M U N T I N L U PA

M AT T E R S
ADDRESSING
INFORMALITY
IN METRO MANILA

SITE PLANNING
STUDIO 2015

PREPARED FOR THE WORLD BANK AND THE CITY GOVERNMENT OF MUNTINLUPA
BY MIT DUSP IN COLLABORATION WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES

RESEARCH LED BY MARY ANNE OCAMPO AND STEPHEN F. GRAY

IN COLLABORATION WITH FADI MASOUD
 Copyright © 2016
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Urban Studies and Planning
School of Architecture + Planning

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be

reproduced in any form, or by any means, electronic or
mechanical, including photocopying, unless specifically
permitted in the text or by written permission of the
authors.
Photo: Dennis Diaz

ii INTRODUCTION
iii
 Photo: Adriana Akers

iv INTRODUCTION
v
 Photo: Arianna Salazar Miranda

vi INTRODUCTION
vii
 Photo: Dennis Diaz

viii INTRODUCTION
ix
 Photo: Adriana Akers

x INTRODUCTION
xi
 Photo: Mary Anne Ocampo

xii INTRODUCTION
xiii
 Photo: David Isaak

xiv INTRODUCTION
xv
 CONTENTS 00
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

xviii PARTNERSHIPS AND

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Clients and Participants

01
INTRODUCTION

1 INTRODUCTION
Studio Framework and Critical
Questions

6 PROCESS
Field Studies and Community
Engagement

12 PRINCIPLES AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
Three Principles of Integrated
Urban Development

16 PROJECTS
Introduction to Student Work

Photo: Dennis Diaz

xvi INTRODUCTION
02 04
MUNTINLUPA CITY STUDENT PROJECTS

20 REGIONAL CONTEXT 96 SITE SELECTION

Gateway to Calabarzon Addressing Informality

22 CITY CONTEXT 98 INTELLIGENT

City of Barangays
26 INFORMALITY
Informal Settlers and
Vulnerability
30 AVAILABLE VACANT LAND
Open Land in Muntinlupa
32 BARANGAY CONTEXT
Sucat, Buli, Cupang, Alabang
42 COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Stakeholder Interviews and
Design Charrette
INFRASTRUCTURE
Sharing Resources and
Living Local
144 CONNECT AND PROTECT
Cleaning Water and
Balancing Benefits
192 ENVIRONMENTAL
ZONING
Directing Settlement and
Building Capacity
230 DISTINCTLY FILIPINO
Local Landmaking and
Development

03 05
VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES CONCLUSION

52 ENVIRONMENTAL 288 CONCLUSION

VULNERABILITIES Informality and the Dual City
Systems Thinking, Natural
Hazards, and Urban
Development

70 SOCIOECONOMIC
DISCONNECTS
Informal Settlements and
Relocation

82 DEVELOPMENT SILOS
Private Development and
Infrastructure Building

xvii
 PARTNERSHIPS AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Muntinlupa Matters was a semester-long site planning Inc. (HPFPI), the Technical Assistance Movement
and environmental systems studio led by MIT Lecturers for People and the Environment, Inc. (TAMPEI), the
Mary Anne Ocampo and Stephen F. Gray of the Muntinlupa Development Foundation (MDF), and
Department of Urban Studies and Planning (DUSP) in Bukluran, among others.
collaboration with MIT Lecturer Fadi Masoud of the
This project would not have been possible without the
Center for Advanced Urbanism (CAU). The University
institutional leadership of MIT President L. Rafael Reif
of the Philippines (UP) College of Architecture Dean
an MIT Provost Martin Schmidt and their dedication
Mary Ann A. Espina, UP College of Urban and Regional
to finding ways for MIT to respond to the devastation
Planning Dean Mario R. Delos Reyes, and Professor
of Typhoon Haiyan, which struck the Philippines in
Michael Tomeldan contributed to the community
November 2013. The Institute’s Philippines Recovery
engagement and design strategies at the outset of the
Working Group leaders, Christopher Capozzola and
project.
Aaron Weinberger, provided invaluable determination,
The World Bank, MIT’s client, provided the project passion, and commitment to making this studio possible.
brief; shared relevant background data, studies, and
Travel was made possible by generous funding and
information; and arranged for workshops, presentations,
support from MIT International Science and Technology
and field study opportunities with local community
Initiatives (MISTI), MIT School of Architecture and
leaders. MIT and UP worked closely with Senior Urban
Planning, MIT Department of Urban Studies and
Economist Yan Zhang and Senior Social Development
Planning, MIT Office of the Dean of Graduate Education,
Specialist Makiko Watanabe of the World Bank.
Sasaki Associates, Philippine Transmarine Carriers, Inc.
Numerous local NGOs participated in the project,
Vice Chairman and CEO Gerardo Borromeo, and the
including the Homeless People’s Federation Philippines,
visionary leadership of ACM Landholdings.

Work sessions with MIT and UP included presentations by Manila Observatory’s Toni Loyzaga and Ateneo University’s Emma Porio. Photo: Arianna Salazar
Miranda

xviii INTRODUCTION
Key presentations and an extensive GIS database
were shared by the Metropolitan Manila Development
Authority (MMDA), Department of Public Works and
Highways (DPWH), Urban Poor Affairs Office (UPAO),
Muntinlupa City Planning and Development Office
(CPDO) Acting Planning Director Jose Reynaldo B.
Lunas, GIS Division Head Jose “Pitz” David Adriano,
and Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA)
President Arnel Casanova.

Manila Observatory Executive Director Toni Loyzaga,

leading architect and scholar Paulo Alcazaren, and
Ateneo University Professor Emma Porio provided
support and thought leadership to students, as
well as relevant data and background information
on the Philippines, Manila, and the project site. MIT
School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences
Professor Christopher Capozzola and MIT Media Lab
researcher Katja Schechtner in the Urban Development
and Transport Technologies division at the Asian Makiko Watanabe presents the World Bank’s Citywide Development Approach.
Development Bank also collaborated during the Photo: Dennis Diaz

research phase of the project..

MIT, the University of the Philippines, the World Bank, NGOs, POs, and Muntinlupa City community members gather in Sucat for community meetings.
Photo: Dennis Diaz

xix
Photo: Arianna Salazar Miranda
INTRODUCTION
2 INTRODUCTION
 INTRODUCTION
As part of an institute-wide effort to respond to
the devastation of Typhoon Haiyan (2013), the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Department of
Urban Studies and Planning (MIT DUSP), in collaboration
with the University of the Philippines (UP) and the World
Bank, led a studio practicum to explore urban resiliency
strategies in Metropolitan Manila. The studio investigated
and proposed ways of reducing vulnerability for
Informal Settler Families (ISFs) living without secure land
tenure along the shores of Laguna de Bay, the largest
freshwater lake in the Philippines.
In January 2015, a group of MIT students and professors
traveled to Manila for a two-week site visit that included
extensive fieldwork, stakeholder interviews, community
meetings, and design charrettes. Students from MIT and
UP worked collaboratively to understand the history and
present context of development, settlement, and natural
disasters in relation to informality and vulnerability, and
then brainstormed approaches to addressing these
complex challenges. Relying on local knowledge,
professional expertise, and ongoing initiatives, students
engaged directly with informal settlers, visiting those
communities with the highest concentration of
substandard living conditions, higher than average
exposure to natural disasters, low levels of land tenure,
and an elevated risk of displacement. Throughout the
semester, students continued their engagement with
the projects through thorough research and analysis.
Following the analysis phase, they worked in teams
to develop planning and design proposals aimed
at addressing the socio-spatial, environmental, and
economic challenges of ISFs living in Muntinlupa City.
Vulnerability to natural disasters has long been a part of
Filipino history, shaping the country’s society, culture,
and physical environment. In 2013, Typhoon Haiyan
Aerial Photo of Barangay Alabang
(also known as Typhoon Yolanda), the strongest
tropical storm recorded at landfall in the Philippines,
cost thousands of lives, displaced millions, and caused
large-scale destruction, amplifying the urgent need
for environmental and social resilience planning in
the region. Climate change, reflected in increasingly
frequent and severe natural disasters, is further
compounded by unabated population growth and
MANY NGOS HAVE
ACHIEVED SUCCESSFUL
INTERVENTIONS IN METRO
MANILA’S INFORMAL
SETTLEMENTS, BUT THEY
HAVE FALLEN SHORT IN
REACHING SCALE.
rural-to-urban migration. Metro Manila has experienced
rapid urban growth in recent years, leading to a marked
increase in urban poverty and a population of over
600,000 ISFs seeking jobs and housing. Approximately
51% of ISFs live in high-risk areas, where they suffer
disproportionately from natural disasters, especially
flooding, and settle along the easements of urban
waterways and lakeshore flood zones, exposing them to
recurrent and intensifying flooding.1
This studio inquiry was based in Muntinlupa City, the
southernmost of sixteen local government units
(LGUs) that make up Metro Manila. Muntinlupa lies
adjacent to Laguna de Bay. Nearly half of Muntinlupa’s
460,000 residents belong to the urban poor sector, and
according to 2007 Local Government Unit (LGU) data,
the city has over 27,000 ISFs in 241 communities.2 With
approximately 5,000 ISFs residing along waterways and
4,000 ISFs living along the 11 km lakeshore of Laguna
de Bay, Muntinlupa requires a citywide strategy for
addressing flood risk and informality.
Since 2014, the studio’s client, the World Bank, has
been working to establish a Metro Manila Citywide
Development Approach to Informal Settlement
Upgrading (CDA) in the region, with the goal of
reducing vulnerability and improving flood resilience
1 Makiko Watanabe. “Searching for Sustainable Housing Solutions
for Informal Settlers in Metro Manila.” Community Architects Network
Workshop. Muntinlupa City Hall, Muntinlupa, Philippines. 17 June 2015.
Conference Presentation.
2 The World Bank, Terms of Reference “Metro Manila Citywide
Development Approach to Informal Settlement Upgrading Project (CDA) –
Muntinlupa City” October 23, 2014.
3
 A lakeshore settlement along Laguna de Bay. Photo: Ellen Lohe “Estero” Community in Muntinlupa. Photo: Adriana Akers

for informal settlers in three pilot cities: Caloocan, While some Local Government Units (LGUs) that have
Quezon City, and Muntinlupa. The CDA is intended to demonstrated exemplary achievements (e.g. Cebu, Iloilo,
allow the government to address informal settlement Mandaue, Naga, and Quezon City) in informal settlement
at scale by adopting a decentralized, programmatic, relocation, these remain isolated success stories.
and highly participatory approach. Should the project
Past efforts have witnessed some success, yet have
prove successful, the CDA may provide a model for
also suffered from crucial limitations. In recent years, the
resettlement under the ongoing national informal
government has taken a more aggressive approach
settlement upgrading program, which aims to
to addressing issues of informality through large-
resettle104,000 informal settler families out of the danger
scale relocation strategies. Those relocated have
zones, and the World Bank’s Greater Metro Manila Flood
faced significant challenges, including unsustainable
Management Project, which will affect an estimated
mortgage debt, increased travel time to jobs, and the
400,000 informal settlers.
fragmentation of social and economic networks. These
According to the World Bank’s Metro Manila Citywide strains have in some cases precipitated a disintegration
Slum Upgrading Project, many NGOs have achieved of the traditional family unit, within breadwinners living
successful community-driven interventions in Metro apart from their extended families to be near their jobs.
Manila’s informal settlements, but they have fallen short
Private sector participation in the low-income housing
in reaching scale (e.g. Habitat for Humanity, Homeless
market has been limited to date, though some
People’s Federation Philippines Inc. (HPFPI), Foundation
developers have interest in expanding their own markets
for the Development of the Urban Poor (FDUP), and
to include in-city medium-rise buildings for ISFs. These
Foundation for Development Alternatives (FDA)).

4 INTRODUCTION
HOW CAN INTEGRATED RESETTLEMENT STRATEGIES FOR ISFS
BALANCE CONSIDERATIONS FOR NATURAL SYSTEMS, CITY FORM,
AND SOCIO-CULTURAL DYNAMICS?

schemes often come up against financing barriers,

however, due to a lack of affordable mortgages for those
not employed in the formal economy.

In collaboration with the World Bank and the University of

the Philippines (UP), this studio sought to build upon the
World Bank’s Citywide Development Approach (CDA)
by developing replicable resettlement and upgrading
strategies for residents located in four Muntinlupa
City barangays (neighborhoods) along the shoreline
of Laguna de Bay: Sucat, Buli, Cupang, and Alabang.
Acknowledging the limitations of past efforts by the
government, NGOs, and the private sector to address
flooding and informality in Metro Manila, the studio Community Architects Network (CAN) workshop, June 2016. Photo: David
challenged students to devise solutions that were both Vega-Barachowitz
replicable and scalable, and which engaged the realities
of the private sector, while questioning the cost benefit of
the conventional relocation paradigm. This document records diverse and innovative strategies,
In the context of one of the world’s most densely which together address the vulnerabilities of ISFs related
populated mega-cities, populated by an increasingly to climate adaptation, economic development, and
vulnerable and growing informal urban population, the social inclusion in urban areas. Studio recommendations
studio explored the following questions: and projects for Muntinlupa’s Citywide Development
Approach are documented in detail in the full studio
• How can ISFs in Metro Manila be better prepared report and are intended for use by the World Bank as
for future storm events? well as city agencies, local NGOs, developers, and other
• Where should future development and institutions that contribute to urban development in the
redevelopment occur and where should it not? region.

• How can integrated resettlement strategies for
ISFs balance considerations for natural systems,
city form, and socio-cultural dynamics?
• What are the benefits of public, private, and non-
profit sector collaborations?
These findings were presented at the Community
Architects Network (CAN) Regional Conference and
Workshop in Intramuros and Muntinlupa City in June
2015. The research was also presented at the NXCities
Symposium, the first international forum for discussing
urbanism in the Philippines, in Bonifacio Global City in
March 2016. This workshop represents the first of many
opportunities for engagement with various stakeholders
in the larger Metro Manila region.

5
 PROCESS
Over the course of the studio, students analyzed the physical and socioeconomic conditions of informal settlements
using a multifaceted process, including stakeholder engagement; environmental mapping; documentation of land
and housing needs; research into community financing mechanisms; and exploration of new methods for building
capacity among ISFs.
Metro Manila Fieldwork | January 2015
During fieldwork in Metro Manila, MIT students gained
an understanding of the context, vulnerabilities, and
opportunities related to the people in four Muntinlupa’s
barangays. While in Manila, MIT and UP students
attended a series of lectures featuring experts from local
academic institutions, organizations, and private sector
groups. These lectures dealt with the history and profile
of Metro Manila and Muntinlupa; climate change and
flooding across the region; the challenge associated
with widespread informal settlement; and recent
development pressures.
Participating institutions and organizations included:
• University of the Philippines (UP)
• Ateneo University
• The World Bank
• The Asian Development Bank
• Manila Observatory
• PGAA Creative Design
• Homeless People’s Federation Philippines, Inc.
• Technical Assistance Movement for People and the
Environment, Inc. (TAMPEI)
• Muntinlupa Development Foundation (MDF)
• Bukluran
• Philippine Transmarine Carriers, Inc.
• ACM Landholdings
• Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA)
• Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)
• Urban Poor Affairs Office (UPAO)
• Muntinlupa City Planning and Development Office
• Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA)
6 INTRODUCTION
Students documented these lectures and field visits
through note taking, sketching, and photography. Each
day, students were asked to create one emblematic
drawing (“graphic meeting minutes”) to illustrate a key
takeaway from the day.
For the field study, students worked in four groups, each
composed of two MIT students and four to five UP
students. Each group was assigned to conduct fieldwork
in one of four selected barangays in Muntinlupa. Over
the course of several site visits, the groups conducted
over 40 interviews with local residents to gain an
understanding of local life along the shore of Laguna
de Bay, including residents’ lifestyles, needs, constraints,
and opportunities. These interviews laid the groundwork
for a series of community profiles that cataloged
predominant movement patterns, modes of travel, and
daily routines in relation to places of residence, jobs,
and public spaces. Each interviewee was also asked
to describe the impact of flooding on their livelihood
and their concerns (or lack thereof) about a changing
lakeshore environment.
Using a participatory community mapping process,
students and local residents created maps of each
barangay that cataloged community gathering areas,
open spaces, commercial sites, key transportation
corridors, important ecological sites, major flooding
areas, informal evacuation centers, and other locations
indicated as either important, problematic, or as an
area of opportunity. Students used these maps to
create community transects showing the relationship
between built environment, ecology, topography, and
infrastructure.
THE GROUPS CONDUCTED OVER 40 INTERVIEWS WITH LOCAL
RESIDENTS TO GAIN AN UNDERSTANDING OF LOCAL LIFE ALONG
THE SHORE OF LAGUNA DE BAY.

Photos: Adriana Akers, Shanika Hettige, Mary Anne Ocampo, Dennis Diaz, Arianna Salazar Miranda

7
Community engagement meeting in Muntinlupa. Photo: Stephen Gray

8 INTRODUCTION
9
 Sponsor ACM Landholdings visits the MIT studio in Cambridge.

10 INTRODUCTION
 MIT Studio Work
Cambridge, February - May 2015
Following the two-week site visit, MIT students returned
to Cambridge to deepen their understanding of
Muntinlupa’s vulnerabilities and opportunities through
further analysis and research regarding issues brought
up by residents as well as critical mapping of data
obtained in Metro Manila. Students began by refining
and formalizing their daily graphic meeting minutes into
a series of infographics as part of a memo to the World
Bank that captured some of the major ideas from the trip.

