The Bureau of Soils and Water Management (BSWM) headed by Dr. Silvino Q. Tejada is strongly recommending to the Department of Agriculture (DA) and concerned local government units (LGUs) to prioritize the rehabilitation of three watershed areas in Mindanao which have a crucial impact on farming systems in the southern island.
In his report to DA Secretary Proceso Alcala, Dir. Tejada said that BSWM is actively involved in the Mindanao Rural Development Program – Adaptable Program Loan Phase 2 (MRDP2), which is a poverty-alleviation initiative implemented through the DA and jointly funded by the World Bank, National Government and LGUs. It covers Mindanao’s 26 provinces and 225 municipalities.
The BSWM has finished the evaluation of the watersheds of Linamon in Lanao del Norte, Gigaquit in Surigao del Norte, and Nasipit in Agusan del Norte.
“Climate change or weather occurrences like the La Nina and El Nino have presented many challenges to small farmers who rely on watershed areas for many things like water supply and soil erosion protection. If a watershed area is not in good condition, it would be very impossible for it to support a farming community especially with climate change and excessive rainfall caused by La Nina,” Tejada added.
The BSWM’s survey of the Kinabangan Watershed in Nasipit, Agusan del Norte showed that its soil, land and water resources are “over exploited beyond its capacity resulting to low productivity of various farm areas.”
The soil and water agency’s survey of the land showed that around 4,250 hectares or 68.53% of its total land area could potentially host agribusiness activities like the planting of high value commercial crops (HVC) like fruit trees and vegetables like sweet pepper, pole sitao and ampalaya. Industrial crops could also be planted in the said lands.
For the Linamon Watershed in Linamon, Lanao del Norte, the soil and water agency’s evaluation revealed that “soil, land and water resources are optimally utilized and hence, resulting to low productivity of various farm areas.”
The DA has identified around 1,824.79 hectares or 88.26% of the lands of the Linamon Watershed as potential sites for HVC cultivation.
Similar set of findings were also made by the BSWM on the Gigaquit Watershed in Surigao del Norte, noting the “low productivity of various farm areas.”
Gigaquit boasts of the largest area among the three watershed areas evaluated by the BSWM, since around 15,769 hectares or 67.25 percent of its total land area was found to be potential agribusiness sites for HVC cultivation.
The BSWM also recommends the same set of interventions for the development of the Linamon and Gigaquit watershed areas, particularly: proper organic and inorganic balance fertilization, and composting; provision of support services such as construction, improvement and rehabilitation of the farms machinery equipment and post harvest facilities; introduction of improved and modern farming technology; and facilitation of credit and market assistance.
With a total of around 21,843 hectares of lands that could be planted to HVC and other crops, the BSWM said the development of the three watershed areas presents vast development potentials in agriculture for Mindanao.
The objective of the MRDP is to “further improve rural incomes and achieve food security through agri-fishery infrastructure, livelihood enterprise, and biodiversity conservation projects.
The role of the BSWM in the project is to undertake “Soil and Land Resources Evaluation” of various watershed areas in Mindanao.
“Mindanao has always been called ‘The Land of Promise’ but its potential especially in agriculture will only be realized if its watershed areas are rehabilitated or well maintained,” Tejada said.-30-Director SILVINO Q. TEJADA, BSWM
