Recto: Create El Niño plans for 44 provinces, 2 cities

MANILA, Philippines – It’s not grabbing headlines yet, but one senator warns: the Philippines could be facing “what could be the worst El Niño in 17 years.”

So through a resolution, Senator Ralph Recto called for an audience with the agriculture and energy department officials to know how they are preparing for the coming drought.

In a statement on Monday, June 9, the senator asked the two departments to present “province-specific plans” for 44 provinces and for two cities.

The following, he said, had been identified by the Department of Agriculture as “vulnerable to El Nino”:

CAR

• Abra
• Apayao
• Benguet
• Ifugao
• Mountain Province

 ILOCOS REGION

• Ilocos Norte
• Ilocos Sur
• La Union
• Pangasinan

 CAGAYAN VALLEY

• Cagayan 
• Isabela
• Nueva Vizcaya
• Quirino

 CENTRAL LUZON

• Aurora
• Bataan
• Bulacan
• Nueva Ecija
• Pampanga
• Tarlac
• Zambales

 CALABARZON

• Cavite
• Batangas
• Laguna
• Quezon
• Rizal

 MIMAROPA

• Occidental Mindoro
• Palawan
• Romblon

 BICOL REGION

• Sorsogon

 WESTERN VISAYAS

• Aklan
• Antique
• Negros Occidental
• Capiz
• Guimaras
• Iloilo

 CENTRAL VISAYAS

• Bohol

 EASTERN VISAYAS

• Samar

 ZAMBOANGA PENINSULA

• Zamboanga City
• Zamboanga del Norte
• Zamboanga del Sur
• Zamboanga Sibugay

 NORTHERN MINDANAO

• Misamis Oriental
• Bukidnon

 DAVAO REGION

• Davao City 
• Davao Oriental

 SOCCSKSARGEN

• Misamis Oriental
• Sarangani
• South Cotabato

 During El Niño, ocean surfaces in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific are warmer than usual. State weather bureau PAGASA said it could begin by June 2014 and end in the first quarter of 2015.

Quoting the United Nations, Recto said the coming El Niño could be the “worst in 17 years.”

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA) said with El Niño, tropical cyclones are projected to affect the northern Philippines “with increased intensity.”

‘Food, power, water’

Recto said it was better to initiate probes now rather than after the fact, “after the supposed El Niño plans had ended up in fiasco.”

“Will there be enough irrigation water for our farms? What’s the fallback if hydroelectric dams run out of water which will power turbines? What is being done so our taps won’t go dry?” said Recto in a statement.

The last El Niño occurred between June 2009 and May 2010. The Philippines’ previous experiences with El Niño do not paint a pretty picture, said Recto. El Niño episodes from 1982 to 1983 and again from 1997 to 1998 left billions of pesos worth of damage.

According to the senator, the 1998 El Niño left P9.2 billion in agriculture damage and left over 600,000 hectares of land dry. Rice and corn production in 1998 was also severely affected by severe drought, going down by 27% and 44% respectively.

The agriculture department in May estimated that around P823.29 million had already been lost “to the early effects of a looming El Niño dry spell.” – Bea Cupin/Rappler.com