TOP STORIES

  By JEN BAYLON Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson expressed his intention to endorse Bacolod City Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez as Regional Development Council (RDC) chairman of the newly-created Negros Island Region (NIR) when it becomes fully functional in 2025. However, Lacson said officials from the three provinces in NIR — Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental …

  The Negros Occidental provincial government has started distributing locally produced breeder swine for herd repopulation after losing thousands of hogs to transboundary animal diseases in the past year. The swine dispersal, which started on Monday, June 24, is the first since the massive hog deaths in 2023 that affected almost 18,000 pigs in 20 …

The start of the four-day Regional Marine Pollution Exercise (MARPOLEX) 2024, participated by the Philippines, Indonesia and Japan, in Bacolod City yesterday, highlighted sustained cooperation among countries in Southeast Asia for the protection of the sea. Vice Admiral Roy Echeverria of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), Rear Admiral Jon Kenedi of Indonesia’s Directorate General of …

  By JEN BAYLON The Negros Occidental Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA) said the infestation of armyworms on crops has affected 381 farmers in seven local government units (LGUs) in the province. Nilo Basco, coordinator of the OPA’s Crop Protection Coordination Section, said four more LGUs reported armyworm infestations. Armyworms have affected around 178.14 …

  The Negros Occidental Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO) recorded 3,421 heads of various animals in two localities in Negros Occidental affected following the eruption of Mt. Kanlaon on June 3. Of the number, 3,210 were poultry or chicken in the cities of Bago and La Carlota City as of June 19. “This is due to …

  The Negros Occidental Provincial Power Sector Study Group (PPS-SG) has worked with the Department of Energy (DOE) in finalizing the framework for the Provincial Energy Development Roadmap. “The framework will now be fleshed out to reflect specific interventions and measures needed to attain the power security goal of the province,” former Rafael Coscolluela, the …

  The Philippine National Police (PNP) has confiscated a total of P13.6 billion worth of illegal drugs from January 1 to June 21 this year, Interior and Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos, Jr. said yesterday. In a press briefing in Camp Crame, Quezon City, Abalos said the amount of narcotics was seized from a total …

  By JEN BAYLON More than 30 families remained at evacuation centers in Negros Occidental’s La Castellana town following the phreatic eruption of Kanlaon Volcano earlier this month. John de Asis, head of the La Castellana Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, said more than 30 families living within Kanlaon’s four-kilometer Permanent Danger Zone need to …

  Some 753 partner-beneficiaries of the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) initiative on climate change adaption are cultivating crops and building water reservoirs in two local government units in Negros Occidental. They are among the families affected by drought due to El Niño who received assistance under the Project Local Adaptation to Water …

  Local government units (LGUs) in Western Visayas are being encouraged to adopt the communication platform for real-time reporting of hazards and emergencies developed by the Department of Science and Technology in Western Visayas (DOST-6). The Strategic Incident Geo-referencing for Nationwide Alertness (SIGNAL) project was piloted at the Office of the Civil Defense (OCD) and …