For the river in Central Luzon buried by the 1991 Mount Pinatubo eruption, see Pasig–Potrero River.

Pasig River

View of Pasig River in Manila

A drainage map of the San Juan River–Marikina River–Pasig

River system, with the Pasig River as the thick blue line.
 Pasig River mouth

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Native name Ilog Pasig (Tagalog)

Location

Country Philippines

 National Capital Region

Region
 Calabarzon
Cities  Manila
 Mandaluyong
 Makati
 Pasig
 Taguig
  Taytay, Rizal

Physical characteristics

Source Laguna de Bay

• location Taguig/Taytay, Rizal
• coordinates 14°31′33″N 121°06′33″E

Mouth Manila Bay

• location Manila
• coordinates 14°35′40″N 120°57′20″E
• elevation 0 m (0 ft)
Length 25.2 km (15.7 mi)

Basin size 4,678 km2 (1,806 sq mi)[1]

Width
• average 90 m (300 ft)[2]

Depth
• minimum 0.5 m (1.6 ft)[2]
• maximum 5.5 m (18 ft)[2]
Discharge
• minimum 12 m3/s (420 cu ft/s)[2]
• maximum 275 m3/s (9,700 cu ft/s)[2]

Basin features
Tributaries
• left  Estero de Provisor
 Estero de Tanque
 Estero de Pandacan
 Pateros River
• right  Estero de Binondo
 Estero dela Reina
 Estero de Uli-Uli
 Estero de San Miguel
 Estero de Paco
 San Juan River
 Balisahan Creek
 Marikina River
 Napindan River

Bridges 20
show

 v
  t
 e
Pasig summary route
map

The Pasig River (Filipino: Ilog Pasig; Spanish: Río Pásig) is a water body in the Philippines that
connects Laguna de Bay to Manila Bay. Stretching for 25.2 kilometers (15.7 mi), it bisects the
Philippine capital of Manila and its surrounding urban area into northern and southern halves. Its
major tributaries are the Marikina River and San Juan River. The total drainage basin of the Pasig
River, including the basin of Laguna de Bay, covers 4,678 square kilometers (1,806 sq mi).[1]
The Pasig River is technically a tidal estuary, as the flow direction depends upon the water level
difference between Manila Bay and Laguna de Bay. During the dry season, the water level in
Laguna de Bay is low with the river's flow direction dependent on the tides. During the wet season,
when the water level of Laguna de Bay is high, the flow is reversed towards Manila Bay.
The Pasig River used to be an important transport route and source of water for Spanish Manila.
Due to negligence and industrial development, the river suffered a rapid decline in the second half of
the 20th century and was declared biologically dead in 1990.[3] Two decades later after that
declaration, however, a renaturation program designed to revive the river has seen the return of life
to the river, including eight fish species, 39 species of birds, and 118 species of trees and other
vegetation.[4][5] As a result, the Pasig River received the Asian River Prize by the International River
Foundation (IRF) in 2019.[3]
The Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission (PRRC) was a Philippine government agency
established to oversee rehabilitation efforts for the river from 1999 until it was abolished in
November 2019. Rehabilitation efforts are also aided by private sector organizations, such as the
Clean and Green Foundation, Inc., which ran the Piso para sa Pasig (Filipino: "A peso for the
Pasig") campaign in the 1990s.

Etymology[edit]
Main article: Pasig § Etymology
The river takes its name from the city of Pasig, which is named after the Tagalog word pasig,
meaning "a river that flows into the sea" or "the sandy bank of a river", with the former in reference to
the Pasig River's flow from Laguna de Bay towards Manila Bay and out into the South China Sea.[6]

