The Philippines boast of many different kinds of natural water forms, such as bays, rivers, lakes falls, gulfs, straits, and swamps. Because it is made up of islands, the country's coastline, if laid end-to-end, would measure around 17.5 thousand kilometers. The Philippines is blessed with excellent natural harbors for ports like Manila Bay. Other excellent harbors with port potentials are found in Ilocos, Pangasinan, Visayas, and Mindanao. The three largest rivers in the country are the Cagayan River in Northern Luzon, the Rio Grande de Mindanao, and the Agusan River, also in Mindanao.. Most popular among tourist is the famous underground river in Palawan. Aside from rivers, the country also abounds with lakes. Easily the most famous is the heart-shaped Laguna de Bay. Other famous lakes are Taal in Batangas, Sampaloc in Laguna, Buhi and Bulusan in Bicol, Naujan in Mindoro oriental, and Lanao and Mainit in Mindanao. Generating power for the Nation’s growth are the magnificent waterfalls that serve as tourist attractions, as well. The biggest waterfalls is the Maria Cristina falls, it can be found in the North Western part of Lanao province in Mindanao, while the most popular is Pagsanjan falls in Laguna.
The Philippines is rich in natural resources. It has fertile, arable lands, diverse flora and fauna, extensive coastlines, and rich mineral deposits. The Philippines’ primary source of livelihood is its fertile land. Rich, wide plains suitable for farming are found in the Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, South western Bicol, Panay, Negros, Davao, Cotabato, Agusan and Bukidnon. The country‘s six major crops are rice, corn, sugarcane, coconut, abaca and tobacco. Except for rice and corn, all these products are exported, along with bananas and pineapples.
The Philippines also boasts of wide tracts of lush, green forests. In fact, almost half of the country’s total land area is forested. Sixty percent of these forests are found in Mindanao.
Except for petroleum and a number of metals, mineral resources abound in Philippines soil. The country’s mineral deposits can be classified into metals and non-metals. The metal deposits are estimated at 21.5 billion metric tons, while non-metal deposits are projected at 19.3 billion metric tons. Nickel ranks first in terms of deposits and size. It is found in Surigao del Norte, Davao, Palawan, Romblon and Samar. Iron is found in Ilocos Norte, Nueva Ecija, Camarines Norte and Cotabato. While copper is found in Zambales, Batangas, Mindoro, Panay and Negros. Among non-metal deposits, the most abundant are cement, lime, and marble. Other non-metals include asbestos, clay, guano, asphalt, feldspar, sulfur, talc, silicon, phosphate, and marble.
With its territorial waters measuring as much as 1.67 million square kilometers and located in the worlds fishing center, the Philippines is definitely rich in marine resources. Of the 2,400 fish species found in the country. 65 have good commercial value. Other marine products include corals, pearls, crabs and seaweeds. Some of the country’s best salt water fishing area’s are found in Sintangki Island in Sulu Estancia in Bohol, Malampaya in Palawan, Lingayen Gulf in Pangasinan, San Miguel lake in Camarines Norte, Bantayan Channel in Cebu, and the seas of Quezon and Sorsogon.
On the other hand, among the biggest fishing areas are Laguna de Bay, Bombon Lake in Batangas, Bato Lake in Canmarines Sur, Naujan Lake in Mindoro and Mainit Lake in Agusan Del Norte.
