AGGIE UPDATES

Pilar starts planting Jatropha for bio diesel

PILAR, Bataan - This town has started planting Jatropha for bio diesel generating hundreds of job opportunities and revenue in this investor-friendly town.

Mayor Charlie Pizarro, Jr. said a total of 500 hectares will be planted initially for jatropha in Barangay Liyang and this can become bigger once the area becomes productive. Pizarro said areas to be planted were once idle land but this can become now productive since jatropha can easily grow even on sandy, gravelly and saline soils.

“Of course, I cannot allow our productive land to be planted with jatropha,” stressed the young mayor. Pizarro pointed out that since Pilar town is one of the major rice producers in the province, “this will not affect the food production program of our town.”

Under the scheme, Pizarro said that the project will be a community-based program where the members of the community themselves will be the one to plant, grow and harvest the jatropha, giving his constituents the opportunity to earn additional income.

The project is a joint undertaking by the Phil. Forest Corp., the Municipality of Pilar and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources .

Pizarro said, however, that there is no problem for the market since the Phil. Forest itself will be the one to buy the harvested jatropha seeds.

Owing to the series of price hike of petroleum the national government has introduced the planting of jatropha as one of the sources of diesel in the country.

According to Pizarro, the harvesting period can usually start a year after planting, saying this can be a continuing program since it has an economic life from 35 to 50 years.

This town is also strategically located in the province with its wide and concreted national and provincial roads and is only three kilometers away from the Capital City of Balanga, the center for commerce. – Mar T Supnad


Fertilizer subsidy for rice production in Benguet given
LA TRINIDAD, Benguet -- The Department of Agriculture-Regional Field Unit turned-over 6,546 coupons worth P1,636,500 to the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist of Benguet for distribution to participating rice farmers under the government’s Rice Self-Sufficiency Program (RSSP).

Lolita Bentres, Provincial Agriculturist, acknowledged the completion of the DA’s counterpart in the provision of coupons worth P250.00 for the rice farmers of Benguet, who are beneficiaries of the DA-LGU Fertilizer Subsidy Program in pursuance to the RSSP.

The identification and masterlisting of program beneficiaries were undertaken by the LGUs as one of the requirement for the release of the fertilizer coupons.

Bentres reported during turn-over ceremonies of vegetable seeds and processed chicken manure held at the provincial capitol Aug. 12 OPAG completed required documents for release and distribution of fertilizer coupons to participating rice farmers in Benguet.

Recorded releases of fertilizer coupons from the regional DA-RFU intended for rice farmers in the region show that an initial release of 650 coupons was given to Itogon, Benguet last month.
Another 5,890 was released and picked up by Derman Dalmo, provincial rice program coordinator on Aug. 11.

The targeted fertilizer coupons allocated for the province of Benguet is 8,380. The total allocation of fertilizer coupons for the whole region is 151, 418 coupons with over 70 percent already given to the provincial LGUs.

For Benguet, Dalmo said coupons will be distributed by the offices of the municipal agriculturist in Atok with 466 coupons; Bakun, 500 coupons; Itogon, 650 coupons; Kabayan, 224 coupons; Kapangan, 1,350 coupons; Kibungan, 1,152 coupons; La Trinidad, 82 coupons; Mankayan, 192 coupons; Sablan which submitted its masterlist this week has 444 coupons; Tuba, 1,095 coupons; and Tublay, 391 coupons. The municipality of Bokod has yet to submit a masterlist of farmer beneficiaries. The municipality of Buguias reported that their farmers have not planted rice this season.

Dalmo said concerned municipal agriculturists were informed of availability of the coupons.
He said the provincial subsidy counterpart for distribution to the masterlisted rice farmers of the province is in progress.

The municipal LGUs are also expected to give their financial counterpart in the implementation of the DA-LGU Fertilizer Subsidy Program. -- Robert Domoguen