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HomeProvincial NewsWait and see over Kanlaon seen to hurt Sugarlandia's agri

Wait and see over Kanlaon seen to hurt Sugarlandia’s agri

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BACOLOD CITY, Negros Occidental, Philippines – “Basta gaaso ang simburyo sang Vicmico maayo ang ekonomiya sang probinsya (The economy of the province is good as long as the chimney of Vicmico is smoking).”

Vicmico, of course, refers to the miller-refiner in the northern Negros Occidental city from which it got its name, and was once the biggest private employer in the island before it was hit by financial woes in 1997.

This year, however, even if the chimney of Vicmico and all other sugar centrals are smoking, the milling season or the tiempo suerte seems to have reversed into the tiempo muerto with the unexpected smoking of Kanlaon Volcano early last month, two weeks before Christmas.

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As the Yuletide season slipped in last September over this largely agricultural province of more than two million people, several cities and towns in the Occidental and Oriental provinces, were already threatened by the restive volcano after its phreatic explosion on 3 June 2024 after a long dry, spell brought by the El Niño weather event that already had farmers reeling from crop damage.

But as Alert Level 3 remains over the volcano, indicating a higher chance of another magmatic eruption, the extended wait is hurting agriculture here, especially farmers, many of whom have fled their farmlands and are now in temporary shelters, mostly in the southern part of the province.

As of 27 December 2024 acting Provincial Agriculturist Dinah Genzola reported that damage to crops and fisheries had been estimated at P33.3 million following the 9 December eruption of Kanlaon Volcano that banketed at least three cities and three towns with sulfuric ash that killed plants and triggered mass evacuations.

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Genzola reported highest damage to high value crops at P29.27 million with palay valued at P3.4 million, corn at P503,000, and fisheries at around P130,000.

In terms of reported crop damage, La Carlota City, around an hour south of here, reported the highest crop damage at close to P17 million in only two farming communities – Yubo and Ara-al – with high value crops valued at more than P16 million.

Bago, the city closest here and reputed as the rice granary of the province, sustained the highest damage as of last year with palay, corn, and high value crops damages worth around P5.3 million.

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It also had the most number of barangays (villages) affected, all agricultural ones – Binubuhan, Mailum, Ma-ao, Don Jorge Araneta, Ilijan, and Atipiluan.

La Castellana, the town with many barangays within the six-kilometer Permanent Danger Zone, reported damages worth around P8. 9 million to high value crops in Sag-ang and Masulog villages.

Overall, crop damage in the town reached close to P10 million.

“The problem is they cannot go back to their homes now,” a volunteer at the Bago Mayor’s Office since the December 9 eruption told DNX as he voiced concerns that vegetable and rice production might drop this year with the widespread death of plants due to ashfall.

Duran also pointed out that the December 9!eruption had already caused a prolonged stay of people in evacuation centers, the longest so far, at close to a month already.

“We still have to wait,” Capitol’s acting chief agriculturist Dinah Genzola told DNX as the provincial government continues to prepare for another possible eruption.

Bago’s acting Mayor Ramon D Torres had earlier told DNX he is expecting a drop in rice production this year.

Bago is reputed to have a rice self sufficiency of 200 percent with farmers averaging in 2022 harvests of 4.2 metric tons per hectare.

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Julius D. Mariveles
Julius D. Mariveles
An amateur cook who has a mean version of humba, the author has recently tried to make mole negra, the Mexican sauce he learned by watching shows of master chef Rick Bayless. A journalist since 19, he has worked in the newsrooms of radio, local papers, and Manila-based news organizations. A stroke survivor, he now serves as executive editor of DNX.
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