (formative/summative and social and economic impact analyses on target communities/clientele, using socio-economic study just completed as the baseline).
To submit reports to the agencies concerned and the general public on the ongoing of the project and accomplishment and needs for prompt action if required.