Following this synthesis of the fieldwork, students

formed four groups of two to delve further into four
key topic areas: environment; economy; mobility
and infrastructure; and politics. Teams illustrated the
existing conditions of Muntinlupa through one of
these four lenses, assessing post-flooding conditions
and identifying opportunities for resilient retrofits. This
research was conveyed as a series of maps at the
national, regional, city, and barangay scales. Each group
also considered how these topics interacted with three
different vulnerability variables key to ISFs in Muntinlupa:
tropical storms, land tenure, and hard infrastructure,
including the potential ramifications of a proposed
combination dike-expressway project known as the C-6,
which was extensively discussed during the field study.

Following the analysis phase, students began

developing design propositions that could respond to
both short-term community needs and provide a long-
term vision for resiliency.

Fadi Masoud, Mary Anne Ocampo, and Stephen Gray led the planning
and design studio.

DURING FIELDWORK, STUDENTS SYNTHESIZED THE

HOLISTIC RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN ECOLOGY, ECONOMY,
INFRASTRUCTURE AND PUBLIC POLICY IN MUNTINLUPA.

11
 PRINCIPLES AND
RECOMMENDATIONS

Three Principles of Integrated Urban

Development
This report tries to capture the voice of all-too-often
marginalized communities residing along the waterways
of Metro Manila - understanding who they are, how
they live, and what they need. It is not intended as a
proposal for the restructuring of public policy nor is
it attempt to reform existing economic, financial, and
governmental institutions. This document compiles
urban analysis, stakeholder interviews, planning
principles, and conceptual alternatives for the rethinking
of development and community resettlement along
Muntinlupa’s Laguna de Bay shoreline. It includes an
analysis of the physical conditions of the waterways
and communities adjacent to urban development, a
synthesis of lessons learned from recent case studies,
and proposals for inventive and sustainable planning
and urban design strategies

Recommendations formulated throughout the studio

represent broadly applicable principles that recognize
the competing objectives and prevailing trends of a fast-
growing mega-city. The projects
are specific enough to stand as proofs of concept and
sufficiently systematic to be applied to similar challenges
in other areas. Although the four student teams took on
very different challenges, geographies, and forms, there
were consistent themes that manifested throughout the
projects and corresponding recommendations.

The studio recommendations embody three basic

principles for achieving a more efficient, equitable, and
integrated urban environment.

12 INTRODUCTION
Photo: Adriana Akers

13
 1 2
Socioeconomic:
Support a shared
economy. Connect
formal and informal
The informal economy plays an essential role in the
fabric of Muntinlupa’s communities and the livelihoods of
its residents. Integrating the formal and informal sectors
of the economy - whether in transportation, commercial
fishing, retail, or otherwise - has the potential to both
legitimize and improve the lives of Muntinlupa residents.
By bridging the formal and the informal, Muntinlupa
can better integrate the polarized spheres of its
economy and society. Building forums for community
engagement and tactical infrastructures that can
transcend the formal-informal dichotomy is central to
sustainable development. Further, it is essential to pay
close attention to the structural conditions that shape
informal settlements, the livelihoods that give root to their
formation (i.e. fisherfolk), and the social capital that is
created within them.
14 INTRODUCTION
Environment:
Work with nature,
not against it
The fractured ecological state of Laguna de Bay,
compounded by the increasing threat of natural
disaster, reflects the complex relationship between
regional growth, local economy, and natural systems.
Environmental degradation must be understood as
a social problem as well as a natural process, and
its response, therefore, must delicately integrate
the ecological with the socioeconomic. By aligning
ecological imperatives with economic and social
motivations, Muntinlupa can demonstrate the potential
for community infrastructures to both mitigate flood
risks, improve hydrological conditions, and improve
quality of life. New development should strive for a
symbiosis between productivity and social benefits,
integrating open space systems that also lessen the
degree of impact from shoreline flooding; building
urban agriculture and evacuation centers on open land;
and creating malls and large-scale developments that
incorporate natural systems, climate, and environmental
vulnerabilities into future land use, zoning, and policy-
making.
3
Development:
Break down silos

Effective partnerships between the community, the

public sector, and developers are essential to laying
the foundation of a successful Citywide Development
Approach. Though Metro Manila has undergone rapid
economic expansion over the past two decades, this
growth has been accompanied by vast inequities in
housing and transportation, environmental deterioration,
and the expansion of a vast informal economy and
housing market. Public incentives should encourage
the building of additional affordable housing units
and counteract unabated informal settlement growth.
New developments must strive to appreciate the
nuanced relationship between land use, transportation,
informality, and industry, while transcending the siloed
processes that characterize contemporary city-building
in Muntinlupa and Metro Manila.

Photo: David Vega-Barachowitz

15
 PROJECTS

Intelligent Infrastructure:
Sharing Resources and Living Local 98
In the recent past, the primary strategy for reducing vulnerability
for informal communities in flood-prone areas has been relocation
and resettlement. This approach has been largely unsuccessful
because relocation typically disconnects families from social and
economic resources, locks people into prohibitively expensive
mortgages, and often results in families returning to the urban
areas from which they were moved. This strategy proposes in situ
shared infrastructure to provide basic services of power, plumbing,
refrigeration, and community center amenities. This infrastructure
can reduce vulnerability from flooding, while enhancing access
to basic services in cost-effective ways. When flood events occur
and evacuation is necessary, temporary resettlement happens
on privately controlled vacant land within close proximity to the
evacuated areas. Private landowners are incentivized to participate
and leave areas of their land undeveloped by special allowances
for strategic upzoning on other large parcels along major highways,
commuter rail lines, and other mobility connections.

Connect and Protect:

Cleaning Water and Balancing Benefits 144
A recently authorized joint public-private venture will construct
a C-6 lakeshore dike expressway and reclaim land as a series
of islands along the lakeshore of Muntinlupa. This will not only
disconnect water-dependent ISF communities living along the
shore from their primary sources of livelihood and food, but will
also result in concentrating highly contaminated water in a narrow
channel between the inner edge of the dike expressway islands and
the shore. Accepting this proposal as a given, the lakeshore and
expressway are re-imagined as a new landscape infrastructure
system for cleaning polluted water. Considerations for public
open space, open air markets, and fishing access capitalize on the
existing fishing communities, bridging the fishing industry with
new development and connecting ISFs to mutually beneficial
opportunities and amenities.

16 INTRODUCTION
Environmental Zoning:
Directing Settlement and Building Capacity 192
The number of migrant families moving to Metro Manila increases
each year. These families come with limited job skills, often settle
as squatters along urban waterways and other undeveloped areas,
and have limited access to the formal economy. Building upon the
agricultural skills and heritage of rural migrants moving into urban
areas, a new land use planning and development framework
suggests redirected resettlement of ISFs into dense clusters of mixed
housing surrounded by agricultural land. This approach provides
a framework for a shared economy around urban agriculture
while offering formal employment for ISFs. It also significantly
reduces family food expenditures from the current 60% level,1 takes
advantage of cheaper land on which to secure tenure, and protects
ecologically sensitive areas from blanket suburban residential and
mega-mall developments that proliferate in many areas of Metro
Manila.

Distinctly Filipino:
Local Landmaking and Development 230
Privatized and segmented development patterns characterize the
present landscape of Metro Manila, contributing to traffic congestion,
privatization, and an undemocratic distribution of resources.
A 400-year-old colonial past further disconnects Filipinos from
traditional development patterns that respond to natural systems and
local ways of life. Adapting proven patterns of living with water from
generations of local provincial planning, an authentic urbanism
can emerge that is uniquely Filipino and reintroduces a sustainable
and responsive form of native land-making to expand the physical
edge of Muntinlupa.
1 Junio Ragragio (2003) ”Urban Slums Report: The Case of Manila, Philippines” in Understanding Slums: case
studies for the global report on human settlements 2003, University College London.

17
 02
MUNTINLUPA
CITY
18 MUNTINLUPA CITY
Photo: Arianna Salazar Miranda

19
 REGIONAL CONTEXT

Muntinlupa is one of three pilot-cities for the World Bank’s Citywide Development Approach Project. According to
LGU data, Muntinlupa had over 27,000 ISFs in 241 ISF communities scattered across 9 barangays, approximately
4 percent of the population, in 2007. With increasing rural-to-urban migration in the last decade, it is critical
to understand the regional, city, and barangay context to better assess the complexity of informal settlement
vulnerabilities.

Geography | The Gateway to Calabarzon Economic Role | Filinvest Corporate City

Muntinlupa is the southernmost city in Metro Manila
on the island of Luzon. The city is part of the Philippine
National Capital Region (NCR) and is located
approximately 18 km from the major regional Central
Business District (CBD) of Makati. The city hosts several
large commercial centers as well as luxury gated
residential communities, though almost half of the
population falls into the urban poor sector.1 Muntinlupa
has 11 km of shoreline fronting Laguna de Bay, the
largest freshwater lake in the Philippines. It is bounded by
Taguig City in the north, Parañaque City in the northwest,
Las Piñas City in the west, the Province of Cavite in the
southwest, the Province of Laguna in the south, and
Laguna de Bay Lake to the east. Due to its geographic
location, Muntinlupa is known as the “gateway to
Calabarzon,” the adjacent region in southwestern Luzon.
Home to one of the four central business districts (CBD)
of the National Capital Region, the City of Muntinlupa
plays a central economic role within Metro Manila.
The city’s CBD is located in Filinvest Corporate City
in Barangay Alabang and hosts both domestic and
international businesses. Under the Philippine Economic
Zone Authority, Muntinlupa’s Northgate Cyber Zone
IT park is part of an economic investment strategy for
the Philippines to compete globally in an international
market for information technology. Northgate includes
several Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) and
Knowledge Processing Outsourcing (KPO) facilities,
educational institutions, multimedia companies, call
centers, e-commerce businesses, banks, and financial
companies.

1 The World Bank. Metro Manila Citywide Development Approach

to Informal Settlement Upgrading Project. October 2014.

20 MUNTINLUPA CITY
 CENTRAL LUZON

Metro Manila

Manila Bay

Muntinlupa

Laguna de Bay

Taal Volcano
CALABARZON
Source: Google Maps

21
 CITY CONTEXT

A City of Barangays

Muntinlupa City has a land area of 3,975 hectares,
ranking as the 7th largest Local Government Unit in
the National Capital Region.1 The city is composed
of nine barangays—the smallest official administrative
division used in the Philippines, and the native Filipino
term for neighborhood, district, or ward. In 2010, the city
population was approximately 459,941. By 2015, the City
Government of Muntinlupa estimates that the population
had grown to 506,569 people, an increase of over 10% in
just five years.2
Muntinlupa is politically divided into two legislative
districts. District 1 is comprised of four barangays in
the south: Bayanan, Putatan, Poblacion, and Tunasan.
District 2 is comprised of five barangays in the north:
Alabang, Ayala-Alabang, Cupang, Buli, and Sucat. The
city’s seat of government is located in Barangay Putatan.

1 Philippines National Statistics Office (NSO).

2 “Development Outlook: City of Muntinlupa.” Presentation by

Muntinlupa City Planning and Development Office. January 2015.

Sucat Population Density < 50

Buli 51 - 100
Cupang 101 - 150
Ayala Alabang 151 - 199
Alabang 200 - 249
Bayanan > 250
Putatan
Poblacion
Tunasan

9 Barangays Population Density

22 MUNTINLUPA CITY
Source: Google Maps

23
 Civic Barangay Hall
Industrial School
Residential Police Station
Commercial Hospital
Recreation Fire Station

Land Use Civic Amenities

The majority of Muntinlupa’s land area is There are a variety of public facilities in
used for residential purposes. The city’s Muntinlupa, including Barangay Halls,
major commercial corridors run north to schools, police stations, hospitals, and
south in parallel to the shoreline, with a fire stations.
major commercial node in the vicinity of
Filinvest City, the city’s CBD. Industrial uses
cluster in the northern area of Muntinlupa,
while the southwest remains largely
undeveloped.

24 MUNTINLUPA CITY
 Railway
Station and 5-minute walk radius
Major Road
Local Road
Transportation
Several major highways, notably the
South Luzon Expressway (SLEx), run
through Muntinlupa. Parallel to the SLEx
is the Philippine National Railway (PNR),
which has stops in Sucat, Alabang,
and Poblacion.
Rivers
Topography
Hydrology
Rivers and streams flow to Laguna de Bay
from areas throughout Muntinlupa. The
rivers are notorious for water pollution,
and contribute to the deteriorated quality
of the water in the lake along the
Muntinlupa shoreline. Among the
most polluted sections of the lake, this
area is classified by the Laguna Lake
Development Authority as having “Worse
than Class D” water quality, unsuitable for
agriculture, irrigation, livestock watering,
and industrial water supply.
25
 INFORMALITY
INFORMAL SETTLER FAMILIES OFTEN OCCUPY THE MOST
VULNERABLE AND LEAST DESIRABLE LAND.
There is a notable and intrinsic relationship
between vulnerability and informality in Muntinlupa.
Estuarial easements, earthquake fault lines, and
flood zones considered inappropriate for formal
construction often bear witness to the highest
concentrations of informal settlement. Informality
clings to the crevices between formal development,
building tight-knit communities into steep slopes,
rail lines, and riverbeds.
While there is no direct translation for the term
slum in Tagalog, there are several typical types
of informal settlement that can be observed
throughout the region. The term iskwater refers
to squatters living in semi-permanent dwellings,
while other terms such as estero (estuary, creek),
looban (tightly-packed inner blocks invisible from
the street), dagat-dagatan (flood prone land), and
eskinita (narrow lane) are often used in reference
to ISFs.1
1 Junio M. Ragragio. “The Case of Metro Manila, Philippines” in Urban
Slums Reports: Case Studies for the UN Report on Human Settlements
(University College London: Development Planning Unit, 2003), 7.
26 MUNTINLUPA CITY
The following types of informal settlement are
prevalent in Muntinlupa.
1. Coastal or Lakeshore Settlements
Coastal and lakeshore settlers often rely on the
water for their livelihood, either as fisherfolk, rice
farmers, or fish harvesters. These settlements are
a frequent presence in Muntinlupa and are often
subject to the most intense flooding.
2. Esteros and Riverbank Settlements
Informal settlements along esteros (estuaries or
creeks) and riverbanks are common throughout
Metro Manila. Easements along publicly accessible
waterways have over time given way to large
numbers of ISFs, constraining the capacity of these
channels to deal with floodwaters during heavy
rains and storms.
3. Vacant Land and Railway Settlements
Many informal settlements colonize land that is
held either by absentee landlords or earmarked for
future development. In some cases, such as the
Philippines National Railway right-of-way, this land
can be quite narrow and insecure for settlement.
Others, such as the informal dwellings in the
Christo El Salvador Cemetery, encroach upon
space already designated for other uses.
4. Looban or Inner Block Settlements
In the densest sections of Metro Manila, such
as Intramuros and parts of Alabang, informal
settlements are crowded in the inner courtyards of
urban blocks. These settlements may be invisible
from the street and are often only accessible
through narrow lanes and passageways known to
those that are part of the community.
INFORMAL SETTLER
FAMILIES AND
VULNERABILITIES
Informal Settlement
West Valley Fault
Rivers
Hurricane Ondoy Flooding

27
 INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS INHABIT IN THE CREVICES BETWEEN
FORMAL COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT.

Commercial Industrial

Commercial land uses concentrate Industrial land uses are

along highways and at major prevalent in northern
interchanges. Muntinlupa and have been a
key contributor to the Lake’s
pollution.

28 MUNTINLUPA CITY
MANY ISFS LIVE ALONG VULNERABLE WATERWAYS OR UNSTABLE
SHORELINES WHERE THEY ARE ADVERSELY IMPACTED BY FLOODS.

Waterways Informality

Land uses along waterways Informal settlements cover

include informal dwellings, mall
run-off areas, and industrial uses.
a significant portion of the
Muntinlupa lakeshore and
inland waterways, as well as
spaces in between formal
development.

29
 AVAILABLE VACANT LAND

Open Land in Muntinlupa

In spite of its density, approximately 23 percent

of Muntinlupa City remains vacant or unbuilt. The
amount of vacant land in the city, a vestige of when
the city lay at the fringe of the Metro Manila region,
offers significant opportunities for resettlement and
future development. Vacant land has the potential
to serve multiple goals, including new housing for
ISFs, parks and recreation, agriculture, and water
storage and treatment. 18%
Recent developments in Muntinlupa have been
characterized by either low-density suburban LIVE INFORMALLY IN LIVE INFORMALLY
style residential dwellings; isolated, high density METRO MANILA AND ARE AT RISK
resettlement housing; or large footprint commercial
developments with high rates of vacancy and
open land. The present landscape indicates a
need for more efficient land use integrated with
environmental planning, affordable housing 51% 33%
construction, and transportation infrastructure.

LIVE INFORMALLY LIVE INFORMALLY

IN MUNTINLUPA AT RISK OF FLOOD

IN SPITE OF
ITS DENSITY,
APPROXIMATELY
23 PERCENT OF
MUNTINLUPA CITY
REMAINS VACANT OR
UNBUILT.
OF LAND IN
23% MUNTINLUPA
IS CURRENTLY
VACANT

30 MUNTINLUPA CITY
Filinvest City (above), the Central Business District of Muntinlupa, is characterized by large, undeveloped parcels, which
are used informally as space for recreation.

