Press Statement: The Youth Strongly Condemns the Proposal to Relocate the Las Piñas–Parañaque Wetland Park and Its Migratory Birds

July 2026

We, the undersigned youth-led environmental organizations, strongly condemn and unequivocally reject the recent statement and proposal to relocate the Las Piñas-Parañaque Wetland Park (LPPWP) and its migratory birds to address airport bird strike concerns. This proposal is scientifically unfounded, ecologically impossible, and dangerously undermines decades of conservation efforts in one of the Philippines' most ecologically significant wetlands.

Long before the establishment of the nearby airport, Manila Bay had already been serving as a natural stopover and wintering ground for migratory waterbirds along the East Asian–Australasian Flyway, one of the world's major migratory bird flyways. These migration routes have been shaped by thousands of years of evolution and ecological processes, not by human infrastructure. Airports were built within an already existing ecological landscape, not the other way around.

To suggest that migratory birds can simply be "relocated" or redirected to another migration path demonstrates a fundamental misunderstanding of migration ecology. Migratory birds navigate using complex biological, environmental, and geomagnetic cues across continents. Their migratory behavior cannot be altered through policy or human instruction.

Likewise, LPPWP is not a movable facility that can simply be transferred elsewhere. It is a naturally functioning coastal wetland ecosystem formed through unique geological, hydrological, tidal, and ecological processes that have developed over generations. Wetlands derive their ecological value from their location, habitat connectivity, and natural processes. These qualities cannot simply be recreated by relocating them. Beyond providing habitat for migratory birds, the wetland also supports fisheries, sequesters atmospheric carbon, improves water quality, buffers coastal communities from storm impacts, and contributes to the ecological resilience of Manila Bay and its inhabitants. Its value extends far beyond wildlife alone.

More importantly, LPPWP is not an ordinary parcel of land. It is a legislated protected area under the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System Act (Republic Act No. 11038), which permanently includes the park within the Philippines' protected area system. It is likewise recognized internationally as a Ramsar Site, acknowledging its exceptional ecological importance as a habitat for migratory waterbirds and other wildlife. Proposing its relocation disregards both Philippine law and the country's international commitments to biodiversity conservation.

Furthermore, available evidence from airport wildlife hazard assessments consistently shows that the species most commonly associated with bird strike incidents are rock doves, also known as feral or domesticated pigeons, and other urban-adapted resident birds that thrive around human settlements and airport facilities. These are not the migratory shorebirds and waterbirds using the wetland. Conflating migratory birds with the primary causes of bird strikes is misleading and diverts attention away from science-based wildlife hazard management strategies.

The solution to bird strike risks should never be the destruction, degradation, or relocation of protected ecosystems. Instead, airport safety should continue to be addressed through internationally recognized, science-based wildlife hazard management practices that balance aviation safety with biodiversity conservation.

As young Filipinos committed to environmental stewardship, we refuse to accept false choices that pit biodiversity conservation against development. Sustainable development demands coexistence, informed decision-making, and respect for science, not proposals that sacrifice irreplaceable ecosystems for short-term convenience.

We call upon the Senate of the Philippines, the Department of Transportation, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the Department of Agriculture - Bureau of Animal Industry, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, airport operators, policymakers, and the public to reject narratives that misrepresent ecological realities and instead uphold evidence-based policymaking. The protection of the Las Piñas-Parañaque Wetland Park is not merely an environmental issue. It is a legal obligation, a scientific imperative, and a moral responsibility to safeguard one of the  country’s last remaining significant urban coastal wetlands for present and future generations.

The youth stand firmly with science. The youth stand firmly with the law. The youth stand firmly for nature.

Protect our wetlands. Protect our migratory birds. Protect Manila Bay's natural heritage.

Signed:

One Pawikan Initiative

Mangrove Matters PH

Neymatophores

Siklab Earth Initiative

Xavier University Biophilic Society 

Stewards and Volunteers for the Earth - Philippines (SAVE PH)

Youth Strike for Climate Philippines

Alliance of STEM Students for Excellence

People and Habitat Inc. 

Layag Collective

Tapang Paranaque

Youth for Animals-PUP (YFA-PUP)

Bangon Baybay

UPV Biological Society

PNU Katalonan

PNU-USC Student Gender and Development Commission

PUP Society of Biology Students

UPV Organization of University’s Chemical Engineering Students (UPV OUnCES)

VSU Development Communicators' Society (DeCSo)

UP Society of Human Settlements Planners (UP HSP Soc)

UPD CS Graduate Scholars Association

University of Southern Mindanao Biology Club

UP Fisheries Guild