Balungao’s small water impounding projects help farmers, tourism
BALUNGAO–Aside from its Hilltop Adventures, this town boasts of having the most number of small water impounding projects (SWIP) that not only provide the irrigation that famers need but boosts reforestation efforts and tourism as well.
Mayor Philipp Peralta said the latest SWIP was built in a more than three-hectare lot below the zipline area of the Hilltop Adventures jointly funded by the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the local government unit (LGU).
This project will provide irrigation in at least 100-hectares and more but since it was built beside the resort operated by the Balungao government, Peralta said they plan to introduce water adventure activities, i.e., jetski and banana boat ride.
The project named Pugaro SWIP is nine-meter deep and more than three hectares area for which DA shelled out P26 million while the town gave its 10 percent counterpart fund.
It is located in Barangay San Andres and it can irrigate portions of Barangays Pugaro, San Aurelio 1st and San Aurelio 2nd. Cacao and coffee trees are among the species that are planted in the area.
The other
SWIP projects are found in Barangay Esmeralda with three projects and one each
in Angayan Sur, San Aurelio II, Mabini, San Andres, Kita-Kita, Pugaro, which
are all rain-fed areas. These have irrigated about 300 hectares of rice land,
he said.
He said farmers will avail of the water from the SWIP free. Palay production
has been boosted and minimized farm inputs. Eighty percent of the land area is
planted to rice.
The town is already building the 10th SWIP and Peralta said he was able to
source the funding again from from the DA. The combined total amount spent on
these SWIPs has reached P200 million, the mayor said.
He said he managed to get the DA’s nod because of the counterpart scheme the
town volunteered: equipment of the municipal government, not money.
He said the SWIP projects will also serve as catch basin for flood water
downstream, helping minimize flooding in the town.
Before they ventured into SWIP, Peralta said they built small farm reservoirs
(SFRs) for interested farmers. These are small, like fishponds which are
helpful, he said.
He said the SWIPs and the SFRs in Barangays Mabini, San Andres and San Aurelio
II are also maximized by raising tilapia when the water from rain is not used
by farmers.
Peralta started to build SWIP in his town during his second term in 2013. (PhilStar Wire Service)
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