VACANT LAND HAS

25% 18% THE POTENTIAL TO
18% SERVE MULTIPLE
LIVE INFORMALLY IN LIVE INFORMALLY GOALS, INCLUDING
LIVE INFORMALLY
METRO MANILA IN LIVE
ANDINFORMALLY
ARE AT RISK
METRO MANILA AND ARE AT RISK NEW HOUSING
FOR ISFS, PARKS
AND RECREATION,
51% 33% AGRICULTURE, AND
51% 33%
WATER STORAGE
LIVE INFORMALLY LIVE INFORMALLY
LIVE INFORMALLY
IN MUNTINLUPA LIVE
AT INFORMALLY
RISK OF FLOOD
AND TREATMENT.
IN MUNTINLUPA AT RISK OF FLOOD

31
 BARANGAY CONTEXT

Sucat, Buli, Cupang, and Alabang were

the four barangays studied that have a
high density of informal settlements.
Buli
Makati
Cupang

Alabang

Philippine National Railway

32 MUNTINLUPA CITY
Sucat

Laguna de Bay

Photo: Victor Eskinazi

33
 Source: Google Maps

34 MUNTINLUPA CITY
SUCAT
The northernmost barangay
of Muntinlupa, Sucat has
almost 600 ISFs living in
danger zones, more than half
of which are clustered along
the lakeshore.1

Area: 4.1 sq. km.

Population: 63,354

Population Density: 15,593/

sq. km.

1 “Community Fieldwork Information

Sheet.” 3rd Community Architects
Network Regional Meeting and Workshop
Information Handbook (Metro Manila,
Philippines, 16-23 June 2015), 1.

35
 Source: Google Maps

36 MUNTINLUPA CITY
BULI
The smallest Barangay
in Muntinlupa, Buli is
characterized by a mixture of
industrial and residential land
uses. It has 162 ISFs, roughly
half of which live along the
estuaries and the other half of
which live along the shoreline.

Area: 0.437 sq. km.

Population: 10,375

Population Density: 23, 741/

sq. km.

37
 Source: Google Maps

38 MUNTINLUPA CITY
CUPANG
Cupang, the largest of the
four barangays investigated
in terms of population, has a
mixture of densely inhabited
informal dwellings along the
lakeshore and middle-to-high
income subdivisions further
inland along the edges of
Filinvest City.

Area: 4.8 sq. km.

Population: 76,681

Population Density: 15, 942/

sq. km.

39
 Source: Google Maps

40 MUNTINLUPA CITY
ALABANG
Alabang has the largest
area of the barangays
studied, as well as its most
significant contrasts. Prior
to the development of
Filinvest Corporate City in the
1990s, the area was dotted
by farms. Today it contains
Muntinlupa’s central business
district, as well as one of its
largest concentrations of
informal settlers.

Area: 8.06 sq. km.

Population: 68,412

Population Density: 15,386/

sq. km.

41
 COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

COMMUNITY MEMBERS EMPHASIZED THE BENEFITS AND

IMPORTANCE OF CONVENIENCE, INCLUDING WALKING DISTANCE
TO SCHOOLS, FRIENDS, FAMILY, AND JOBS.

Direct engagement and interviews with current residents
of four barangays provided the foundation for analysis
and design. Field research consisted of a combination
of interviews, community resource mapping, and direct
observations made through sketching and photography.
These field interviews and observations contributed to
the students’ cross-sectional understanding of various
stakeholders of different employment types, ages,
genders, and housing/household conditions.
Each group interviewed (at least)10 people using a
standard questionnaire dealing with a variety of topics,
including inquiries related to transportation, housing, and
the environment. Interviews each lasted approximately
10-20 minutes. In many cases, UP students served as
translators for MIT students.
Based on the interview data, students found several
consistent themes:
• Convenience: Community members emphasized
the benefits and importance of convenience,
including walking distance to schools, friends,
family, and jobs.
• Flooding as secondary concern: Few interview
subjects cited flooding as a primary concern.
Many viewed flooding as an inconvenience, but
elevated other issues, such as housing, family, and
employment.
Interviews touched upon the following themes:
• Environment / Natural Resources (ecology,
environment, vegetation, climate)
• Transportation (modes, patterns, informal transport)
• Communications infrastructure
• Economy (livelihood and skills)
• Daily routines
• Water cycles (daily / seasonal / quality)
• Building typologies (material, uses, densities,
vernacular)
• Energy (source, consumption, grid, centralized/
decentralized)
• Public / Private / Common Spaces
• Community Networks - Key Institutions / Players
• Disaster Response - short/ long term evacuation
• History / morphology, evolution of the shoreline /
urban development
• Key actors / figures / institutions

• Importance of family unit: Extended families

play a central role in the social lives of informal
settlers, many of whom discussed their origins in the
provinces and their journey to Muntinlupa in search
of opportunity.

42 MUNTINLUPA CITY
QUESTIONS WE
ASKED

Photos: Arianna Salazar Miranda

43
 STUDENTS SYNTHESIZED RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN SETTLEMENT
TYPOLOGIES, PHYSICAL AND LEGAL BOUNDARIES, AND RESIDENT
FEEDBACK ON THEIR DAILY ROUTINES AND COMMUNITIES.

Design Charrette
Following the fieldwork and a series of presentations by
local subject area experts, World Bank representatives,
and policymakers, student teams composed of both UP
and MIT students participated in a multi-day charrette
aimed at digesting each group’s initial impressions
and observations of their barangay. The charrette
encouraged student groups to synthesize their
observations, mappings, and meeting minutes and to
suggest potential avenues for design intervention over
the coming semester.
Each of the groups was asked to present a transect
of their site, showing relationships between different
settlement typologies, physical and legal boundaries,
open spaces, landmarks, and other pieces of information
drawn from the community mapping exercise. These
initial impressions were combined with photographs,
sketches, and community profiles from the field visits,
including direct quotes from residents. Students
presented the information at a final meeting of sponsors
and clients near the conclusion of the two-week site visit.

above: MIT-UP Charrette

photo: Arianna Salazar Miranda
right: standard interview questionnaire

44 MUNTINLUPA CITY
45
 CONVENIENCE, PROXIMITY, AND
TIGHT-KNIT SOCIAL NETWORKS
EMERGED AS THE MAIN THEME OF
THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
EXERCISE.

SUCAT
262.3 Hectares

a.

b.

BULI c.
43.3 Hectares
d.

e.
MAIN THEMES
f.

g.
CUPANG
537 Hectares h.

i.

j.
0 1

ALABANG Low Priority

806.4 Hectares

IMPORTANCE
/
100

48 MUNTINLUPA CITY
 I am safe from flooding

I can walk, bike, or take transit to important destinations

I can build a house wherever I want

My children are close to their schools

My cost of living is low

I can buy goods and food near my home

There is a park near my house

I can live in a diverse community

I live near my parents, siblings, children, etc

My community is exactly the way it is today

2 3 4 5

High Priority

THOUGH CITED, FLOODING WAS OFTEN

EXPRESSED AS A SECONDARY CONCERN
AFTER FAMILY, LIVELIHOOD, AND
COMMUNITY.

49
03 VISUALIZING
VULNERABILITIES

Photo: Dennis Diaz

51
 Photo: Adriana Akers

52 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
ENVIRONMENTAL
VULNERABILITIES

SYSTEMS THINKING, NATURAL HAZARDS,

AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

Metro Manila’s environmental vulnerabilities present

significant challenges for an archipelago confronting
climate change and storm events of increasing
frequency and severity. A systematic approach to
mapping and analyzing current natural hazards
(including flood zones, volcanic activity, and fault lines)
has emerged as part of a larger national study with
the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
and the federal government. It is crucial that the City of
Muntinlupa take a similar approach to local planning
efforts.

For Muntinlupa, systems thinking entails an

understanding of the interdependent relationships
between natural systems and urban development. In its
policies and practices, the city and the region at large
must embrace a dialogue between different disciplinary
vantage points, institutional bodies, and methods of
analysis. The World Bank’s Citywide Development
Approach (CDA), for instance, which seeks replicable
solutions for a new shelter development plan, should
be cross-referenced with an analytical investigation of
natural systems and climate change adaptation needs.

Given the intrinsic relationship between vulnerability and

informality, climate change adaptation in Metro Manila
must be considered in the context of socioeconomic
challenges. Since ISFs tend to colonize buffer zones
and no-build easements, such as fault lines and steep
slopes, any effort to rehabilitate a threatened coastline
or waterway demands a parallel strategy for resettling or
retrofitting the informal settlers that inhabit these areas.

53
 National
Road
Historic Floods

In 1958, 1972 and 1976, lake

waters reached the national road,
shown here in blue..
Flood Lines
Fault

Vulnerable Populations

There are 4,000 informal settler

families living along the coast of
Laguna de Bay in Muntinlupa.

AVERAGE RAINFALL, MUNTINLUPA (2000 - 2012)

Average
Rainfall Days
 NATURAL HAZARDS
Landslides

West Valley Fault Line Muntinlupa is extremely vulnerable to various natural

hazards. Areas near the lakeshore are subject to frequent
Lakeshore
Flood Line and sometimes severe bouts of flooding. Slightly further
inland, settlements sprawl across the West Valley Fault
Line. The steep topography on the western side of
Muntinlupa makes the city vulnerable to landslides.

NORMAL RAIN EVENTS

The rainy season in Muntinlupa runs from June through

September. During this time, residents report that
they experience slight flooding, particularly along the
roadside. This flooding is suspected to be the product of
channelized waterways, capacity reductions in the trash-
clogged estuaries, and land subsidence.

EXTREME RAIN EVENTS

An average of twenty typhoons touch down in the

Philippines each year, 11-20% of which pass over Metro
Manila. Depending on the severity of the storm, flooding
ranges from an inconvenience to a serious concern,
resulting in health issues, structural damages, and loss
of income. Muntinlupa experienced severe flooding in
1958, 1972, and 1976, when water levels rose as high as
the national road, which runs directly through the heart
of Muntinlupa.

AVERAGE RAINFALL DAYS

PRECIPITATION (MM)

Precipitation (MM)
C L I M AT E C H A N G E
SCENARIOS PROJECT
T H AT F L O O D I N G
COULD AFFECT
42% MORE LAND IN
2050, AFFECTING
AN ADDITIONAL
2.5 MILLION
P E O P L E . L O W LY I N G
COMMUNITIES LIKE
M U N T I N L U PA A R E
E S P E C I A L LY AT R I S K .
Source: ADB, JICA and World Bank (2010) Climate Change and Adaptation in Asian Coastal Megacities. Washington: The International Bank for
Reconstruction, The World Bank.
Photo: Dennis Diaz
57
 Photo: Adriana Akers

58 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
MANMADE HAZARDS

With a watershed that spans five provinces, 49

municipalities, and 12 cities, Laguna de Bay is the
largest lake in the Philippines and an important site of
livelihood, cultural practices, and recreation for millions
of people. The lake also presents vulnerabilities for
local populations. Residents of Muntinlupa and other
lakeshore cities deal with flooding on a regular basis, and
many families have implemented structural adaptations
that help them live with coastal realities. Extreme flooding
events occur every few years. Families usually return to
their homes before the waters recede and sometimes live
with up to a foot of water for as long as three months—a
necessary practice that contributes to waterborne
disease outbreaks.1 These ongoing floods already
disrupt local economies and cause public health issues.
If the path of a major typhoon veers toward Muntinlupa’s
shores, the results could be much more catastrophic.

Water pollution is another serious issue facing Laguna

de Bay, which is seen as vital to the fresh water security
of the nation. Only 15% of sewage in Metro Manila is
treated, and the region does not have a comprehensive
solid waste management system.2 A large amount of this
waste runs off into rivers and other waterways, eventually
filtering through to the lake. Industrial and agricultural
runoffs also present threats, and the conversion of
natural shorelines and forestland to urban development
means that less and less natural filtration occurs every
year. According to the Laguna Lake Development
Authority (LLDA), the interior of the lake is currently
classified as Class C water quality, meaning that it can be
used for fisheries, but not for direct human consumption
or agriculture. The water around Muntinlupa’s inland
waterways and coast is especially polluted, rated at
“Worse than Class D”, or unsuitable for agriculture,
irrigation, livestock watering, and industrial water supply.3

1 “Muntinlupa, Las Piñas warn of disease outbreaks.” The

Philippine Star. Manila, Philippines: August, 11, 2012.

2 Marife M. Ballesteros.“Linking Poverty and the Environment: Evidence

from Slums in the Philippines.” Philippine Institute for Development
Studies Discussion Paper Series #2010-33. December 2010.

3 http://www.llda.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_
content&view=article&id=537&Itemid=627

59
 Laguna de Bay plays a vital role in local livelihoods, THE PHILIPPINES IS
including that of the many fisherfolk in Muntinlupa.
Fisheries currently represent the dominant use of the ALREADY CONSIDERED
lake. However, increasing water pollution has put
extreme stress on local ecosystems, and Laguna de Bay
THE THIRD MOST
has seen alarming declines in both the biodiversity of VULNERABLE
its fish population and the absolute number of caught
fish.4 Other factors have also contributed to the fisheries’ COUNTRY TO EXTREME
decline, including illegal dredging, overfishing, algal
WEATHER EVENTS,
blooms, river damming, and the introduction of invasive
fish species. AND ESTIMATES
Flooding, pollution, and the declining fish catch are INDICATE THAT THE
interrelated. When flooding occurs, the rising waters
bring trash, runoff, and other forms of pollution back into AREA AFFECTED BY
the lake when they subside. Meanwhile, trash-clogged
FLOODING IN METRO
rivers and estuaries exacerbate already severe flooding.
Although pollution is one of the major reasons that MANILA COULD
the fish industry is being threatened, flooding can also
introduce invasive species into the lake, such as the knife
INCREASE BY 42% IN
fish, which has been wreaking havoc on local fisheries THE FUTURE.
since Typhoon Ondoy in 2009.5

In a business-as-usual scenario, two factors would make

these situations even more precarious. First, scientists
project that climate change will increase the severity
and frequency of storms worldwide.6 The Philippines is
already considered the third most vulnerable country to
extreme weather events, and estimates indicate that the
area affected by flooding in Metro Manila could increase
by 42% in the future.7 Second, while the planned C-6
dike expressway, running along the western edge of
Laguna de Bay, is designed to protect against flooding,
if it proceeds as planned, the project will physically cut
off fisherfolk from their livelihoods, threaten security of
tenure for informal settlers, increase runoff and water
pollution, and could actually increase inland flood
damage in the event of a breach of the dike.

4 “Indigenous Fish Species in Laguna de Bay now

Extinct.” Tempo: News in a Flash. September 1, 2012.
<http://www.tempo.com.ph/2012/09/01/17-indigenous-
fish-species-in-laguna-de-bay-now-extinct/>

5 “Finding a sustainable use for Knife Fish in the Philippines.” The Fish
Site. August 8, 2013. <http://www.thefishsite.com/fishnews/20916/
finding-a-sustainable-use-for-knife-fish-in-the-philippines>

6 http://www.epa.gov/climate/climatechange/science/
indicators/weather-climate/index.html.

7 Ballesteros.

60 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
 LAND CONVERSION
The conversion of forests, agricultural land,
and wetlands to residential and industrial areas
increases erosion and siltation. This has resulted
in the lake getting shallower over time. In the
1970s, the average depth was 3 meters. In the
2000s, the average depth was 2.5 meters.
WATER POLLUTION
Water pollution from industry and agriculture is
a huge culprit in the declining fish population
of Laguna de Bay. Many rivers are considered
ecologically dead and unable to support any
life. Thirty percent of the pollution in the lake is
due to industrial development.

INVASIVE SPECIES ALGAL BLOOMS

Predatory fish species, most famously the Knife
and Janitor Fish, have been introduced into the
lake through floods and other means and have
caused a sharp decline in native fish species.
Seasonal algal blooms often become quite
heavy and coat large areas of the lake’s surface.
Sometimes a sudden die-off of these blooms
occurs, causing rapid bacterial decay that
depletes oxygen and results in fishkills.

OVERFISHING RIVER DAMMING

Overfishing prevents fish populations from
achieving natural replacement. Fish pens
occupy at least 60,000 hectares, or over half
of the lake surface. By law only 10% (9,000
hectares) of the lake is allowed to be occupied
by fish pens.
Damming of rivers prevents salt water from
entering the lake. Salt water clears the lake of
turbidity, which promotes the growth of natural
fish food.

DREDGING
Dredging occurs on almost all of Laguna
de Bay’s shores, in part due to illegal fishing
practices. The resulting lake bed destruction is
a primary cause of the declining fish population.

61
 ORIGIN OF SOLID WASTE AND
DUMPSITE LOCATION

Dump Site

Tons Per Day

Dump Sites without

CITY circles are inactive.

WATER QUALITY IN
LAGUNA DE BAY

RED

BLUE

YELLOW

BLACK

OF THE ORIGINAL 23 FISH SPECIES

IN LAGUNA DE BAY, ONLY 6 REMAIN

62 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
LAKE CONTAMINATION

Laguna de Bay has a “Class C” water quality designation,

meaning that the water is safe for fisheries, boating,
and some industrial uses. Class C Waterways are not
safe for consumption or for primary contact recreation.
Some areas of the lake have better quality water while
others, like the water surrounding Muntinlupa, are
evaluated as “Worse than Class D.” Forty-eight percent
of lake pollution is attributed to domestic sources, 37%
to agricultural sources, and 15% to industrial sources.1
These percentages exclude discharge and leachate
from the numerous landfills located within the lake’s
sub-basin. Even if domestic, agricultural, and industrial
sources of pollution were stopped today, these landfills
would still negatively impact the lake water for centuries
to come.

