Cagayan under state of calamity due to El Niño

SANTIAGO CITY, Isabela – Cagayan province in northern Luzon has been placed under state of calamity to mitigate the impact of the El Niño phenomenon on its farmlands. Governor Alvaro Antonio said the provincial government had no choice but to declare a state of calamity since efforts by the Department of Agriculture (DA) to lessen the impact of the phenomenon have not been enough. “We cannot wait anymore for the DA’s move. We need to swiftly act on the problem" he told GMANews.TV in an interview. Cloud seeding operations subsidized by the DA have been unsuccessful due to absence of clouds in the past days. The provincial board passed the resolution Monday morning.
Antonio said farmers had lost about P300 million worth of palay (rice grains) and P600 million of corn products in January. “We have started experiencing rain less days since December of last year. If this goes on until the end of June then we will have a very serious rice problem in areas where we supply the bulk of our produce," he said. Cagayan is the foremost producer of corn and second only to Isabela as the biggest rice producer in the country. The province supplies most of the rice requirements of Region I, Metro Manila, and Regions 4a and 4b. It provides 25 percent of the country’s rice needs. Region II is the worst hit by the El Niño phenomenon with thousands of hectares of agricultural lands already damaged by the extended dry spell. Isabela had declared a state of calamity last week. Meanwhile, Antonio assured the public that they are doing everything to help soften the impact of El Nino on farmers. “We will purchase more water pumps and if the need arises, we will even subsidize fuel to farmers from seriously affected areas." - KBK, GMANews.TV