TAGBILARAN CITY — The Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA) in Bohol is planning to induce rain through cloud seeding as the province has experienced fewer rains in recent months.
Dr. Larry Pamugas, OPA officer-in-charge, said on Thursday afternoon that about 23,000 hectares of rice lands in Bohol are in critical condition due to less rainshowers, thus they plan to conduct cloud seeding operations in areas determined by data.
Pamugas said he is also waiting for information on the status of the water levels in the four major dams in Bohol.
Based on data, the water levels in almost all major dams in Bohol are below normal, except for the Malinao Dam, which may have collected enough rain water as it rained lately in the area.
The water levels in Bohol’s major dams remain a huge problem despite the surplus of rain water brought about by recent typhoons, including “Ompong”, in other parts of the country.
Bohol has 47,000 hectares of rice lands but only 24,000 hectares are irrigated, said Pamugas.
The dry spell has affected at least six towns in Bohol, based on reports from the OPA. The towns of Pilar, Sierra Bullones, Talibon, Ubay, Mabini, and Candijay have been experiencing dry spells since the middle of the year, Pamugas said.
The 48-hour cloud seeding operation aims to induce rains and hopefully increase the water levels at the dams, the small water impounding projects, and the small farm reservoirs in the province.
The plan to conduct cloud seeding operations was brought up during the meeting of the Provincial Peace and Order Council in Loon, Bohol back in August.
During the meeting, it was resolved that PHP2.4 million would be earmarked by the provincial government for the cloud seeding operations and ease the dry spell experienced by several of its towns. (Dave Albarado/PNA)
