It is the center of life and activities for the 29 lakeshore towns that borders it.  It provides life-support services to these communities, notably as source of water for irrigation, industrial cooling, and domestic water supply; a reservoir; waste sink; power generation; transport route; and, a place for recreation. 

cultural aspects of the lake -

          Its lakeshore towns are rich in culture and traditions.  You will still find old churches, a town that nurtures the country's best artists, and even caves containing the oldest rock art in the country, to name a few.  Many traditional fishing practices can still be observed like the use of home-made guns and salambao.  Laguna de Bay has in fact been immortalized in the two novels of the Philippine national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal, himself a native of Calamba, a lakeshore town.

          Human communities remain the most important threat to the ecological integrity of the lake.  According to the Laguna Lake Development Authority, more than 50% of the BOD loadings of the lake comes from domestic sources, followed by industrial sources at 21%, agriculture at 13%, and forest at 1%.  This is a very telling scenario, because unlike industrial sources, domestic sources are non-point sources and are therefore harder to regulate, much more control.

the lakeshore communities -

          This brings to the fore the crucial role of the lakeshore communities in keeping the ecological integrity of the Laguna de Bay.  The ultimate goal of conserving the lake can only be achieved through the commitment and cooperation of these communities - and the key to this commitment and cooperation is making them understand and appreciate the importance of this very important resource in their lives.