By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga
The United Sugar Producers Federation (Unifed) said the ongoing El Niño phenomenon in the country will bring benefits — and also risks for sugarcane farmers in Negros Occidental.
In a radio interview with Bombo Radyo Bacolod over the weekend, Unifed President Manuel Lamata said the hot weather conditions brought by El Niño will help make the sugarcane more sweeter.
However, if the fields don’t have the proper irrigation facilities or suffer from poor water supply, then it would also affect sugarcane production for the upcoming year.
Lamata has proposed solutions to the government for the procurement of additional solar-powered irrigation systems if there is enough budget.
He also stated that the hot weather would not affect the price of sugar.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration declared the onset of El Niño due to warmer temperatures in the equatorial Pacific Ocean.
The weather phenomenon, characterized by unusually warm ocean surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific, could affect the normal rainfall pattern in the country, generally resulting in reduced rainfall.
Negros Occidental is one of the provinces in Western Visayas that may be affected by the warm weather conditions.
In April of this year, Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said the provincial government is confident that they will be able to manage the upcoming dry spell.
A month later, the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist requested a P15 million budget for its proposed El Niño response plan.
The provincial government asked for a more detailed plan, as their initial proposal was “too generalized.”
Provincial administrator Atty. Rayfrando Diaz assured Negrenses that they have sufficient funds to finance programs designed to counter the adverse effects of a long dry spell on agriculture.
Occurring every seven years, the phenomenon impacts agriculture as the water level goes down, affecting dams and irrigation.
Local government units in Western Visayas were told by the Department of Agriculture to form their respective El Niño task force early to help mitigate calamities related to the dry conditions./DGB, WDJ