Here come the natural rains

Task Force suspends Bohol

Cloud seeding operations

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol Sept 18 (PIA)—Finally, with the onset of rains which came later than the forecast, Bohol Cloud Seeding Task Force recommended the suspension of operations, with still some 11 hours of flight left on the charts.

In a meeting called after weeks of grounded flights due to natural precipitation, the Task Force through science research specialist and spokesperson Cecile Opada, said “due to the natural rains, we would recommend the suspension of the cloud seeding operations, until further notice.”

With the recommendation for suspension of operations, it would be the requesting party, and in this case, the Provincial Government’s Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Council, who would be issuing the Notice of Suspension to the contractor, to consummate the arrangement.

In the same manner, should the Provincial Government see the need to resume the cloud seeding operations, “we will wait for the resumption order, to be issued by the requesting party, said Pegasus Air Services owner and cloud seeding operator Junne Palacio Abejuela.

Then, after securing the necessary documents and air traffic clearances, the services would continue.

It may be recalled that with the stretched dry spell, the national government through the Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Soils and Water Management funded a 50-hour cloud seeding operations to jumpstart their land preparations, with the forecast of the onset of the rainy season in June still delivering way below normal rains.

That time, Bohol farmers struggled to prepare only a little over a thousand hectares of rice lands.

After the 5o hours of flights to trigger the clouds to fall in watersheds and large catchment areas, the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist and the National Irrigation Administration reported a significant increase in rice fields planted.

By July 29, or at the end of the 50 hours of cloud seeding, Bohol records a total of 4,779 hectares planted in different stages of vegetative and reproductive stages, reports NIA Bohol Operations Division Chief Engr. Evelina Putong.

By this time too, the natural rains became too few and far in between, that in a meeting, Provincial Administrator Aster Caberte stressed the need to continue with the could seeding using local funds to salvage the rice that have just been transitioning from transplanting to being vegetative and into the productive stages.

With the ladderized system that the NIA implemented in their service areas to systematically conserve the insufficient water, many farmers also decided to gamble it out, knowing that the state weather bureau has the onset of the rainy season in their predictions.

This also added to the already huge area which the irrigation agency has to satisfactorily deliver water, which they did not really have, based on the daily dam levels monitoring.

To this, and upon the request of farmers and fisheries councils, irrigators associations and agricultural officers, the Provincial Government released P2.5 M from the PDRRM funds, which should be enough to sustain the already vegetative or going to productive stages of rice, until the natural rains would come, NIA officials said.

The fund would be enough for some 20 hours of cloud seeding sorties.

With only 11 hours of flight remaining, a series of tropical depressions from Enteng to Gener, has not just brought rains but also pulled the southwest monsoon, flooding some areas in the country.

The storm spawned rains and the enhanced Habagat has brought in the rains since the first week of September, and farmers are praying that this continues to get their crops growing well to harvest. RAHC/PIA-7/Bohol)

DANGEROUS TO FLY. While the cloud seeding is done to trigger the rains to fall, getting a cloud seeding on the air during the rains is risky and impractical. The rains in the past weeks have pushed the TForce to recommend for the suspension of CSOperations due to the rains. (RAHC/PIA-7/Bohol)