Despite their beauty, water hyacinths, popularly known as water lilies, are now considered pests due to their rapid growth and invasive nature, affecting different bodies of water in the Philippines.
In Pililla, Rizal, thousands of thick water lily plants cover parts of the lake, rendering boating and fishing nearly impossible. Maintaining aquaculture is also made challenging as the water quality degradation continues. In 2020, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) partnered with the fisherfolk around Laguna Lake to collect water lilies, for they harbour disease-carrying mosquitoes and deplete oxygen levels that may result in fish mortality.
Upon witnessing these problems, the community-based association, Progresibong Kababaihan ng Pililla (aka Better Pililla Women’s Multi-Purpose Cooperative, or BPWMPC) also reached out to fisherfolk associations in the municipality, offering ideas that could help solve their problems with water lilies. BPWMPC, being one of the beneficiaries of water lily-processing workshops under the Villar Social Institute for Poverty Alleviation and Governance (Villar Sipag) Foundation, officially launched their handicraft-making project as one of the staple livelihoods of their group in 2022, transforming dried water lily stalks into handbags, coasters, cellphone holders, and sling bags for sale.
Since then, BPWMPC has partnered with the fisherfolk associations in Pililla in harvesting and drying water lily stalks that they then use for their handicraft products. For Ramil Casquete, President of Bantay Kalikasan Lawa at Dagat (BAKLAD), BPWMPC’s initiative helped the fishing industry in the community to thrive. ‘Malaking bagay po ‘yung nangyaring recycle na ‘yan, nawala na po ‘yung pinaka-volume, dami ng water lily [sa lawa] kaya nakakapaghanapbuhay na po kami kahit papaano.’ [This recycling initiative has been a huge help, for it lessens the large volume of water lily (in the lake), that’s why our livelihood can now continue.]
