Mapanuepe Lake is a freshwater

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

located in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Zambales Zambales, officially the Province of Zambales ( fil, Lalawigan ng Zambales; ilo, Probinsia ti Zambales; Pangasinan: ''Luyag/Probinsia na Zambales''; xsb, Probinsya nin Zambales), is a province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon re ...

in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. The lake was created after the cataclysmic eruption of

Mount Pinatubo Mount Pinatubo is an active stratovolcano in the Zambales Mountains, located on the tripoint boundary of the Philippine provinces of Zambales, Tarlac and Pampanga, all in Central Luzon on the northern island of Luzon. Its eruptive histor ...

in 1991. Lahars following the eruption blocked the drainage of Mapanuepe River, south of the

volcano A volcano is a rupture in the Crust (geology), crust of a Planet#Planetary-mass objects, planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and volcanic gas, gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Ear ...

, flooding Mapanuepe Valley together with its settlements. Only the

steeple In architecture, a steeple is a tall tower on a building, topped by a spire and often incorporating a belfry and other components. Steeples are very common on Christian churches and cathedrals and the use of the term generally connotes a religi ...

of the church protruding out of the water remained from one of the villages."The 1991 Lahars of Southwestern Mount Pinatubo and Evolution of the Lahar-Dammed Mapanuepe Lake"
U.S. Geological Survey. Retrieved on 2011-06-17.

History

Mapanuepe lake is located at the confluence of Marella and Mapanuepe Rivers as the two rivers merge to become the Santo Tomas River. The subsequent rains following the 1991 eruption of

produced lahar that dumped volcanic debris on the Marella River, one of the major drainages of the mountain, aggrading the river that eventually dammed the Mapanuepe River. The rising waters submerged the Mapanuepe Valley including the

barangays A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolitan ...

of Aglao (lower), Buhawen and Pili of San Marcelino,

. During the development of the lake, breaching and reforming of the debris dam occurred following each lahar episode. At its maximum extent, the lake grew to an area of and had a stored water volume of 75 x 10⁶ cubic meters () before reaching its current state. The only structure that remains is a church tower with a huge metal cross right in the middle of the lake. Prior to the 1991 eruption, studies of

geologic formations A geological formation, or simply formation, is a body of rock having a consistent set of physical characteristics (lithology) that distinguishes it from adjacent bodies of rock, and which occupies a particular position in the layers of rock expo ...

and

sediments Sediment is a naturally occurring material that is broken down by processes of weathering and erosion, and is subsequently transported by the action of wind, water, or ice or by the force of gravity In physics, gravity () is a fundame ...

of Mapanuepe Valley showed that the area was the site of a similar lahar-formed lake from old eruptions.

Water quality

The lake water is reportedly contaminated with mercury leaking from the abandoned Dizon

Copper Mine Copper extraction refers to the methods used to obtain copper from its ores. The conversion of copper consists of a series of physical and electrochemical processes. Methods have evolved and vary with country depending on the ore source, loca ...

which is located on the east shore of the lake. However harmful chemicals are now diluted and the lake is believed to be safe for diving and fishing.

Popular culture

*The lake was featured on Episode 10 in the second season of

Destination Truth ''Destination Truth'' is an American paranormal reality television series that premiered on June 6, 2007, on Syfy. Produced by Mandt Bros. Productions and Ping Pong Productions, the program follows paranormal researcher Josh Gates around the wor ...

, an American TV show on the

Sci-Fi Channel Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. ...

, titled ''Ahool and Pinatubo

Monsters A monster is a type of fictional creature found in horror, fantasy, science fiction, folklore, mythology and religion. Monsters are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive with a strange, grotesque appearance that causes terror and fe ...

'' . The Destination Truth team made an investigation following reports by local fishermen of mysterious, giant, and black fish-like creatures swimming on the lake labeled as the "Pinatubo Monster" by the show."Destination Truth - Ahool and Pinatubo Episode"
SyFy Channel. Retrieved on 2011-06-17. File:Pinatubo major drainages.jpg, Map of the major rivers originating from Mount Pinatubo File:Mapanuepe Lake-before & after.gif, Mapanuepe Lake before the eruption and after the formation in 1991 File:Mapanuepe River confluence and valley.gif, A closer look at the confluence of Marella and Mapanuepe Rivers before the eruption with the location of the old settlements that were submerged

References

External links

Mapanuepe Lake
at OpenStreetMap {{Lakes of the Philippines Lakes of the Philippines Landforms of Zambales

History

Water quality

Popular culture

See also

References

External links