Pampanga First District Representative Carmelo “Pogi” Lazatin, Jr. has filed House Bill No. 2423, titled “An Act Declaring Sapangbato as a Protected Area in the Province of Pampanga, Providing for Its Management and for Other Purposes.” This marks Lazatin’s first legislative proposal in the 20th Congress, filed on July 29, 2025.

The bill seeks to preserve the ecological biodiversity of the Sapangbato Watershed, located in Barangay Sapangbato, Angeles City, by formally declaring it a Protected Area. HB 2423 outlines strict environmental regulations within the watershed, including prohibitions on wildlife poaching, illegal logging, toxic waste dumping, treasure hunting, and unauthorized land transactions.

To ensure proper oversight, the measure proposes the creation of a Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) tasked with the area’s conservation and sustainable development.

As former mayor of Angeles City, Lazatin initiated a large-scale reforestation campaign in Sapangbato, resulting in the planting of over 100,000 trees through the collective efforts of local government employees and private partners.

The Sapangbato Watershed spans 546 hectares of upland terrain and is recognized as Protected Agricultural Land under the Bureau of Soils and Water Management’s Network of Protected Areas for Agriculture and Agro-industrial Development (NPAAAD), with specific designation as Fragile Agricultural Land (Watershed Protection).