Wednesday, July 18, 2007 P18-million irrigation repair done in Ifugao
LAMUT, Ifugao -- In response to government's thrust of an annual growth of agriculture to five to six percent over the next three years, the National Irrigation Administration here is implementing irrigation rehabilitation and repair projects to boost the production of farmers.
Bradley Grospe, operations and maintenance chief of the Hapid Irrigation Systems, said P15 million worth of repair and rehabilitation projects for national and communal irrigation systems (NIS/CIS) are being implemented and distributed across the province.
These include the municipalities of Aguinaldo, Alfonso Lista, Hungduan, Lamut and Mayoyao of Ifugao. When all of these will have been fully accomplished, a total of 326 hectares of rice land will be benefited, he said.
At present, the P215-million Hapid Irrigation Systems, which became operational in November 2002 under the NIS, is benefiting 944 hectares of rice lands.
Grospe said while the Hapid IS has a designed service area of 2,800 hectares, they are moving on to achieve if not go beyond the 1,000 hectares minimum required for a national irrigation.
He added that the operations of the Hapid irrigation had brought fast land developments in Barangays Hapid, Sanafe, Pugol Salamague, Alupapan, Poblacion East and West in the town of Lamut. The opening of the canal in Barangay Mabato-bato also in Lamut is also expected to water another 450 hectares.
He stressed that the operations of the Hapid IS has also strengthened aqua-culture in the area and has supported Lamut's "One Town, One Product" project, which is "tilapia" with 40 hectares of irrigated land utilized as fishponds.
Another P3.4-million restoration and rehabilitation project funded from the Balikatan Sagip Patubig Program (BSPP) spread across the province is nearing completion.
Gorospe said they feel partly fulfilled because the implementation and maintenance of the Hapid IS is slowly bringing immediate developments and making Lamut gain its identity as future commercial center for agricultural produce.
