Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said Monday, March 18, that the Bureau of Soils and Water Management of the Department of Agriculture did not recommend cloudseeding operations to give relief to farmers hit by drought due to the El Niño phenomenon.
"They already have the assessment and I already have the copy but it's unsigned yet," Lacson said.
“Based on their assessment, the cloudseeding operation may damage the 20,000 mango trees in San Carlos City and about 5,000 in Guimaras so they do not recommend cloudseeding," Lacson said.
Meanwhile, damage to crops in Negros Occidental caused by the drought has already reached P87,477,548.32 as of March 13, the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist report showed.
Of the total amount, damage to rice was pegged at P87,034,807.52 while P442,740.80 for corn.
The report said that a total of 15 of the 31 local government units in Negros Occidental have been hit by the drought.
Affected barangays are now 99 while affected farmers are now at 2,220.
A total of 1,951.80 hectares of rice and corn crops have been affected by the drought.
Kabankalan City was the hardest hit with damages at P41,910,361.20 of rice land, followed by Cauayan with P14,001,540; Ilog-P7,487,370.24; Bago City-P7,174,621.42; Himamaylan City- P3,732,556.92; Valladolid- P3,442,846.72;
Hinoba-an- P2,525.595.60; Hinigaran- P1,751,055.20; Sipalay City-P1,697,533.63; San Enrique-P1,182,568.20; Murcia- P688,538.40; Binalbagan- P513,360;
Moises Padilla- P450,897.50; Isabela-P338,800 and Don Salvador Benedicto- P141,062.50.
Cauayan has the most affected barangays with 17 villages while Kabankalan City has the most number of affected farmers with 1,214.
Sipalay City reported damages of P243,456.40 for corn crops while Murcia recorded P199,348.40.*