Pangasinan is one of the largest provinces in Region I and in the country. It is located in northwestern Luzon, bounded in the north by La Union province, in the east by Nueva Ecija province, in the south by Tarlac province, and in the west by Zambales province. Pangasinan covers a total land area of 536,818 ha with four cities, 44 municipalities and 1,364 barangays. Its 285.66 km coastline extends from San Fabian in the east to Infanta in the west, and is the longest in the region covering 2 cities, 12 municipalities and 123 coastal barangays. Most of the cities and municipalities lie along the historic Lingayen Gulf and Dasol Bay along the West Philippine Sea with an area of approximately 428,400 ha. !e Gulf, along with 9,000 ha of communal bodies of water, is a major shing ground of the coastal communities. Pangasinan is the third most populous province in the country and in Region I with a population of 2,906,085 people as of 2013. About 29% of the population resides in the coastal areas comprising around 135,000 families who are highly dependent on shing as their main source of livelihood and income.