Unfortunately, the factors impacting water quality extend

far beyond pollution. The lake is also threatened by
overfishing, invasive species, and decreased salination
levels from water damming. It is also important to note
that some strategies for improving lake quality are not
without impact. For instance, lake dredging reduces the
amount of trash in the water, but stirs up silt, hurting fish
populations.

DREDGING OVERFISHING

WATER POLLUTION RIVER DAMMING

LAND CONVERSION INVASIVE SPECIES

ALGAL BLOOMS

1 Laguna Lake Development Authority. “Laguna de Bay:

The Water Mondriann.” http://www.llda.gov.ph/index.
php?option=com_content&view=article&id=537&Itemid=627.

63
25,000 METERS
 POLLUTION AND FLOODING INLAND, ON PROBLEM: FLOODING
THE COAST, AND IN THE LAKE

Pollution enters Laguna de Bay through industrial,

domestic, and agricultural runoff along the shore; via
polluted rivers and other inland waterways; and from
the contamination of groundwater sources. Apart from
ensuring that pollutants do not enter water sources in the
future, it is necessary to consider how to filter existing silt
and clean pollution that is already in the lake. Strategies
to solve Laguna de Bay’s pollution problem must thus
manage pollutants at their source, catching them before
they run off into the lake or contaminate rivers and
groundwater, while also treating those pollutants already
in the water.

There are two major sources of flooding in Laguna de

Bay. First, during severe storms an enormous amount of
rain falls on the region. Not all of this water is absorbed by
the ground and inland waterways, especially those that
are clogged with trash. This can create inland flooding
and increase the water level of the lake. Second, high-
speed winds during storm events can cause storm surge,
pushing waves from the lake to the shore and causing
further coastal flooding.

GROUNDWATER POLLUTANT
INFILTRATION

NO PLACE FOR TRASH:

LANDFILL CLOSURES AND

ACCELERATING WASTE PRODUCTION

CATMON

PAYATAS
SMOKEY MOUNTAIN BAGUMBONG MUNICIPAL SMOKEY MOUNTAIN FORCED

BEFORE 1985 1990

1980
64 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
 INTENSE RAIN-
FALL DURING
STORM EVENTS

STORM SURGE

INDUSTRIAL, DOMESTIC, AND

AGRICULTURAL RUNOFF

SILTATION AND EXISTING

POLLUTANTS

Clean Air Act (1998) Solid Waste Act (2001) Clean Water Act (2004)
While the Clear Air Act
works to improve air
pollution, the prohibition
of solid waste incineration
worsens the waste crisis. CLARK (UNKNOWN)

TANZA

PULANG LUPA

RODRIGUEZ

PIER 18 DUMPING DIMINISHES

LINGUNAN
C4 DUMPSITE C4 FORCED TO SUSPEND

BAGUMBONG PRIVATE BAGUMBONG PRIVATE FORCED TO SUSPEND

LUPANG ARENDA DUMPING

DONA PETRA

CARMONA CARMONA FORCED TO SUSPEND

PALANYAG PALANYAG FORCED TO SUSPEND

SAN MATEO SAN MATEO FORCED TO SUSPEND

PAYATAS LANDSLIDE KILLS 200; DUMP CLOSES PAYATAS REOPENS

D TO SUSPEND

2006
1995 2000 Waste Report Published; 2005
No further information
available (2003) 65
 LAGUNA DE BAY HAS LAGUNA DE BAY’S FISHERIES
ARE IN DANGER
SEEN ALARMING
Laguna de Bay plays a vital role in local livelihoods,
DECLINES IN BOTH including the many fisherfolk in Muntinlupa. Fisheries
THE ABSOLUTE are currently the dominant use of the lake. However,
increasing water pollution has put extreme stresses on
NUMBER OF CAUGHT local ecosystems, and Laguna de Bay has seen alarming
declines in both the absolute number of caught fish and
FISH AND THE the biodiversity of the fish population—of its 23 original
BIODIVERSITY OF THE species, only six remain.1 In 1984 the Laguna de Bay fish
catch was 117 million metric tons. By 2000, this figure
FISH POPULATION— had decreased to just 18 million metric tons.2 Other
factors have also contributed to the fisheries’ decline,
OF ITS 23 ORIGINAL
including illegal dredging, overfishing, algal blooms, river
SPECIES, ONLY SIX damming, and the introduction of invasive fish species.

REMAIN. 1 “Indigenous Fish Species in Laguna de Bay now Extinct.”

Tempo: News in a Flash. September 1, 2012.

2 Laguna de Bay Experience and Lessons Learned Brief

66 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
 FLOODING
POLLUTION
LIVELIHOODS

Photos: Adriana Akers, Shanika Hettige, Mary Anne Ocampo, Dennis Diaz

67
 BETWEEN 2006 AND
2010, THE NUMBER
OF FAMILIES LIVING
IN INFORMAL
SETTLEMENTS
INCREASED BY AN
E S T I M AT E D 6 2 . 5 %
PEOPLE.
Source: The World Bank. Welcome Message from the World Bank for the CAN Regional Workshop. June 2015.

68 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
69
70 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
 SOCIOECONOMIC
DISCONNECTS

INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS AND

RELOCATION

Building inclusive cities requires a comprehensive

understanding of the socioeconomic forces that stratify
the population. As Metro Manila continues to rapidly
urbanize, poverty in the region is deepening and the gap
between rich and poor growing wider. In general, rural
migrants move to the city in pursuit of jobs and a better
life. Unfortunately, Metro Manila lacks the physical and
economic infrastructure to accommodate the enormous
influx of migrants who arrive in the city every day. Many
migrants are unable to find work or can only secure
low-paying jobs, and as a result are unable to afford and
maintain a decent home.

Informal Settler Families (ISFs) are defined in Metro

Manila as “families living on land they do not possess
legal claim on.”1 Due to the fact that they lack land
tenure, ISFs are also constantly threatened by the
possibility of eviction. Informal settlements are extremely
densely populated and usually have limited access to
basic needs and services, such as water and sewers.
This pervasive condition of urban poverty is further
exacerbated by the fact that many of these informal
communities are exposed to natural hazards, particularly
in the form of frequent flooding.

The government estimates that there are over 1.5 million

ISFs across the Philippines, with 40% of these families
concentrated in Metro Manila.2 According to the World
Bank, one out of every four people in Metro Manila
lives in an informal settlement. The number of ISFs has
been increasing rapidly in recent years. Between 2006
and 2010, the number of families living in informal
settlements increased by an estimated 62.5% in the
metropolitan area.3

1 The World Bank. Metro Manila Citywide Development Approach

to Informal Settlement Upgrading Project. October 2014.

2 The World Bank. Welcome Message from the World

Bank for the CAN Regional Workshop. June 2015.

3 Ibid.

Photo: Mary Anne Ocampo

71
 INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS

Informal settlements are scattered

throughout Muntinlupa and are
most commonly located along
the shore of Laguna de Bay, next
to rivers, and near the rail corridor.

Informal Settlement
Rail Line
River

72 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
MANY INFORMAL COMMUNITIES HAVE BEEN GRADUALLY UPGRADED
WITH NEW INFRASTRUCTURE, ELECTRICITY, AND OTHER INVESTMENTS.

Concrete Armatures

When lobbied for,

community leaders of
informal settlements
can achieve the
provision of services
such as electricity and
infrastructural upgrades
such as the conversion
of bamboo walks to
concrete.

Multiple Uses

Though often zoned

residential, informal
settlements, such as Sitio
Playa (left), contain a rich
mixture of productive
activities, community
gathering spaces,
and small, sari-sari
(convenience) stores.

Local Economies

Wet markets selling local

fish and produce on local
streets serve as both a
livelihood as well as an
affordable community
resource. Many depend
on income from these
informal markets for
survival and their
presence is a hallmark of
Manila street life.

73
 125 dwelling units/Ha
700m2 building footprint
2% open space
8m road widths

HOUSING
SERVICES + HOUSING TYPE WASTEWATER
Muntinlupa is characterized by
INFRASTRUCTURE
three major housing types: private
subdivisions; social or resettlement SOUR
munic
housing; and informal housing. Older
areas of the city have traditional low-rise
bungalows along the older streets of the
city.

ADEQUACY
both water sources and sanitation systems
are robust in private developments

SO Subdivisions use municipal water sources

UT Private Subdivision | Ayala Alabang Village

150 liters of water per capita per day. Wast

HV community sewer system or septic tank

ILL
E3
| RE
SE SOUR

TT wells

LE
ME
NT

130 dwelling units/Ha

30m2 parcel size avg. ADEQUACY
20m2 building footprint avg. Sanitation facilties are a significantly
improved by relocation to socialized
5% open space housing settlements
1% community facilities
6m road widths Social housing developments use municip
wells and are regulated for150 liters of wate
Social Housing | Southville 3 Resettlement Waste water flows to septic tanks.

SOUR
dug w
impro

ADEQUACY
Lack of sanitary facilities has a negative
AL Private Subdivisions
impact on public health, flood intensity, well

AB water contamination, and quality of life.

AN Socialized Housing Sites With no formal infrastructure provided, infor

G| Informal Settlements Informal Housing | Alabang Barangay shared or private pit latrines and typically
INF
OR
MA
L

74 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
 WASTEWATER STORMWATER ELECTRICITY

SOURCE: TOPOGRAPHY/PERMEABILITY HOUSEHOLD USES

municipal water system high ground inland site - heavily paved high consumption appliances

ADEQUACY VULNERABILITY RELIABILITY

both water sources and sanitation systems limited drainage or flooding problems a centralized system leaves residents vulnera-
are robust in private developments even during worst events ble to outtages during extreme storm events

Subdivisions use municipal water sources and are regulated for Subdivision code dictates that underground drainage Each individual household is connected to a primary
150 liters of water per capita per day. Waste water flows to the systems use reinforced concrete pipes, catch basin man- source of power. Street lights are located every 50 m and
llage community sewer system or septic tanks holes, inlets, and cross drain. residents enjoy applicances such as TVs, refridgerators,

SOURCE: TOPOGRAPHY/PERMEABILITY HOUSEHOLD USES

wells + municipal system high ground adjacent to agricultural land common domestic appliances

ADEQUACY
VULNERABILITY RELIABILITY
Sanitation facilties are a significantly
nearby open space relieves impact a centralized system leaves residents vulner-
improved by relocation to socialized
and severity of flooding able to outtages during extreme storm events
housing settlements

Social housing developments use municipal water sources or dug Social housing drainage systems are comprised of concrete Households are connected to power sources if the
wells and are regulated for150 liters of water per capita per day. lined canals with load bearing covers, although many development contains a high enough number of users
ment Waste water flows to septic tanks. become exposed over time.. as determined by the power company.

SOURCE: TOPOGRAPHY/PERMEABILITY HOUSEHOLD USES

dug wells + hand pumps along lake front and stilted over water basic needs + handheld devices
improvised hose systems

RELIABILITY
VULNERABILITY Multiple sources of power and the
ADEQUACY informal network system is easy to
Lack of sanitary facilities has a negative lack of adequate drainage and clogging
due to garbage disposal exacerbates repair after storm events
impact on public health, flood intensity, well
water contamination, and quality of life. flooding impact and duration
Informal settlements are often connected to the power
With no formal infrastructure provided, informal settlements use Informal settlements improvise drainage systems, such as system from connection nodes that become the
shared or private pit latrines and typically dump grey water on site. canals or pipes that drain into the lake, to handle stormwater. branch for a whole cluster or homes.

75
 THE INFORMAL ECONOMY

Today, nearly half of Muntinlupa’s 460,000 residents

belong to the urban poor sector.1 In 2007, LGU data
revealed that Muntinlupa had over 27,000 ISFs in 241
communities within the city. Informal communities are 4%
incredibly densely populated: one report found that 4%
in 2002, 52% of Muntinlupa residents lived in informal
settlements, even though these settlements covered just
14% 60%
a small fraction of the city’s total land area.2

The informal economy represents a critical part of ISF

income, and only half of the population of informal
settlements in Metro Manila is employed in the formal
sector. Mean monthly wages are near US $500,3 though EXPENDITURES
these wages can be unpredictable and may fluctuate
greatly depending on seasonal climatic shocks and
socio-political events. Fishing, farming, and unskilled
labor account for a majority of occupations in the
informal economy.4 These occupation categories
are fluid, however, and most families piece together
income from a variety of activities. Remittances also 34%
represent a large component of overall income for 28% 30%
of ISFs in Metro Manila.5 According to a 2002 survey,
depressed settlements in Metro Manila have an average
unemployment rate of 40%, more than three times the
Metro Manila and Philippines averages. On average,
ISFs spend nearly two thirds of the household income
on food. Transportation, water, school, and electricity 30%
collectively account for 25% of spending, while only 1%
of income is spent on rent.6 EMPLOYMENT
Informal housing is disproportionately located along
waterways, shorelines, and other areas that are
highly susceptible to flooding. Approximately 33% of
Muntinlupa’s ISFs are exposed to flooding, with 5,000
ISFs living along waterways and 4,000 ISFs residing 10%
along the shore of Laguna de Bay Lake.

1 The World Bank. Metro Manila Citywide Development Approach

to Informal Settlement Upgrading Project. October 2014.

2 University College London (UCL), (2003) Understanding Slums:

Case Studies for the Global Report on Human Settlements 2003

3 UCL 2003. 80%

4 UCL 2003.

5 UCL 2003.
SOURCE OF INCOME
6 UCL 2003.

76 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
77
THE
THECHALLENGE
CHALLENGE
OF RESETTLEMENT
OF RESETTLEMENT
 THE PHILIPPINES
FORMAL ECONOMY
I S H E AV I LY R E L I A N T
ON SERVICES, WHICH
MAKE UP 57% OF GDP
A N D E M P LOY 53% O F
WORKERS.
Source: GSMA Intelligence. “Country Overview: Philippines Growth through Innovation.” December 2014.

80 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
Photo: David Vega-Barachowitz

81
 Photo: Dennis Diaz

82 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
DEVELOPMENT SILOS
FORMAL DEVELOPMENT AND
INFRASTRUCTURE BUILDING

A real estate boom in the 1990s caused shifts in land use and
development across Metro Manila. During this time, industrial and
low-density residential areas were converted to commercial uses, and
agricultural land and open spaces were depleted. This trend continues
in Muntinlupa today, as idle lands are converted and the city posts a 39%
growth rate in commercial land use.1 The country’s formal economy is
heavily reliant on services, which make up 57% of GDP and employ 53%
of workers.2 This pattern is evident in Muntinlupa, where commercial
land use is dominated by shopping malls. The mall has become the
nexus of Filipino society, functioning as retail center, status symbol,
landmark, and public space.

The prevailing development paradigm in Metro Manila lacks sufficient

sensitivity to the local environmental and economic context. Mega-
malls, which have proliferated throughout the region over the past two
decades, are often constructed with little attention to natural systems.
The mall’s big box form requires large, impermeable footprints with
paved parking lots that contribute to runoff and flooding problems. Malls
such as Alabang Town Center can push local rivers underground, rather
than making use of this natural and recreational resource, while also
exacerbating vulnerability to floods. Large-scale developments typically
rely on independent private infrastructure systems for water, drainage,
and sewage, protecting the development from storm events while
leaving others exposed.

Large-scale developments such as these miss the opportunity to take

advantage of the local informal economy and workforce. While mall
developments may be desired by communities, they can also have the
unintended consequence of driving small and medium enterprises out
of business. As much as 70% of Muntinlupa’s economy is informal, yet
new large-scale projects often fail to adequately serve informal settlers.
As large-scale development has superseded open spaces, which make
up only 2.8% of Muntinlupa’s land area,3 low-income residents have
largely missed out on the public amenities and community functions that
these new projects play in society for those with access to mainstream
financial resources.

1 “Muntinlupa Development Outlook.” Presentation by the Muntinlupa

Planning and Development Division. January 2015.

2 GSMA Intelligence. “Country Overview: Philippines Growth

through Innovation.” December 2014. https://gsmaintelligence.
com/research/?file=141201-philippines.pdf&download

3 “Muntinlupa Development Outlook.” Presentation by the Muntinlupa

Planning and Development Division. January 2015.

83
 EXISTING DEVELOPMENT PATTERNS

Development in Muntinlupa is
characterized by a complex interplay
between formal, often large scale
development, informal settlement, ER
U FF
and environmental degradation. High E RB
RIV
footprint development, such as mega-
malls, sit directly adjacent to informal
areas straddling estuarine easements.
Together, the formal and informal
G
DIN
exacerbate environmental hazards, F LO
O
NT
VE
increasing the total impact of severe +P
RE
ITY
AL
storm events. TE
R QU
WA
CT
TE
RO
OP
E DT
ICT
S TR
RE

NT
ME
OP
EL
EV
TD
IN
T PR
F OO
GH
HI

ED
S PE
RK E +
WO M
N ET OLU
GE FV
INA -OF
RA N
G | D D RU
DIN S E
RA REA
D G INC
|L AN
AL
OV
R EM
T ION
TA
GE
VE

T
EN
HM
OAC
C R
Y EN
N SIT
DE
GH
HI

ED
S PE
ING E +
GG LUM
LO
G E C F VO
F
INA N-O
RA
| D D RU
S ION ASE
RO RE
K E INC
AN
L |B
VA
E MO
NR
TIO
TA
GE
VE

84 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
CONTRIBUTIONS TO FLOODING +
ASSOCIATED DEVELOPMENT TYPES

The divide between large-scale development

and the informal sector is apparent in
Muntinlupa’s water system. Large projects
DRAINAGE |
disproportionately contribute to runoff and INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS
flooding, protecting their own buildings while 55% OF WATERWAYS ARE NOT
permitting damage to move downstream to ACCESSIBLE DUE TO GARBAGE
AND ENCROACHMENT
the informal settlements.

