Thursday, April 03, 2008
Idis hails ComVal's plan to limit land conversions
By Grace L. Plata
AN ENVIRONMENTAL advocacy group commended the reported plan of the local government of Compostela Valley to regulate their land use for banana plantations.
"We really hope that they would push through with the plan. And in that case, other provinces in the region should follow the move of ComVal (Compostela Valley)," Lia Jasmin Esquillo, Executive Director of Interface Development Interventions (Idis) said in Wednesday's phone interview.
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Esquillo, however, said that the biggest banana plantations are not found in Compostela Valley but in Davao del Norte. Still, other plantations are also expanding everywhere in Mindanao.
Idis is among many groups calling for a moratorium on the conversion of rice lands to accommodate plantation of export products such as bananas and jartropha. This in order to address the impending rice crisis in the country by giving more lands for farmers to plant rice on.
In a report published in Sun.Star Wednesday, Compostela Valley officials are "thinking to limit the rapid conversion of rice lands as fears of a rice crisis continue to bother the world economy."
The report said that province's total rice production comprises only 77 percent of the total rice demand in their province. There are a total of 11,000 hectares in Compostela Valley that are planted with rice and 2,000 hectares are non-irrigated. The total number of hectares planted to banana totaled around 13,000 hectares.
Governor Arthur "Chiongkee" Uy said their palay production last year was only 95,423 metric tons, adding that the shortfall from the rice demand is being sourced outside their province, in particular Tagum City.
"To be self-sufficient, we need a total of 123,925 metric tons," Uy said.
Compostela Valley and Davao del Norte, which were once only one province, used to be Southern Mindanao's rice granary. However, vast tracts of rice lands, specifically in Braulio Dujali town of Davao del Norte, of late, have been converted to banana plantations.
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Iloilo. For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (April 3, 2008 issue)
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