A farmers’ association based in San Nicolas, Ilocos Norte, sought the help of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP or Provincial Board) on Monday to help address water shortage.
During a public dialogue held at the SP session hall, group president Willy Mahor said the flow of water at the Bonga Pump 2 water intake is affected by an ongoing quarry operation that will hamper their productivity in the coming cropping season.
The group is one of three in the province that entered into a rice contract farming program with the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) to produce rice at lower production cost and sell it to consumers at PHP29 per kilo.
It has a coverage area of 400 hectares irrigated rice field.
If the water shortage is not addressed the soonest, farmers said it would affect the program as they may not be able to meet the target yield of five tons per hectare.
Rafael Medina, chairperson of the Committee on Environment, assured farmers the SP will resolve the issue with the quarry operator, which has an approved 4.9 hectare.
“We have talked to the quarry operator and he expressed his willingness to cooperate with the irrigators association,” he said after a meeting.
The quarry operator’s permit may be revoked if the demands of the affected farmers are not addressed, Medina warned.
For the meantime, the Provincial Quarry Office will conduct an inspection at the quarry site and ensure that the flow of water leading to Bonga Pump 2 is not hampered.