T
LEF

SURFACES |
INDUSTRIAL, LARGE
COMMERCIAL

10% OF MUNTINLUPA’S LAND USE

IS ROADS, NOT INCLUDING THE
CITY’S 34 LARGE PARKING LOTS
NEXT PAGE
CASE STUDY

FOOTPRINT | INDUSTRIAL,
LARGE COMMERCIAL
70% SALABLE LAND FOR
NEW COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT,
30% OPEN SPACE

OPEN SPACE |
OVER DEVELOPMENT
DRAINAGE BLOCKS
FOOTPRINT/IMPERMEABLE 2.8% OF MUNTINLUPA’S LAND
LIMITED OPEN SPACE
USE IS OPEN SPACE / PARKS, WITH
REPORTED FLOODING
PROJECTS FOR ONLY 4% IN FUTURE
RIVERS

85
 FORMAL DEVELOPMENT CASE
STUDY: FILINVEST CORPORATE CITY

The vast Filinvest Corporate City, a commercial and

business center developed in the 1990s, stands in
stark contrast to the dense informal settlements of
Alabang.

Esteros

Esteros, informally settled

estuaries and small rivers
connecting to Laguna de
Bay, are often blamed for
the failure of existing flood
management systems and
pumping stations due to over
crowding and pollution.

Open Space

60% of Filinvest City remains

unbuilt or unoccupied. Land
is currently utilized mainly for
recreation due to the lack of
open space in the area.

86 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
Highways

While the SLEx tollway is

the fastest route from
Muntinlupa to the Makati CBD
and Metro Manila, much of the
population cannot afford the
toll and use jeepneys along its
service roads.

Malls & Runoff

Malls, however, have been

found to contribute heavily
to the flooding problems,
creating major chokepoints
for floodwaters at key
channels.

87
 FORMAL VS. INFORMAL FORMAL NETWORKS

WATER + WASTE ENERGY

ECONOMY SOCIAL

network intensity | formal

88 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
 INFORMAL NETWORKS

WATER + WASTE ENERGY

ECONOMY SOCIAL

network intensity | informal

89
 37 km
Tollways
895 km

National Roads
2,366 km

City/Barangay Roads
1,639 km

Private/Subdivision Roads

90 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION ROAD NETWORK MAJOR
INTERCHANGE-
PRIMARY ROADS
COMMERCIAL
PRIVATE ROADS
NODES IN METRO
LOCAL ROADS MANILA

The privatization of road infrastructure

(shown in light orange) reduces mobility
options and contributes to incredible traffic
congestion along primary public roads
(shown in red). A simplified hierarchy of
primary, local, and private roads reveals
the extent of infrastructure privatization at
critical development nodes and highway
interchanges. SUCAT

FILINVEST CITY
ALABANG

47%
PUBLIC VS. PRIVATE
Though the federal government has invested substantially in toll roads
to ensure access to Muntinlupa and Calabarzon, much of the local
population relies on Jeepneys and Tricycles for transportation.
Only 47% of Filipino households
have access to a car.

SLEx/Skyway

PNR Railways

Manuel Quezon
Road

91
 LAND RECLAMATION AND DISPLACEMENT
THE LAGUNA LAKESHORE EXPRESSWAY

SEVEN ISLANDS OF
PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT
ON RECLAIMED LAND WILL
FINANCE THE PROJECT.
The national government has begun planning for the
Laguna Lakeshore Expressway Dike (LLED), a proposed
extension of the C-6 ring road around Metro Manila,
which would extend from Taguig, Metro Manila to Los
Baños, Laguna province. The project would build a six-
lane combined dike and highway along a 47-kilometer
stretch of Laguna de Bay, which would be financed by
a series of reclaimed land development islands in the
northern section of the lake. The stated goals of the
project are to address Metro Manila’s traffic problem,
protect the western shore of the lake from flooding,
create economically productive land, and leverage the
private sector’s expertise and financial means.1

Although the project is intended to protect coastal

communities, the C6 could increase vulnerability in
Muntinlupa and other cities along the lake in several
ways. First, the development islands and dike could
cut off communities from the majority of the lake’s
fisheries, which could destroy one of the region’s
major economies and ruin the livelihoods of thousands
of people. Second, the high-density, high-value
development islands and the highway would likely
increase land values along the lake’s shore, particularly
in Muntinlupa, which will have five of the seven
reclaimed islands. This could displace Muntinlupa’s
already vulnerable coastal communities. Third, the new
developments and highway would increase runoff of
The C-6 Expressway-Dike is planned to cover the entire
pollutants into the lake, which is already experiencing
western edge of the Laguna de Bay. To finance the
severe declines in water quality and biodiversity. Finally,
dike, a public-private partnership is planned. Under
in the event of a breach of the dike, the project could
this partnership, a private partner would finance the
actually increase flooding vulnerability for coastal
construction of the dike and be given development
communities, creating a bathtub effect and increasing
rights on a series of man-made islands along the shore.
the time that it takes for the water to recede.
Five of seven of these islands are planned along the city
1 “Laguna Lakeshore Expressway-Dike Project.” Presentation boundaries of Muntinlupa. The project would cut off the
to UK Transport Solutions, September 18, 2014. <https://www.
coast from the majority of Laguna de Bay’s fisheries, the
gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/
file/362691/UK-Transport-Solutions_DPWH-__Presentation_ lake’s main economy. The extent of the fishing nets are
to_UK_Transport_Solutions_September_18.pdf> shown in the maps above.

92 VISUALIZING VULNERABILITIES
THE LAGUNA
MANILA LAKESHORE EXPRESSWAY (THE C6)
IS CURRENTLY IS LAGUNA
THE THE FINAL PROPOSED
LAKESHORE PROJECTISOF
EXPRESSWAY PROJECT
MANILA’S NEW HIGHWAY NETWORK.
IMPLEMENTING A NEW HIGHWAY NETWORK THE FINAL PROPOSED PROJECT GOALS

NUMBER OF LINES AUG

FEASIBILITY STUDY CONCESSIONAIRE CHOSEN
2015
UNDER
CONSTRUCTION 7

APPROVALS SEP ENGINEERING & DESIGN PROTECT FROM CREATE

2015 FLOODING PRODUCTIVE

APPROVED 3
DEC
RFQ RELEASED CONSTRUCTION BEGINS
2015

PROPOSED 2 J U LY DEC FACILITATE LEVERAG

2 0 1 5 BIDS DUE 2022 PROJECT COMPLETE TRAFFIC PRIVATE SEC

RENDERING OF PROJECT UNDER

POSTED DIMENSIONS

93
04
STUDENT
PROJECTS

Photo: David Vega-Barachowitz

95
 1
2

STUDENT
PROJECTS
1 I NTELLIGENT INFRASTRUCTURE

2 CONNECT AND PROTECT

3 ENVIRONMENTAL ZONING

4 DISTINCTLY FILIPINO
Photo: Arianna Salazar Miranda

96 STUDENT PROJECTS
SITE
SELECTION
ADDRESSING INFORMALITY

Following field studies and analysis of the Metro Manila

and Muntinlupa context, student pairs proposed design
strategies and physical recommendations aimed at
addressing the challenge of resettlement in the context
of a changing environment and growing ISF population.
Though each pair had originally studied an individual
barangay, proposals dealt with multiple contexts,
physical scenarios, and timeframes, ranging from
individual parcels of vacant land to the entirety of the
reclaimed land area for the C-6 expressway.

Ultimately, each project sought a paradigmatic and

replicable response to conditions prevalent not only in
Muntinlupa but across the entire regional landscape, in
keeping with the goals of the Community Development
Approach (CDA).

Over the course of three months, students proposed the

following projects:

• Intelligent Infrastructure: Sharing Resources and

Living Local

• Connect and Protect: Cleaning Water and

Balancing Benefits

• Environmental Zoning: Directing Settlement and

Building Capacity

• Distinctly Filipino: Local Landmaking and

Development

Site selection for the studio was driven by the individual

interests of each student pair. Two of the teams selected
individual sites (two per pair) within their originally
assigned barangay as case studies meant to illustrate
larger principles. The other two teams chose to consider
the implications of the planned C-6 expressway dike,
envisioning a series of alternative proposals reflective of
a more integrated and sustainable approach to future
development across the region. These projects together
strove to propose projective and creative solutions to
pressing questions in the Metro Manila region. All of the
students were encouraged to craft solutions outside
of the conventional development paradigm, while
creatively integrating policy and design measures within
their projects.

97
INTELLIGENT
INFRASTRUCTURE:
SHARING RESOURCES
AND LIVING LOCAL
OZ JOHNSON AND HALEY JORDAHL

A third of Metro Manila’s population lives in informal settlements, a

figure that is expected to double by 2050. Rather than seek to eliminate
informality through relocation and redevelopment, urban planners
must learn to embrace the informal as a legitimate form of settlement
and understand how to better serve it. The sustainable and just solution
to informal settlement in Muntinlupa is not relocation, but rather the
development of mechanisms that offer access to services and mitigation
of vulnerabilities needed to sustain well-being. This proposal shifts the
conversation away from a dichotomy between formal and informal and
toward the question of how best to ensure a healthy and fulfilling future
for all residents.

The first part of this strategy is the deployment of infrastructural

armatures to support existing informal settlements. In addition to offering
flood protection and access to critical utilities such as drinking water
and electricity, these armatures can provide shared kitchen facilities,
bathrooms, and daycare centers that support community and social life
in informal settlements. These infrastructural armatures enable informal
settlers to access the amenities they need without sinking much-needed
capital into houses that they might need to leave tomorrow in the face of
encroaching development, job loss, or flooding.

The second part of this strategy proposes the development of flood

evacuation sites for informal settlers that also provide space for
recreation and industrial activity. Today, one third of informal settlers
in the City reside adjacent to waterways or along the shoreline of
Laguna de Bay. They frequently risk losing homes and livelihood due
to flooding. During periods of environmental hazard, it is necessary to
offer alternative shelter, particularly to those settlers most at risk. During
typhoons and other extreme weather events, these sites serve as spaces
for community evacuation and essential support services. Year-round,
they can provide temporary residences for seasonal workers and new
migrants to Muntinlupa.
 “THIS NEIGHBORHOOD
IS EVERYTHING TO
ME. MY FRIENDS AND
EXTENDED FAMILY
ALL LIVE NEARBY.”

Melvin Silvestre
Age 38

Melvin works as a tricycle driver in Alabang. He walks a mere

20 meters to get to his vehicle and takes passengers around
Muntinlupa from dusk to dawn. He lives and works in this area
because this is what he knows. He was born a few blocks away
and depends upon his family and friends for help if there is a flood.

100 STUDENT PROJECTS

101
102 STUDENT PROJECTS
 Adelina Iliw-Iliw
Age 36

Adelina Iliw-Iliw is an Informal settler who lives in a narrow space at

the edge of the Philippines National Railways track. Her husband
runs a railroad cart for a living. They returned to the area after
being relocated several years ago. Given the opportunity, she
would want a better life for her family.

“MY HUSBAND’S
LIVELIHOOD
IS ALONG THE
RAILROAD TRACKS.
AFTER WE WERE
RELOCATED WE HAD
TO COME BACK –
THIS IS HIS WORK”
103
104 STUDENT PROJECTS
 Mark Antony Paulme
Age 29

Necessity sometimes leads to innovation. Mark Antony pushes a

homemade rail car between heavily populated areas along the
railway in Muntinlupa. His mode of transportation works only in
the window between trains but provides an important mode of
transportation for pedestrians who need a more direct route to
their destination.

“I DRIVE A RAIL
TROLLEY BECAUSE
THERE IS NO
CHEAP, DIRECT
TRANSPORTATION
THROUGH OUR
COMMUNITY. BUT,
WHEN IT FLOODS,
EVERYTHING STOPS
AND I HAVE NO WAY
TO MAKE MONEY.”
105
106 STUDENT PROJECTS
 Fey Silvestre
Age 46

Fey moved to Buli when she was 19. She and her
husband used to live in a self-built house, but they have since
upgraded to a formal, three-story home. This house
is raised and rarely floods. When it does, it is because
waters drain down from the highlands. For this reason,
Fey largely experiences flooding as a financial loss. She
and her husband run two businesses (an Internet café
and school bus company), both of which they are unable to
operate during storms.

“EVEN THOUGH OUR

HOME IS SAFE, WHEN
FLOODING HAPPENS
WE LOSE OUR SOURCE
OF INCOME SINCE WE
CAN’T WORK.”

107
 Lucy Geremillo
Age Unknown

“I was born here; this carinderia is in my mother’s house. My

husband was a policeman, but he is retired now. Our four children
are all married—the oldest is 40—but they still live here. The
Geremillos are one of the oldest family names in Cupang. This
barangay used to not be so busy, but it is crowded and chaotic
now. Flooding is not bad in here, no more than a foot, so we
have never had to evacuate. In fact, everyone seeks refuge in the
school across the street, and we sell them food. Flooding is much
worse near the bridge, but it only floods every seven years.”

“FLOODING IS NOT
BAD HERE, NO MORE
THAN A FOOT, SO WE
HAVE NEVER HAD TO
EVACUATE. IN FACT,
EVERYONE COMES
HERE TO EAT DURING
TYPHOONS.”
108 STUDENT PROJECTS
110 STUDENT PROJECTS
 Susan
Age 60+

Susan has served as the President of the Sucat’s Sitio Playa

informal settlement for the last seven years. As President, she has
lobbied for funds to convert some of the worn bamboo pathways
into concrete near the roadside entrances of Sitio Playa. When
new settlers attempt to build houses and join the community
overnight, she is in charge of asking them to register with the
Barangay Home Owners Association.

“AFTER THE
FLOODS OF
TYPHOON ONDOY,
WE DECIDED AS
A COMMUNITY
TO REBUILD OUR
HOUSES HIGHER.”

111
 Jay Tyrone
Age 18

Jay has lived in Cupang his entire life. He values living close to his
family and enjoys having multiple transportation options to his job
at a law office, which is a 30-minute Jeepney ride away.

During severe flooding, water in his home stays around a foot

high for nearly a month. Jay and his family stay in their houses
during this time and, despite the water, experiences only slight
disruptions in water and electricity. Jay is not afraid of flooding.

“I’M HAPPY HERE. I

DON’T SEE ANY
REASON TO GET
AWAY.”

112 STUDENT PROJECTS

113
 Aileen Francisco
Age 38

Aileen Francisco is a sari-sari (convenience store) owner in

Cupang.

“WE MOVED HERE

BECAUSE OF THE
FLOOD; IT WENT
UP TO OUR NECKS!
EVENTUALLY I
WOULD LIKE TO
MOVE SOMEWHERE
WITHOUT
FLOODING.”

114 STUDENT PROJECTS

115
INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS, 2003

INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS, 2015

INFRASTRUCTURE FOR
INFORMALITY
‘Formalizing’ housing by uprooting residents and
relocating them to mortgaged houses on vacant land
is extremely expensive for the Philippines government
and damaging to the livelihoods and social stability of
residents. Mortgage obligations can hinder economic
mobility and job-related relocation. Maximizing the
welfare of informal residents requires supporting their
mobility, not obstructing it.
Still, conditions in Muntinlupa’s informal settlements
are far from ideal, with widespread pollution and a lack
of access to basic amenities such as clean water, flush
toilets, and kitchens. This project proposes a series
of infrastructural armatures that can improve these
conditions in a cost-effective manner by bringing low-
cost water filters, self-maintaining toilets, electricity, and
other needed amenities into informal settlements using
portable modules that can be constructed, rearranged,
and moved as conditions change.
To understand how this adaptable infrastructure would
evolve over time, this project visualizes the community
lifecycle at a selected site in Barangay Cupang,
Muntinlupa in the context of three different dynamic
scenarios:
Weather Events: How would the infrastructure be
installed in a flood- and wind-prone area? How would
it be moved and/or secured during a typhoon or
other weather event? How would it assist residents
in evacuation when the need arises, and protect their
belongings while they are gone? How would this
infrastructure be restored and reopened once the threat
subsides?
Demographic Changes: How would the infrastructure
be installed in a low-density informal settlement? How
would it be scaled as the settlement densifies? What
would happen if the population’s average income
rises—how would the infrastructure be upgraded
or removed in response? What would happen if
permanent housing developments sprout up among
the informal settlements? How can the infrastructure
reshape itself around this condition?
Economic Opportunities: How would these armatures
be installed in an area of anticipated but currently
nonexistent informality, such as a new construction
site or factory? How can it support this temporary in-
migration of workers, many of whom are separated from
their families, and their unique social and economic
needs? How would the infrastructure react as the need
for temporary workers diminishes?
5,000 Meters
 Amenities and Infrastructure: Needs and
Opportunities in Informal Settlements
Informal settlements lack key infrastructure and
amenities needed to support healthy, connected,
and enjoyable lives. Pictures of the existing condition
highlight problems ranging from unwieldy electric cables
to polluted water.

