The National Irrigation Administration-Palawan Irrigation Management Office (NIA-PIMO) has vowed to continue its maintenance and operation of the National Irrigation System (NIS) and the Communal Irrigation System (CIS) to ensure productivity of farmers during the extended quarantine period.
NIA-PIMO said that based on its record for the 2020 dry season, there are about 6,625.35 hectares of service areas that are being irrigated by the NIS and 11,530.75 hectares by the CIS.
It said that the harvested crops from the irrigated service areas can help to support and sustain food production in the province during the quarantine period.
Engr. Conrado Cardenas Jr., division manager, assured that their skeletal workforce will continue to establish linkages with the Irrigators’ Associations (IAs) and local government units (LGUs) in Palawan.
“Skeletal workforce will continue to establish linkages with IAs and LGUs, implement and adapt water management, closely monitor operation & maintenance and properly modify water delivery to also help the farmers mitigate the effects of the dry spell,” a statement released by NIA-PIMO said.
It stated that most of the 2019 irrigation projects are currently operational, while some such as the Libertad and Lucbuan Small Irrigation Project (SIP) are partially operational to irrigate farmlands this summer.
“Palawan IMO salute all hardworking farmers, who are continuously showing their efforts and strategies to feed the public and bringing abundant and safe food supply in the province despite the occurrence of the pandemic,” it said.
The provincial IMO skeletal workforce continuously operates and maintains the Batang-Batang River Irrigation System, a Teruvian intake in the municipality of Narra to service farmers.
Some group of farmers like Princess Urduja Maharlika Farmers IA is harvesting farmland in barangay Urduja, Narra to supply food production in town.
There are also some farmers that plant vegetable and other crops that do not require too much water in dry season.
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