Completion of San Roque’s irrigation component in 2013
SAN MANUEL—Long-term relief for farmers affected by El Nino phenomenon will finally be had but only in 2013 when the irrigation component of the San Roque Multi-Purpose Dam Project (SRMPD) shall have been completed.
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo on Tuesday gave the assurance for the project’s completion in 3 years when she conducted an ocular inspection on the ongoing construction of the P4.3 billion Re-Regulating Pond (RRPP), a component of the P11billion Agno Integrated Irrigation Project (ARIIP).
Project engineer Reynaldo Mencia confirmed that ARIIP is scheduled to be completed in December 2013.
The pond, capable of storing 4.6 million cubic meters of water once completed, will catch all the water released by SRMPD while generating electricity for the Luzon Grid.
The water that will be stored in the RRPP will be channeled to the Agno River Irrigation System (ARIS) and the Ambayoan-Dipalo River Irrigation System (ADRIS).
Both these irrigation systems are now undergoing repair and rehabilitation.
About 72,000 hectares of farms in eastern and central Pangasinan, part of Nueva Ecija and northern Tarlac are expected to benefit from the project.
ARIIP is among the projects identified by the government as priority for the development of the North Luzon Agri-business Quadrangle (NLAQ), which comprises Regions 1, 2 and the Cordilleras, Nueva Vizcaya and parts of Nueva Ecija.
The construction of RRPP, funded by a soft loan from the China Export and Import Bank, is being undertaken by the China Agricultural Machinery Engineering Company Ltd.
The SRMPD, which Arroyo inaugurated in 2003, was built by a consortium of international companies led by Japan’s Marubeni.
It was designed to generate 345 megawatts of electricity, prevent flood, bring about improved water quality and provide irrigation.
The irrigation component is the only part that has yet to be completed.
Sixth District Rep. Conrado Estrella II said with ARIIP, farmers in Pangasinan can start planting rice three times a year, instead of just once.—LM
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