Trash fills the Alabang River at a railroad crossing. Electric lines abound, though costs are above
market rate, according to interviews.

A computer monitor and purchased water tank are visible Laundry dries in a narrow alleyway.
in this ISF house, perched entirely over Laguna de Bay.

118 STUDENT PROJECTS

 70% 94%
CD/DVD player 57%
21% Trash
Landline collection Refrigerator
26% 91% 88%
85% Computer 96% Television Cellphone
Flush Toilet Electricity 38% 45% 48%
49% 69% Stereo Tap water Stove
Washing Machine Radio

Percentage of Muntinlupa Residents with

Household Amenities | 2011

Based on conservative 2011 Philippine census figures
for Muntinlupa City, at least half of Muntinlupans lack
refrigerators, stoves, clean water, and other basic
household amenities. The poorest 15% of residents also
lack flush toilets and receive inadequate trash collection.
Given their low incomes and unstable employment (and
thus unstable residency), purchasing these amenities is
infeasible for many Muntinlupans - creative solutions are
needed.

Wastewater appx. 50
Public dock treatment pond households
Communal amenities
Bamboo stilt housing (floating)
and aquatic walkways
on Laguna de Bay appx. 60
households

Main road
Electric

Water appx. 80
households
appx. 120
Basketball court and plaza households
Public facilities
(shoreline)

Armatures deployed on
Example site:
Existing Proposed four largest informal lake
Alabang @ Laguna de Bay
settlements in Muntinlupa

Proposed Armature Installation | Barangay Alabang.

Infrastructural armatures could offer residents access
to clean water, flush toilets, shared kitchens, electricity,
internet, garbage collection, and other essential services.
The above diagram depicts a potential installation along
a lakeshore informal settlement in Barangay Alabang,
with nodes extending from the existing basketball court
to a dock area. The armature could be replicated in other
informal settlements throughout Muntinlupa, and can
evolve and adapt to changing demographic, economic,
and climatic conditions.

119
installation and flood response

ties
Utili

Innovative yet inexpensive construction

techniques can keep houses stable but
able to adjust to rising water levels.

Pub

Concrete columns for stability

Floating mechanism
for mobility

lot
ant
Vac

tment op
trea rksh
age Wo
uee Sew ure
d
vac ing pon wers Sec ge
nt E s Sho
ane r Hou stora
Perm Worke hen h
an d Kitc Tras cling den
recy Gar
ting and
pos t
et Com toile
ss in
tern
e)
relin
le
Wire

(sho
m ily
e Fa
-Ris ies
Sec
Sto ure
Mid rtments
fa cilit
Apa
rag
e Lau Pu blic
ties ndry
Utili Day
Care und
Hea Gro es
red
Clin lth Sha r Servic
ic
Floo

Utili
ties LIC
PUB
bile
Mo aris
-S
Sari
a
Plaz
nity
mu
Com
nt
yme
m plo
g/E
fac turin ub
H
M anu

ARY
L

EMPOR
T Temporary relocation of mod-
ules to evacuation site.

tm ent
trea
age
Sew wers
d Sho
pon
en
hen Gard
Kitc
ting
et pos t
tern Com toile
s in
les e)
Wire
relin
(sho
ities
Sec
Sto ure cil
rag
e lic fa
Hou
sing
Lau
ndry stru
ctio
Con orksho
n
p Pub
uee Day w
vac Care
ry E Secu e
re
p ora Hea ag
Tem
stor
Clin lth
ic h
Tras cling
recy
and

ties
Utili

bile
h& Mo aris
Tras cling -S
Recy Sari
a
Plaz
Kitc
hen nity
mu
post
ing Com
Tem Com t
pora toile
ry nt
Co
mm yme
una m plo
l g/E
Fac turin ub
ilitie ufac H
s Man

120 STUDENT PROJECTS

 PRINCIPLES

Trash
The proposed intervention rests on six principles:
age
sew
Raw
Plaz
a
es
ous
ate
s tilt h • EXTREME AFFORDABILITY - Relocated residents
Priv
are often coerced into paying 240,000 peso
e)
relin
cilit
ies
(sho mortgages on houses in inaccessible, undesirable

EXISTING
fa
blic
locations. How can residents be provided with
needed amenities without them (or the government)
being saddled with debt?

• DISASTER RESILIENCE - Informal settlers along

Muntinlupa’s coast are battered by typhoons - but
relocation sites are often just as vulnerable. How can
informal settlements be reinforced instead so that
they can cope with flooding, and evacuate safely
when the need arises?
nge ndry
Lou r Lau
este
Day
care
Rain
w ater
harv
Aqu
acult
ure • COMMUNITY LED DESIGN - Informal settlements
ing tor
Din nera

Library
Sola
r ge

atin
g) Doc
k
are entirely community designed and managed.
s (flo
NAL
pen
nitie
Fish
ity a
m e
MU Rather than eviscerate this communal culture, how
mun
COM
PROPOSED

Com
can design support co-operation and democratic self-
es
ous
ate
s tilt h determination?
Priv
ATE
PRIV • EMPLOYMENT FOCUS - Housing needs to be
designed with proximity to employment in mind; this
is not only a critical factor in economic development
but a pertinent way to prevent squatting.
Floating amenities moved to secure
mooring site during storm.
• METABOLIC INFRASTRUCTURE - Manila receives
30,000 residents a year, and these populations are
in flux, constantly moving for new employment or in
response to development pressure. How can design
nge
Lou

Day
care
allow for flexibility to cater to constant demographic
Din
ing
Aqu
a cult
ure
change?
ry g)
Libra atin
s (flo
pen
nitieFish
ity ame • SELF-SUSTAINING ECOSYSTEM - Given Manila’s
mun
Com
TYPHOON/FLOOD

es
pollution and often unreliable utilities, the safest,
ous
tilt h
Priv
ate
s cheapest, and most eco-friendly solution is the
provision of infrastructure, utilities, and waste-
management systems that are self-maintaining,
untethered to the grid.

k
ter Doc
rves
r ha
wate
Rain

ndry
tor Lau
nera
r ge
Sola

121
 FOR LESS THAN 100 USD PER
PERSON, THIS PROPOSAL
UPGRADES EXISTING
INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS.
Informal settlers in Muntinlupa have adapted creatively
to the lack of space for laundry, the absence of running
water and kitchens, and the informal nature of utility
systems.

The Philippines spends $224 million USD each year

on relocation efforts, only to be thwarted by the influx
of 30,000 new Manila residents. This design proposal
focused on an informal settlement site in Barangay
Alabang. The intention, spirit, and principles guiding
the design are scalable and replicable throughout
the region, including more formal areas that might be
threatened by development pressure. For less than
$100 USD per person, the proposal includes a more
coordinated - though equally adaptable - system of
creative solutions to meet residents’ needs while also
protecting the environment, cleaning the lake, and
offering new community amenities:

Water and sewage: Powered by solar panels, a EXISTING

centrifugal jet pump pushes lake water into a slow sand

filter tank, which cleans the water for storage in a second
tank until use in the kitchens, bathrooms, and showers.
Wastewater is then filtered through a vertical flow
constructed wetland.

Waste: 100 trash cans and recycling bins are located

throughout the site, emptied by residents into a trash and
recycling dumpster located at the edge of the central
plaza.

Food and sanitation: Five communal kitchens, 27 flush

toilets, 9 showers, and 35 clean water taps are installed
along a new elevated walkway connecting the 11 stilt
paths.

Anchored programs: Large community rooms SITE PLAN

anchored at the end of the walkways can contain

s
om

communal living rooms, game rooms, child care

ro
s ity
en un
ch m
m
Kit Co

s
nk els bin

centers, libraries, or other programming chosen by the

nk n ns
ta ta pa g
ca
p er ge lar yc
lin
um filt ts So er ec sh
tp nd ora ile pst R Tra
r st to ers
l je sa
ow er m
ga w ate sh
Sh pst du
ifu Slo W Flu m g
ntr du clin
Ce sh cy
Tra Re

community.
OBJECTS
s
m
gra
nd pro

Floating programs: Tethered to the anchored

tla en
we ng
rd ati es
d ga flo ip
cte ble rp
ru nd es te
nst eta dsa ip wa
co ve
g
be ys rp ck
te bla
w nd nic wa wa
l flo ra po alk nd
ica we ua ble ya
rt lt w ta

community rooms by floating docks, these modules

Ve Flo Aq Sti Po Gre

could include aquaponic ponds, laundry platforms,

fishing docks, and more.
INFRASTRUCTURE

25 METERS

122 STUDENT PROJECTS

PROGRAMS AND SYSTEMS
floating programs
Aquaponic ponds 7 ponds 5x5m
Laundry platforms 7 platforms 5x5m
Fishing docks 7 docks 5x5m
Solar stations 3 stations 5x5m
Rainwater collection tanks 4 tanks 5x5m

anchored programs
Communal living rooms 2 rooms 8x8m
Recreation rooms 2 rooms 8x8m
Child care centers 2 centers 8x8m
Libraries 1 library 8x8m

food and sanitation system

Communal kitchens 5 kitchens 35 sq m
Flush toilets 27 toilets 2x2m
Showers 9 showers 2x2m
Clean water taps 35 taps

waste system
Trash cans 50 cans 30 liters
Recycling bins 50 bins 30 liters
Trash dumpster 1 dumpster 4x2x1m
Recycling dumpster 1 dumpster 4x2x1m

water and sewage system

Solar panels 7 panels 2x1m
Centrifugal jet pump 1 pump 100,000 l/day
Slow sand filter tank 1 tank 50,000 liters
Water storage tank 1 tank 50,000 liters
Potable water pipes 1 system 600 m
Grey and blackwater pipes 2 systems 600 m
Vertical flow constructed wetland 1 wetland 25 x 25 m
Vegetable garden 1 garden 25 x 25 m

housing
Stilt houses 120 units 5,000 sq m

circulation
Stilt walkways 11 paths 1,000 sq m

complete installation
$42K USD/1.8M PHP
550 people $76 USD/3.3K PHP per person
54 babies and toddlers ~70% capacity
156 children
156 adult men
166 adult women
18 seniors (above 65)

123
 THIS PROPOSAL ENABLES THE
COMMUNITY TO STAY IN PLACE
WHILE ALSO RESTORING THE
LAKE, PROVIDING SANITATION
FACILITIES, AND OFFERING
FLOOD PROTECTION.
The lakeshore informal settlement in Alabang is vibrant
and resilient. Children gleefully run up and down the
narrow lanes. Adults routinely adapt their households to
changes in employment and economic circumstance,
looking after one another’s family members when
necessary. Working-age residents often spend weeks
at a time employed at temporary, off-site jobs. The
community meets its needs with those resources that are
readily available: laundry is hung from bamboo poles;
the lake serves as trash receptacle and toilet; men fish
from the ends of the docks. Many of these practices are
not ideal, from either an environmental or a public health
perspective, but the problems posed by this lifestyle are
also not intractable.

This proposal enables the community to stay in place

while also restoring the lake, providing sanitation
facilities, and offering flood protection. The project
proposes the construction of an elevated pathway to
join the eleven existing stilt paths, with bathroom and
shower facilities along this main walkway. Water for these
facilities is pumped from the lake and filtered, with the
wastewater ultimately treated in a constructed wetland
before being filtered through a vegetable garden
and reentering the lake. This wetland and garden are
depicted at a scale necessary to support 550 residents,
but could be expanded as populations grow.

Along the water, this project proposes that a series

of floating modules be installed, with amenities such
as docks, clotheslines, mini-parks, and aquaponics
nets, attached to stationary recreation rooms; built and
positioned in a manner that allows them to move up
and down with the water level, protect the community
during typhoons, and limit community sprawl. The
floating modules can be whisked away in a flood. Their
quantities, locations, and functions would be selected by
the community members. The programs explained on
the following page are intended only as inspiration and
suggestion.

124 STUDENT PROJECTS

Site Plan

A toolkit of informality-supporting infrastructure and objects is

applied to the site, a 550-resident stilt housing community at the
northern edge of Barangay Alabang in Muntinlupa, Metro Manila.

A road leading to the main basketball plaza, indicated in black, offers

the main point of access to the community. Eleven stilt pathways,
hidden behind homes on the shoreline, extend into the water,
abutting approximately 120 housing units.

125
SECTION: ARMATURE

basketball pl
aza

filtered lake
water pipe

kitchen mod
ules
SECTION: FIVE METER FLOOD
shower and
3 bathroom
s

rafts stored
in commun
ity kitchen

SECTION: CONSTRUCTED WETLAND

rooftops tra
nsform into
kitchen attic walk
s offer water
tight, secure
storage for
po ssessions

3. Dirty water 4. Safe but nu

is cleaned as trient-rich w
it filters dow ater exits th
n through la ew etland into a
2. Solar pane yers of sedi
ls power the ment and ve
flow of gray getation
and black w
ater from ba
1. Fresh, grey th rooms into th
, and black e vertical flo
water pipes w wetland
move from
water lake to
kitchens to
bathrooms

126 STUDENT PROJECTS

 community aquaponics
recreation ro pond
om
fishing dock

laundry plat
form

tugboat mov
es floating pr
ogram to sa
kways community fe harbor
room accom
modates m
ax. 5 m flood
dock ramp
becomes ev
acuation pl
atform

5. Clean, nu
trient-balan
ced water re
a vegetable -enters the la
garden ke

127
 DENSITY OF COMMERCIAL DENSITY OF SOCIAL
VACANT LAND AREAS INFRASTRUCTURE

LOCAL ROADS

VACANT LAND &

TEMPORARY EVACUATION
Today, 25 percent of land in Muntinlupa lies vacant and
undeveloped.1 While some of that land is privately owned - such
as the open land of Filinvest Corporate City - the bulk of the land
falls under public jurisdiction. Not all of that open land is ripe for
development. Some of it lies within the city’s flood boundaries,
along waterways, or adjacent to large-scale manufacturing
clusters.

Vacant land can be developed for residential and commercial

INFRASTRUCTURE NETWORK
use and offers an opportunity to build with the city’s informal
settler communities in mind. Demand for housing is high, while
In-migration and a growing middle class have placed pressure on
the housing market. New housing can help to satisfy that unmet
need.

Vacant land has the potential to support informal settler families

evacuated during periods of flooding. As waters rise, communities
can move inland toward dedicated temporary evacuation centers
proximate to their homes. Ideal sites, denoted in red, seek to
minimize the interruption to daily life as much as possible. These
sites are proposed near dense commercial centers and along
transportation spines, far removed from environmental hazard.

5,000 Meters
 ENVISIONING EVACUATION CENTERS TEMPORARY HOUSING
CAN INTRODUCE NEW
MODULAR BUILDING
TECHNIQUES AND
Sec e Fa
m ily READILY DEPLOYABLE
u -Ris s
Sto re Mid tment

TECHNOLOGIES ON
rag r
e
Lau Apa
g ndr
usin y
e Ho Day
va cue Car
a ry E e
por und
NEARBY VACANT LAND.
Hea
Tem Clin lth Gro es
red
ic Sha r Servic
Flo o

TEM &
Trash cling
ile
Mob Saris
Sari-
PO Recy

RAR
a
Plaz
Kitch
en
nity
mu
Y Tem
por
post
Com ilet
to
ing Com

ary
Com t
mu men
nal ploy
Fac / Em
ilitie ing
s ctur Hub
Ma nufa

PER
MA
NEN
T

GLOBAL PRECEDENTS

DENSITY TEMPORALITY PURPOSE

Post-typhoon tent housing, Tanauan. Temporary housing prototype, Concrete Canvas. Ikea flat-pack disaster relief housing.

Post-hurricane housing proposal, Brooklyn. Construction worker housing, China. Temporary education center, China.

130 STUDENT PROJECTS


Flooded evacuation center after Tropical Storm Trami (Reuters).
Weathering the Storm
In 2014, in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan, policymakers
in Metro Manila began to advocate for a change in
the region’s approach to disaster response and for the
construction of permanent evacuation centers to house
those displaced by severe weather events. Evacuation
is a reality typically faced by Muntinlupans following
annual storms, particularly for the informal shoreline
communities most vulnerable to rising waters, heavy rain,
and strong winds. When communities leave their homes,
however, they often go to locations that are no more
resilient than their houses and which disrupt their daily
routines and livelihoods. The construction of dedicated
evacuation centers allows for the development of
disaster-resistant buildings, the intentional provision
of community resources, and the inclusion of spaces
and services integral to everyday life, both during and
following disaster.

Globally, numerous precedents exist for housing that

specifically serves those displaced by storm events. As
the climate shifts, and the frequency of severe weather
events increases, localities have begun to examine and
commission housing for evacuees. The design of that
housing, and the sites upon which it is situated, is largely
dependent on context. A low-density area susceptible
Families in Pasig City evacuate to nearby school (Luis Liwang).
to frequent, irregular displacement, such as Tanuan,
has prompted the development of tented housing,
while policymakers in high-density New York City are
experimenting with modular, mid-rise temporary shelter.

In Muntinlupa, the development of dedicated evacuation

centers should be guided by both need and context.
Sites developed to host permanent evacuation centers
can serve a variety of needs: during and following storms,
they can house the displaced, and more frequently,
can offer shelter to temporary and migrant workers.
Understanding that the displaced will be temporarily
disconnected from local community resources, each
Evacuees occupy school during Tropical Storm Trami (AP Photo). site should include infrastructure necessary to sustain
well-being: health centers, educational facilities, water
and sanitation services. Sites should also ensure an
uninterrupted economy, and therefore provide space for
EACH SITE SHOULD ENSURE enterprise and employment.
ACCESS TO COMMUNITY AND Ultimately, the development of temporary and
permanent evacuation centers can help Muntinlupa, and
ECONOMIC RESOURCES, SUCH
particularly, its informal settler communities, to better
AS HEALTH CARE, WATER, AND weather the city’s storms.