Geography[edit]
The Pasig River winds generally northwestward for some 25 kilometers (15.5 mi) from Laguna de
Bay, the largest lake in the Philippines, to Manila Bay, in the southern part of the island of Luzon.
From the lake, the river runs between Taguig and Taytay, Rizal, before entering Pasig. This portion
of the Pasig River, to the confluence with the Marikina River tributary, is known as the Napindan
River or Napindan Channel.
From there, the Pasig forms flows through Pasig until its confluence with the Taguig River. From
here, it forms the border between Mandaluyong to the north and Makati to the south. The river then
sharply turns northeast, where it has become the border between Mandaluyong and Manila before
turning again westward, joining its other major tributary, the San Juan River, and then following a
sinuous path through the center of Manila before emptying into the bay.
The whole river and most portions of its tributaries lie entirely within Metro Manila, the metropolitan
region of the capital. Isla de Convalecencia, the only island dividing the Pasig River, can be found in
Manila and is where the Hospicio de San Jose is located.
Tributaries and canals[edit]
One major river that drains Laguna de Bay is the Taguig River, which enters into Taguig before
becoming the Pateros River; it is the border between the municipalities of Pateros and Makati. The
Pateros River then enters the confluence where the Napindan Channel and Marikina River meet.
The Marikina River is the larger of the two major tributaries of the Pasig River, and it flows
southward from the mountains of Rizal and cuts through the Marikina Valley. The San Juan River
drains the plateau on which Quezon City stands; its major tributary is Diliman Creek.
Within the city of Manila, various esteros (canals) criss-cross through the city and connect with
the Tullahan River in the north and the Parañaque River to the west.
Crossings[edit]

8
9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20
class=notpageimage|
Locations of the bridges within Metro Manila that span the Pasig