SANITATION.

131
 EMPHASIZING INFORMAL LIVELIHOODS
Muntinlupa’s ample vacant land provides an opportunity
for mixed-use development. To ensure that any
development acknowledges, supports, and ameliorates
the needs of the urban poor, however, it is essential that
programming includes the city’s informal residents. In
the proposed plan for development, mixed-use housing
offers market-rate and low-cost residences; on-site
industry provides employment opportunities for informal
settlers; and a community center anchors the site and
provides resources to the urban poor.
132 STUDENT PROJECTS
Given the city’s tight housing markets, now is an
appropriate time for Muntinlupa, and the multilateral
institutions with which it partners, to emphasize that
such an approach be included in any development.
By exerting leverage over new projects, the City can
ensure the inclusion of affordable housing units,
the incorporation of employment mandates for new
firms, and the establishment of community benefits
agreements that include the urban poor in any new
construction and development process.
Redesignating vacant land for mixed use development
creates an opportunity for mixed-income housing,
environmental resilience, and job creation.
 51% 33%
MUNTINLUPA CANLIVE
LEVERAGE NEW
INFORMALLY DEVELOPMENT
LIVE INFORMALLY TO INCREASE
THE SUPPLY OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING
IN MUNTINLUPA UNITS
AT RISK OF AND OTHER
FLOOD
COMMUNITY BENEFITS.

IMPACT OF RELOCATION:

PROXIMITY TO INFRASTRUCTURE
DISTANCE FROM FLOODLINE
DENSITY OF COMMERCIAL AREAS
DENSITY OF INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS
DENSITY OF SOCIAL INFRASTRUCTURE

8%

OF LAND IN
6%
23% MUNTINLUPA
IS CURRENTLY
4% VACANT

2%

HOUSING IN METRO MANILA2

s

sia

sia

e
n
ne

a
nd

ng
di

or
pa

in
ne

ay
pi

bo

ap

Ko
ila

Ch
Ja
lip

al
do

a
m

ng

ng
M
Th
i

In
Ph

Ca

Si

Ho

8%
comparative
6% rental yields

4% 2013 2014

2% 2010 GDP per capita

growth
2000
s

sia

sia

e
n
ne

a
nd

ng
di

or
pa

in
ne

ay
pi

bo

ap

Ko
ila

Ch
Ja
ilip

al
do

a
m

ng

ng
M
Th
In
Ph

Ca

Si

Ho

cyclical economics
2013 2014
1
Per land use data provided by World Bank, circa 2003. 2
Source: Global Property Guide
2010

2000

133
 SITE LOCATION AND CONTEXT PROTOTYPICAL SITE

This proposal takes a prototypical site for mixed-use

development in the barangay of Cupang in northwest
Muntinlupa. The site sits between two primary
infrastructure routes and modes of transit: the SLEx
highway and the PNR railway. The elevation of the site
removes it from risk of flooding; it is highly connected to
the surrounding city; and it lies adjacent to industrial and
residential uses.

Proposed on-site development responds to the

site’s immediate context. This proposal argues for
development that fits seamlessly with the character with
the surrounding city, and is structured to intentionally
includes those living informally today. A revised road
network creates connectivity between the highway
and rail, and bridges the gap between residents living
beyond the rail and industry adjacent to the highway.
New housing development borders the City’s residential
Land use: industrial & residential Road network: mixed vehicular &
nodes, and industry aligns with Muntinlupa’s existing borders. pedestrian paths.
industrial corridor. At the center of the site, a public plaza
meets existing open space needs and is anchored by a
community center, which provides social services year-
round and is augmented during periods of storms.
mobility
industrial residential
vehicular pedestrian
unbroken blocks human-scale grid

PROPOSED ADAPTATIONS
Land use Open space Road network

134 STUDENT PROJECTS

 YEAR-ROUND CONDITION

industry: training & employment

manufacturing offers employment to
informal settlers; ground-floor retail
allows goods produced to remain local.
mixed use housing
housing for workers, low-income
Muntinlupans, and market-rate renters
mitigates local housing demand.

community center
focal building anchors site
and serves as source of
critical social services.

mixed use housing

housing for workers, low-income
Muntinlupans, and market-rate renters
mitigates local housing demand.
public plaza & civic space
a flexible park provides space for
community life and play year-round;
during periods of typhoon, it couples
as an evacuation site.

STORM EVENT

135
 FORMAL AND INFORMAL GROWTH

When fully developed, the reused vacant land meets

the needs of permanent residents as well as of those
evacuated from their communities during storm events.

Underlying the site’s programming, however, is a spatial

construction that emphasizes, supports, and provides a
pathway to greater stability for the city’s informal settler
population. The provision of temporary housing allows
for those living informally to remain in their existing
housing on a permanent basis, if desired. The inclusion
of affordable units into new construction, meanwhile,
grows the capacity for more stable housing available to
the urban poor. Adjacent industry offers stable and long-
term employment, as well as job training that supports
a transition towards formal sector employment. Lastly,
the integration of a plaza and community center ensures
that support services are available to all residents,
and that needs for civic and communal spaces are
met. Ultimately, this proposal calls for the provision of
housing and employment for the urban poor; more
fundamentally, however, it demands a reorientation of
existing development to foster the needs of both the
markets and the city’s most vulnerable population.

BY REUSING A VACANT
PARCEL, THE CITY
CAN MEET THE NEEDS
OF BOTH PERMANENT
RESIDENTS AND
THOSE EVACUATED
FROM THEIR
COMMUNITIES
DURING STORM
EVENTS.

136 STUDENT PROJECTS

YEAR-ROUND CONDITION

STORM EVENT

137
 THE SITE IS CHARACTERIZED BY ITS PROGRAMMATIC AND
CLIMATIC FLEXIBILITY IN THE FACE OF DISASTER AS WELL AS
PROXIMITY TO MOBILITY OPTIONS.

Embracing informality demands an understanding of the 1. Year-round: To support holistic livelihoods within
vulnerability, mobility, and capability of the urban poor: Muntinlupa’s formal and informal sector, this proposal
argues for the development of permanent housing,
1. Vulnerability: Informal settler communities,
industry, and community space on-site.
more so than their formal counterparts, are subject
to unaffordable housing, limited urban employment 2. Adaptation During Typhoon: When those along
opportunities, and intermittent environmental disasters. Muntinlupa’s coast must evacuate due to storm, the
site’s public plaza becomes home to temporary housing.
2. Mobility: As a result of their vulnerability, informal
Existing community facilities provide support services
settlers must be able and willing to move toward
and local industry offers work.
improved economic circumstances and in the aftermath
of environmental shocks. Fundamentally, this proposal is grounded in the
vulnerability of Muntinlupa’s urban poor. It seeks
3. Capability: The capacity to move, and to remain in
to acknowledge the economic, residential, and
the face of vulnerability, exemplifies the resilience of
environmental realities of informality and bolster existing
informal communities. Development must acknowledge,
livelihoods while providing a pathway toward greater
embrace, and support dwelling in the face of uncertainty.
stability.
This proposal seeks to acknowledge the capacity of
informal settler communities and to convey opportunities
to provide the resources necessary to mitigate persistent
economic, residential, and environmental vulnerability.
By capitalizing on high rates of land vacancy in
Muntinlupa, this proposal argues for the development
of mixed-use sites that offer year-round residence for
the city’s formal residents, security during periods of
environmental turbulence for all Muntinlupans, and a
pathway toward economic stability for the urban poor.

138 STUDENT PROJECTS

 STRATEGY 2
Weathering the Storm

140 STUDENT PROJECTS

STRATEGY 1
Infrastructure for Informality
 NEAR-TERM RECOMMENDATIONS

OBSERVATIONS • Integrating local and citywide environmental systems

can help restore the lake, provide sanitation facilities,
• ISFs in Metro Manila are growing in number annually and offer flood protection with relatively low costs and
as they continue to migrate from provincial areas to high benefits in the long term.
the city for economic opportunities.
RECOMMENDATIONS

• Most ISFs lack basic household amenities including
running water, refrigeration, electricity, and phone/
internet.
• Waste-management and sanitation deficiencies
contribute to poor health and the spreading of
disease, especially among children.
• Relocating of ISFs to areas far from urban centers
creates separation from work, family, and community
networks; dramatic increases in commute times and
transfers; and often requires mortgages predicated on
pre-existing connections to the formal economy.
• In many cases, families are broken up as
breadwinners work for weeks at a time while living
apart from the family, or families return to areas from
which they were moved.
OPPORTUNITIES
• Shared streets, paths, and other community spaces
can host social and economic activities - children
playing, vegetable gardens, shared chores, or
local commerce. These communal spaces can be
reinforced by an agile and cost-effective toolkit to
support existing ISF communities with infrastructure
and amenities tailored to contextual issues, while
sharing the cost burden across the entire community.
• Engage ISFs in a community planning process to
evaluate their challenges, needs, and socioeconomic
realities, as well as to identify the primary areas of
shared community use and explore solutions that
allow ISFs to remain in place while reducing their
vulnerability.
• Deploy tactical infrastructure upgrades in shared
community spaces to improve access to basic
services with targeted, shared, and cost-effective
investment
• Identify nearby upland areas for short-term
evacuation during emergency events as well as
opportunity sites for potential strategic long-term
resettlement.
• Prioritize short term evacuation sites based on
proximity to employment, public transportation, and
existing social networks.
• Consider existing ISF livelihoods associated with
Laguna de Bay (fisheries and aquaculture) in all new
urban developments, exploring the impacts of new
infrastructure and development on the communities.

• Investment in existing communities can provide

healthier and more resilient neighborhoods with
improved infrastructure, waste-management systems,
and flood mitigation in the near term.

142 STUDENT PROJECTS

LONG-TERM RECOMMENDATIONS

OBSERVATIONS RECOMMENDATIONS

• Flood evacuation plans and temporary shelter • Create an evacuation strategy for at-risk ISFs to safe
strategies are uncoordinated and do not adequately sites based on proximity to their existing location,
consider ISFs’ livelihoods. mobility access, and needed services and goods.

• Evaluate vacant land within Muntinlupa City to assess

• Economic, physical, and social divisions among their best use based on ownership, land use, hazards
formal and informal developments lead to and risks, infrastructure, and context.
infrastructural redundancies, uneven cost
• Explore public incentives for developers to include
burdens, and a general lack of urban cohesion.
affordable housing units, incorporate employment
This contributes to traffic congestion, fragmented
mandates, and establish community resources
development, and other inefficiencies.
for the urban poor in any new construction and
development process. This includes but is not
• Limited, large-scale, publicly controlled parcels in limited to zoning changes and height bonuses for
urban areas make permanent housing strategies “inclusionary zoning.”
difficult without private sector collaboration.
• Develop partnerships among private developers,
government officials, NGOs, and POs to encourage
OPPORTUNITIES mutually beneficial and integrated development
approaches. Identify a mix of uses for sites that
• Privately owned vacant land can offer safe and secure
provide industry for employment, various types
evacuation and temporary housing for ISFs during
of housing, educational facilities, and community
flooding events.
functions that offer resources for the urban poor.
• City zoning controls can be used to incentivize private
• Integrate evacuation strategies for emergency
sector collaboration in the production of affordable,
and year-round use of evacuation areas on public
through inclusionary housing bonuses and strategic
and private sites as part of the city’s development
upzoning.
framework.
• Large parcels provide opportunities for informal and
formal sectors to interact and have the potential to
become mixed-use, mixed-income sites.

• With evacuation shelters, permanent housing options,

and educational facilities, a holistic approach to
supporting ISFs can be integrated into a city-wide
strategy for improved livelihoods and economic
stability.

143
 CONNECT AND PROTECT:
CLEANING WATER AND
BALANCING BENEFITS
ADRIANA AKERS + LILY PERKINS-HIGH

Flooding and the continued degradation of the water quality

in Laguna de Bay present two key challenges for Muntinlupa.
This project, entitled Martiniko Island, responds to these concerns
by reimagining existing and proposed flood infrastructure,
especially the C-6 expressway dike, understanding these
systems as tools which can be used to improve water quality and
benefit local communities rather than providing a singular, static
function.

144 STUDENT PROJECTS

145
146 STUDENT PROJECTS
 Eric & Anican Punay
Ages 36 & 14

Eric is a cellphone technician originally from Sucat. His father was

a fisherman. He remembers when the landscape in the area was
completely different, with far less pollution.

Eric’s son, Anican, attends a private school in Cupang and likes to

spend time with his friends and family in the Sucat People’s Park.

“AS A BOY, I USED

TO WADE KNEE DEEP
IN THE WATER TO
COLLECT SHELLFISH
TO SELL. THE WATER
LEVEL IN LAGUNA
DE BAY IS MUCH
HIGHER TODAY”
147
148 STUDENT PROJECTS
 Tiangco Hermigildo
Age 28

“When I was a kid, the water was so clean: I could drink it, and
collect mussels and snails. We used to do more subsistence
fishing and watercress farming, but there are now fish pens
everywhere. However, the watercress still grows. Now, I’m a
traffic enforcer; I work the night shift at the airport. It’s a one hour
journey by two jeepneys, but I can’t move because my councilor
nephew got me this job. Plus, it’s only 20 minutes usually, there is
just construction traffic right now. When it floods, we all go to the
school for refuge. The last time, it took four months to subside.
I would like to move to the Baguio highlands, not just because
of the flood, but because there is less traffic and it is cleaner and
calmer.”

“WHEN I WAS A
KID, THE WATER
WAS SO CLEAN; I
COULD DRINK IT AND
COLLECT MUSSELS
AND SNAILS.”

149
 Carlos Ibabao
Age 57

Carlos works along Laguna de Bay. He is a fisherman, and spends

his days catching fish and repairing watches to make ends meet.
His livelihood and shelter is extremely vulnerable to flooding. His
home is made of weak materials that could easily be swept away.
He does not see many other options to survive in the city, and
looks forward to a day when he will be able to earn more and be
less vulnerable to rising waters.

“THE FLOODING CAME

ALL OF A SUDDEN,
BUT DIDN’T SUBSIDE
FOR SIX MONTHS.”

150 STUDENT PROJECTS

151
 Ferdinand Obejas
Age 46

Ferdinand Obejas is a tricycle driver. In between rides, he rests

at the main tricycle hub in Muntinlupa, which is located near the
railroad track between Don Juan Bayview subdivision and Dona
Rosario Bayview subdivision.

“WHEN IT FLOODS, I
MOVE TO THE SECOND
FLOOR OF MY HOUSE.
SOMETIMES, IT CAN BE
MONTHS BEFORE THE
WATER COMPLETELY
SUBSIDES.”

152 STUDENT PROJECTS

153
 Trinidad Tolentino
Age Unknown

“My friends and I all work as street-sweepers employed by the

local government. We all have several children at home, and
some of us are single mothers. I (Trinidad) live nearby in Cupang,
but some of us come from further away: Bonoy Avenue in
Manila, Luzon, four miles from here. Although we live in different
neighborhoods, we’ve all been impacted by the flooding. For
me, the effects were not too bad, just one or two feet of flooding
that subsided quickly. To prevent flooding during the next storm,
I believe that the government should be more strict when it
comes to trash disposal and collection. Clogged canals cause
and worsen the flooding. Although it floods, I’m not interested in
moving. I’m satisfied with what I’m earning, and really just grateful
to have a job, one that I stick with because of the wages. I’d even
work further away, if it meant a higher wage.”

“TO PREVENT FLOODING

DURING THE NEXT
STORM, I BELIEVE THAT
THE GOVERNMENT
SHOULD BE MORE
STRICT WHEN IT COMES
TO TRASH DISPOSAL
AND COLLECTION.”
154 STUDENT PROJECTS
155
156 STUDENT PROJECTS
 Concepcion Lato
Age 35

Concepcion and her family have been fortunate enough to

upgrade their house from bamboo and wood to cinderblock.
Their home is only a few meters from the water and is susceptible
to flooding. With their material upgrades, they do not have to
worry about damages as much some of their neighbors. They
work outside of their community and have planned for their future
to be able to invest in their child’s education and their
family’s health.

“WE ARE USED TO

FLOODING, BUT I
WORRY ABOUT MY
FAMILY’S HEALTH
WHEN THE WATERS
DON’T GO DOWN.”

157
158 STUDENT PROJECTS
Renato Bautista
Age 35

Childcare, employment and hope for the future have created a

unique situation for Renato and his family. With two children and
a wife that works, Renato heads the household. He does laundry,
takes care of a sick child, and makes sure his children have a
brighter future.

“I WAS JOBLESS IN
QUEZON PROVINCE.
WE MOVED HERE
WHEN MY WIFE
FOUND A JOB IN
MUNTINLUPA. I STAY
HOME WITH THE
KIDS.”

159
 Eddie Boy
Age 55

“I’ve lived along the railroad tracks for a long time, more than ten
years. About ten years ago, the tracks were filled with houses, but
most were demolished to make way for railroad improvements.
My house was not, so I stayed. For day-to-day work, I drive a cart
along the railroad tracks between Alabang and Cupang, taking
people to market, to their homes, and to school. On off days, I rent
the cart out to other drivers for a rate of 40 pesos; sometimes I’ll
also take work in construction when it’s available. To eat, my family
also grows bananas and cassava. The flooding isn’t terrible in my
area; we’ve only really been impacted once, in 2009. Then, the
flooding came up to our knees, but subsided after a few weeks.”

“TEN YEARS AGO,

THE TRACKS
WERE FILLED
WITH HOUSES,
BUT MOST WERE
DEMOLISHED.
MINE WAS NOT, SO
I STAYED.”

160 STUDENT PROJECTS

161
162 STUDENT PROJECTS
 Renato Sanchez
Age 52

Renato has lived along the railroad tracks in Buli for 20 years. This
area is located on higher ground and is generally not affected
by flooding. Instead, Renato is concerned about the safety of the
children who play along the rail line. He hopes for more public
space in the future so the neighborhood kids can have a safe place
to play. Renato works as a luggage porter at the Airport. He has a
one-hour commute.

“BECAUSE WE LIVE
ON HIGHER GROUND,
OUR HOME IS USUALLY
NOT AFFECTED BY
FLOODING. WHAT WE
REALLY NEED IS A
SAFE PLACE FOR OUR
CHILDREN TO PLAY.”

163
 Alejandro Clemens
Age 55

“I was born in Bikol, son of an American father, but have lived here
in Cupang for 31 years. I’m the father to 6 children. The youngest
is 23 and works at a Jollibee at the fringe of the city, and the eldest
is 36 and lives at home. Typically, I work as a bookbinder in the
Muntinlupa City Hall, but I have work off today because of the
pope’s visit. On days like this, I go fishing with my friends for tilapia
and milkfish. I live nearby, at the border of Alabang and Cupang.
During times of flooding (like 2009, when flooding was bad and
didn’t subside for 5 months), I go to my brother’s house, who lives
nearby but in a higher place. Because I work in government, my
income isn’t affected by the storms and I’m satisfied with the work
that I am doing. To get to work, I take one trike and one jeepney,
for around 30 minutes. Because I know the people here, I wouldn’t
move, even for a better paying job. Many of my neighbors have
moved since the last storm, though, including a friend who
moved to the province, only to be hit by Hurricane Yolanda. In the
end, I believe that this place can be cleaned up, and that it’s the
responsibility of the MMDA to do so.”

“IN THE END, I BELIEVE

THAT THIS PLACE CAN
BE CLEANED UP.”

164 STUDENT PROJECTS

165
 MARTINIKO ISLAND
OYSTER FARMS CAN PROVIDE LIVELIHOODS AND CLEAN LAKE
WATER, WHILE SOFT EDGES ALL AROUND THE ISLAND SYSTEM
WILL FILTER AND CLEAN URBAN RUNOFF, PREVENTING LAKE
CONTAMINATION, WHILE CONNECTING OPEN SPACES.
The shoreline of Muntinlupa is comprised of densely
settled informal and other poor communities along the
coast, including a large number of fisherfolk. The area
suffers from severe water pollution issues, particularly
where the polluted rivers meet the lake. If the current
plans for the C-6 Dike Expressway go forward, the dike
will cut off the coast and fisherfolk from the lake and the
majority of its fisheries; high-density urban development
will generate runoff that together with the highway run-
off will exacerbate existing water pollution issues; and
infrequent connections to the coast will ensure that any
public services and other benefits provided by the island
development will remain inaccessible to existing low-
income coastal communities.
This alternative proposal counters these issues,
with design principles rooted in strengthening and
celebrating the fishing industry, cleaning the water,
and providing benefits to existing communities. The
island still incorporates high-value opportunities that
will be attractive to developers, such as high-density
residential development with incredible views of the
lake, a continuation of the existing on-land commercial
corridor onto the island, and luxury canal housing on
the southern portion of the site. The proposal also
incorporates shared services that can benefit low-
income coastal inhabitants, including the remediation of
the lake’s damaged ecology, and a strengthening of the
aquaculture industry in the lake as a whole.
166 STUDENT PROJECTS
To clean the lake water and revive its natural beauty for
current and future inhabitants, several measures will
be taken that both clean water and provide sources of
livelihood and recreation. Wetlands may be introduced
to clean the polluted urban river water before it enters
the lake. Paths constructed along the wetlands allow
for a new coastal open space system. Oyster farms can
provide livelihoods and clean lake water, while soft
edges all around the island system will filter and clean
urban runoff, preventing lake contamination, while
connecting open spaces. Mangroves along the C-6
berm may clean vehicle runoff before it enters Laguna de
Bay, while also providing habitat for natural species.
Frequent pedestrian connections to the coast help
ensure that existing residents can access open spaces
on the island, an amenity lacking in the densely settled
coastal communities at present. Shared community
amenities should thus be concentrated along the edge
of the island closer to the coast. These might include
employment opportunities in a large fish market and
retail center; educational opportunities such as a fishery
training center; and large open spaces, including playing
fields and other recreational opportunities.
CURRENT CONDITIONS

I TY
UN
M S
O M N ND UP
A
A LC TO E RS GR
O
N
ST DE TUR L E E
A N L TT OM
CO PE CU E
S NC
E
D UA AL W-I
AQ M O
F OR R L
IN HE
OT

E N
V ER TIO
U
SE LL
P O

THE C-6 DIKE EXPRESSWAY PROPOSAL: A CRITIQUE

DIKE = HARD INFRASTRUCTURE, INCREASES RUNOFF

CUTS OFF COAST FROM LAKE AND FISHERIES

ISLANDS HAVE UNIFORM HIGH-DENSITY DEVELOPMENT

LAND RECLAMATION, URBANIZATION TO EXACERBATE ALREADY

SEVERE WATER POLLUTION

INFREQUENT CONNECTIONS TO COAST AND EXISTING COMMUNITY

NO BENEFITS TO INFORMAL SETTLERS AND OTHER LOW-

INCOME COASTAL COMMUNITIES

167
 STRENGTHENING
LAGUNA DE BAY’S
AQUACULTURE
INDUSTRY

While pollution reduces the total output and economic

value of Laguna de Bay’s fisheries, there are several
other problems with the lake’s aquaculture industry,
best summarized by the 2007 Philippine Institute for
Development Studies Report, “The Current State of
Aquaculture in Laguna de Bay.”1 First, the industry
is highly decentralized, with fry being sourced from
outside the Metro Manila region, raised to fingerlings in
a separate location, and then transported to Laguna de
Bay fish pens and farms for full grow-out. Middlemen
at each stage of this process cut profits and efficiency
in the fishing economy. For example, half the variable CURRENT AQUACULTURE PROCESS
costs for milkfish raising in Laguna de Bay go towards
the purchase of fingerlings. Transportation of fry and LOCAL FRY LOCAL FOREIGN
fingerlings represents another significant cost burden. GATHERERS HATCHERIES PRODUCERS

The decentralization of the industry also sometimes

LOCAL HATCH-
leads to the unavailability of fry and fingerlings, which FRY ERY FRY
FOREIGN FRY

can lead to late and low stocking, further compromising

economic output. Second, 75% of Laguna de Bay
fisherfolk lack any formal training in their industry. Finally, CONCES-
MIDDLEMEN IMPORTERS
SIONAIRES
the region misses a key income generation opportunity
by producing a very low level of raw material, such as
processing raw fish materials into more valuable fish balls NURSERIES
or fish sticks.

1 Danilo C. Israel, The Current State of Aquaculture in Laguna de FINGERLINGS

Bay, Philippine Institute for Development Studies, Discussion Paper
Series #2007-20, December 2007 <http://dirp4.pids.gov.ph/ris/dps/
pidsdps0720.pdf>.
MIDDLEMEN

FISH PEN & CAGE

OPERATORS

MARTINIKO ISLAND COULD COMBINE THE INDUSTRIAL,

COMMERCIAL, AND CULTURAL ASPECTS OF FISHING IN LAGUNA DE
BAY TO CELEBRATE AND STRENGTHEN THE INDUSTRY.

168 STUDENT PROJECTS

SITE SELECTION: AQUACULTURE LIVELIHOOD CENTER

To address these deficiencies in the existing aquaculture
industry as well as the new industry that will be created
in the C-6 channel, one of the proposed development
islands should set aside space for a new aquaculture
livelihood center. The island could combine the
industrial, commercial, and cultural aspects of fishing in
Laguna de Bay to celebrate and strengthen the industry.
As a place where the industry will be consolidated,
the island should be located in one of the planned
highway interchanges for better access to markets in
the Metro Manila region and beyond. The map below
shows the ideal site, located at the intersection of the
existing commercial and industrial hubs of Muntinlupa.
By combining the industrial (warehousing, processing,
distribution) and commercial (wholesale, markets,
restaurants and food tourism) elements of Laguna de
Bay aquaculture, the island will be a natural outgrowth of
these current mainland land uses.

G L
T IN RIA
IS S T
EX DU A
TO D I N U P
N L
T IO L AN TIN
C IA UN R
N NE RC M FO
E N S
CO MM RS I GE
N
CO NTE HA ETS
E R C K
C
N TE AR
I M
TO T TO
S
C ES POR
S
AC AN
TR

169
 A C-6 THAT WORKS
THIS PROPOSAL STRUCTURES
LAND RECLAMATION BASED
ON EXISTING NATURAL
Rice Terraces, CONDITIONS AND COASTAL
Yuanyang LAND USES.
County

The current C-6 development plan both fails to account

for the residents of Muntinlupa, and has questionable
merit from a financial standpoint. As proposed, the C-6
may trap highly contaminated runoff water, which will
slowly stagnate, producing undesirable odors and low
water quality, which will in turn decrease the value of
high-end development. Furthermore, all of the proposed
island development will be extremely vulnerable to flood
events; a breach of the dike, likely given climate change
projections, could result in massive property damage.
Salinas For this reason, development should not proceed as
Cadiz, Spain planned.

This proposal instead aims to correct these errors

while amplifying benefits to citizens of Muntinlupa.
This goal can be achieved within guidelines set forth
by the Philippines government; namely a six-lane
dike expressway with eight highway interchanges, 16
pumping stations, and 700 hectares of reclaimed land,
separated from the existing shore by a channel.

The design has three key elements:

1. TERRACED TREATMENT NETWORK

Minghu A terraced treatment network situated along the existing

Wetland Park coastline will work to clean water, restore lost livelihoods,
and provide much needed public space.

2. EXPANDED CHANNEL
Under the current proposal, the C-6 Expressway will be
constructed 500 meters off Muntinlupa’s coast. This
is not enough room for effective water treatment. This
proposal double the width of the channel.

3. REFORMED ISLANDS
Rather than breaking up the islands in a uniform pattern,
the proposal structures land reclamation according to
existing natural conditions and coastal land uses.
Above: examples of terraced development.

170 STUDENT PROJECTS

USING THE
RAINY SEASON

Terrace Structure
Water becomes progressively cleaner as it moves outwards from the shore.

Rainy Season (May - November)

Wetlands and fish ponds work to clean water throughout the rainy season, during which the floodgates remain closed. Polluted waters are unable to
contaminate the rest of the lake.

Dry Season (December - April)

Flood gates open during dry season, allowing newly clean water to flow into the lake.

171
 PROTECT AGAINST
FLOODING

Key Strategies In addition to elevating the C-6 Expressway to the 500

1. Create sufficient room for water flow
2. Construct a protected terraced
3. Expand the channel between the coast and
development islands
4. Landscape soft, floodable edges that trap runoff
before it enters the lake
Year Flood Line, the proposal strives to reduce the
severity of a dike breach in case one does occur. First,
water is allowed to flow; islands break apart at stream
mouths and the C-6 Channel is expanded from 500
meters in width to 1000 meters. Filtration terraces also
provide an extra layer of fortification as flood waters must
breach each terrace level before reaching the homes of
Muntinlupa’s residents. By cleaning water, these systems
also reduce the risk of waterborne illness. Finally,
floodable edges along the coast of the development
islands reduce damage costs.

FILTRATION
TERRACES PROVIDE
AN EXTRA LAYER
OF FORTIFICATION
AS FLOOD WATERS
MUST BREACH EACH
TERRACE LEVEL BEFORE
REACHING THE HOMES
OF MUNTINLUPA’S
RESIDENTS.

172 STUDENT PROJECTS

 Islands break apart at river
1 mouths. Each channel has a
minimum width of 150 meters.

C-6 Highway sits 1000 meters

3 off the shoreline - twice the
proposed distance.

4 Each island has a 15 meter wetland edge.

2 Flood waters must 5 500 Year Floodline

breach each terrace. 100 Year Floodline

COAST TERRACES CHANNEL C6 LAKE

173
 CLEAN THE WATER

While the entire western coast of Laguna de Bay ISLAND EDGES

has water classified as “Worse Than Class D,”
pollutant concentrations entering this area do vary. CONSIST OF
Concentrations are highest at river mouths and towards
the north of Muntinlupa where greater quantities of
MANGROVES AND
developed land and higher amounts of precipitation WETLANDS, WHICH
produce more runoff.
HELP IMPROVE
Our proposal responds to these conditions through
the installation of a coastal terraced treatment WATER QUALITY AS
network consisting of pocket wetlands deployed at
stream mouths, and wastewater aquaculture ponds.
IT FLOWS THROUGH
Development islands also work to treat water. Island THE CHANNEL.
edges consist of mangroves and wetlands which help
improve water quality as it flows through the channel.
Islands are smaller in areas with higher pollution to
maximize surface area for this treatment to occur.

Muntinlupa lakeshore edge, Sucat. Photo: David Vega-Barachowitz

174 STUDENT PROJECTS

 More Pollution Less Pollution

Key Strategies

1. Treatment zones
Less Pollution
2. Terraced filtration

3. Edges that treat water

2 Water becomes 3
Wetland progressively cleaner.
Fish Pond
Wetland

COAST TERRACES CHANNEL DEVELOPMENT ISLAND

175
 CONNECT AND
CREATE VALUE

The current C-6 proposal makes no attempt to respond Key Strategies

to the existing context in Muntinlupa. This risks the
creation of a dysfunctional, placeless development that 1. Connect the development islands to existing road
will further widen the social and economic gaps visible networks
today. To prevent this outcome, this proposal suggests
2. Define land uses contextually
increasing the total number of island bridges (both
vehicular and pedestrian) and the alignment of these 3. Establish barangay-level amenities for all residents
structures with existing road networks. Defining land
uses that are contextually sensitive is equally important.
The proposal suggests the creation of a new commercial
hub on the island across from Muntinlupa’s CBD. Current
Barangay boundaries serve as a guide for the provision
of amenities, including open spaces, bridges, and docks.

Manuel L. Quezon (National Road), Barangay Sucat. Photo: David Vega-Barachowitz

176 STUDENT PROJECTS

 3

1 SUCAT

BULI

CUPANG

2
ALABANG

BAYANAN

PUTATAN

POBLACION

TUNASAN

177
 ALLOCATION OF
PROGRAM
This proposal features three programmatic
elements: treatment wetlands; community
amenities; and fish and oyster farms. These uses will
be installed in this order, and in response to coastal
conditions.

Treatment Wetlands
Allocated: As needed.
Sizing: 0.5 - 5 Acres

Place wetlands in zones of high pollution. Expand

terrace edge to allow for additional treatment area.

Amenities

Allocated: Per Barangay

Sizing: 0.25 - 1 Acre

Each barangay should have access to a public open

space, connection to nearby islands, and a port to
dock fishing boats.

Fish And Oyster Farms

Allocated: Everywhere else

Sizing: 0.25 - 10 Acres

Place fish and oyster farms in the buffer zones

between treatment wetlands and development
islands.

178 STUDENT PROJECTS

WETLANDS TYPOLOGY

Wetlands are stationed at stream mouths and in

other areas of high runoff.
During rain events, wetland terrace overflows,
releasing newly cleaned water into open channels.

Pocket wetlands are stationed in areas of

particularly high contamination. Runoff waters are
captured in this area, treated through a series of
natural processes, and eventually released into the
larger flood channel. Once in the channel, smaller
wetlands and mangroves work to further improve
quality.

WASTEWATER
AQUACULTURE
TYPOLOGY Terrace edges, 10 feet in width, become
occupiable spaces. Edges intertwine to
provide connection.

Fish size increases from the coastal edge to the

channel. This configuration allows large fish to
be released into the lake once the flood gates
open in the dry season.

The C-6 will cut fisherfolk off from the lake. To

remedy this issue, a substantial amount of area
in the treatment network has been allocated
for the production of fish and oysters. In
addition to its economic benefits, this system
will also work to improve water quality.

179
 LIVING WITH
WATER TOOLKIT
Strategies for Improving Water
Quality, Increasing Storm
Resilience and Fighting the
Declining Fish Population
Given the increasing severity of interrelated issues of flooding,
pollution, and failing fisheries, a toolkit was developed to directly
respond to these problems in the Laguna de Bay watershed.
The toolkit emphasized those solutions that work with water and
nature and range from micro-scale solutions, such as green roofs
and rain gardens, to macro-scale ones, such as mangrove forests
and floating islands.

F F F F

AQUACULTURE AQUAPONICS FISH STOCKING PREVENT ILLEGAL

DREDGING

P P P

S S

F F F F

CONTROL INVASIVE LIVING MACHINES MANGROVES OYSTER FARMS

SPECIES

P P P

S S S S

INFILTRATION RAIN BARRELS WETLANDS HYDROPONICS

TRENCH

180 STUDENT PROJECTS