See also: List of crossings of the Pasig River

1847 painting by José Honorato Lozano showing

a casco barge and sampans traversing the Puente de España bridge (replaced by the Jones
Bridge)
A total of 20 bridges currently cross the Pasig. The first bridge from the source at Laguna de Bay is
the Napindan Bridge, followed by the Arsenio Jimenez Bridge to its west. Crossing the Napindan
Channel in Pasig is the Bambang Bridge. It is followed by the Kaunlaran Bridge that connects
barangays Buting and Sumilang in Pasig.[7]
The next bridge downstream is the C.P. Garcia Bridge carrying C-5 Road and connecting the cities
of Makati and Pasig. It is followed by the Sta. Monica–Lawton Bridge, the newest bridge opened in
June 2021 that connects Lawton Avenue in Makati to Fairlane Street in Pineda, Pasig as part of the
Bonifacio Global City–Ortigas Link Road project approved in 2015.[8]
The Guadalupe Bridge between Makati and Mandaluyong carries Epifanio de los Santos Avenue,
the major artery of Metro Manila, as well as the MRT Line 3 from Guadalupe station to Boni station.
The Estrella–Pantaleon and Makati–Mandaluyong Bridges likewise connect the two cities
downstream, with the latter forming the end of Makati Avenue.
The easternmost crossing in Manila is Lambingan Bridge in the district of Santa Ana. It is then
followed by the Tulay Pangarap Footbridge (Abante Bridge), the newest pedestrian bridge that
connects the Punta area and Santa Ana proper.[9] It is followed by the Abante Bridge (Tulay
Pangarap Footbridge) in Santa Ana, Skyway Stage 3, and the Padre Zamora (Pandacan) Bridge
connecting Pandacan and Santa Mesa districts, and carries the southern line of the Philippine
National Railways. The expressway bridge of Skyway Stage 3, serving as a connection road
between the North Luzon Expressway and the South Luzon Expressway, is built near the mouth of
the San Juan River where most parts of it is built and another bridge parallel to Padre Zamora and
PNR bridges will be built to merge with NLEX Connector in Santa Mesa; it will thus serve as a
solution to heavy traffic along EDSA. The Mabini Bridge (formerly Nagtahan Bridge) provides a
crossing for Nagtahan Street, part of C-2 Road. Ayala Bridge carries Ayala Boulevard, and connects
the Isla de Convalecencia to both banks of the Pasig.
Further downstream are the Quezon Bridge from Quiapo to Ermita, the Line 1 bridge from Central
Terminal station to Carriedo station, MacArthur Bridge from Santa Cruz to Ermita, and the Jones
Bridge from Binondo to Ermita. The last bridge near the mouth of the Pasig is the Roxas Bridge (also
known as M. Lopez Bridge and formerly called Del Pan Bridge) from San Nicolas to Port
Area and Intramuros.
Landmarks[edit]
The growth of Manila along the banks of the Pasig River has made it a focal point for development
and historical events. The foremost landmark on the banks of the river is the walled district
of Intramuros, located near the mouth of the river on its southern bank. It was built by the Spanish
colonial government in the 16th century. Further upstream is the Hospicio de San Jose, an
orphanage located on Pasig's sole island, the Isla de Convalescencia. On the northern bank stands
the Quinta Market in Quiapo, Manila's central market, and Malacañan Palace, the official residence
of the President of the Philippines. Also on the Pasig River's northern bank and within the Manila
district of Sta. Mesa is the main campus of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines.
In Makati, along the southern bank of Pasig, are Circuit Makati (the former Santa Ana Race Track),
the Poblacion sewage treatment plant and pumping station of Manila Water, and the Rockwell
Center, a high-end office and commercial area containing the Power Plant Mall. At the confluence of
the Pasig and Marikina rivers is the Napindan Hydraulic Control Structure, which regulates the flow
of water from the Napindan Channel.
Geographical landmarks[edit]
The third chapter of Jose Rizal's novel El filibusterismo mentions several stories surrounding certain
geographical features along the Pasig River during the Spanish colonial era, such as the Buwayang
Bato, the Malapad na Bato, and Doña Geromina's Cave.[10]
Doña Geromina's Cave, according to legend, was built by the Archbishop of Manila as a sanctuary
for his former lover.[10] The cave is believed to be located in Barangay Pineda, Pasig under the
Bagong Ilog Bridge, which carries Circumferential Road 5 between Pasig and Taguig.[citation needed]
Malapad na Bato[edit]
In what is now Barangay West Rembo, Taguig,[citation needed] a cliff along the river is known as Malapad-
na-bato (lit. '"Wide-rock"'), which was considered to be sacred to the early Tagalog people as a
home to spirits.[10] After the Nuestra Señora de Gracia Church was completed in 1630, it eventually
became a pilgrimage site for newly converted Christians, resulting in a decline in the importance
of Malapad-na-bató as a religious site.[citation needed] It was mentioned in El Filibusterismo that the sacred
character of the site disappeared as fears of the spirits living there had disappeared after the cliff
was inhabited by bandits.[10]
Buwayang Bato[edit]
The Buwayang Bato (lit. '"crocodile rock"') is a rock formation that allegedly resembled a
large crocodile. In El Filibusterismo, the legend tells a story of a rich Chinese man who did not
believe in Catholicism that boasted of not being afraid of crocodiles. One day, while trading on the
river, the man was attacked by a large crocodile. It was said that after the Chinese man prayed to
San Nicholas for mercy, the crocodile turned into stone.[10] The rock formation is believed to be
located at the southeastern shore of Mandaluyong, in the namesake barangay of Buayang Bato. [citation
needed]

Geology[edit]

View of the Pasig River in 1826–1829

The Pasig River's main watershed is concentrated in the plains between Manila Bay and Laguna de
Bay. The watershed of the Marikina River tributary mostly occupies the Marikina Valley, which was
formed by the Marikina Fault Line. The Manggahan Floodway is an artificially constructed waterway
that aims to reduce the flooding in the Marikina Valley during the rainy season, by bringing excess
water to Laguna de Bay.
Tidal flows[edit]
The Pasig River is technically considered a tidal estuary. Toward the end of the summer or dry
season (April and May), the water level in Laguna de Bay reaches to a minimum of 10.5 meters
(34 ft). During times of high tide, the water level in the lake may drop below that of Manila Bay's,
resulting in a reverse flow of seawater from the bay into the lake. This results in increased pollution
and salin