The Provincial Government of Bohol (PGBh) is ready to conduct the cloud seeding if in case the forecasts of the Philippine Atmospheric Geo-Physical Astronomical Services Administration (PAG-ASA) and other climate centers in Asia will come true that the Weak El Niño will again be experienced in the country to start on the later part of July and may last until December this year.
Assistant Provincial Agriculturist Larry M. Pamugas said the contract agreement between the PGBh (“the entityâ€) of the one part and Interisland Airlines, Inc. of Clark International Airport, Clark, Pampanga (“the Supplierâ€) of the other part is now only waiting for signing.
Pamugas disclosed that the contract price of the cloud seeding is One Million Eight Hundred Eighty Four Thousand Nine Hundred Sixty Pesos (P1,884,960) which covers the payments of the provision of aircraft rental and crew to perform cloud seeding operations for 42 hours over the agricultural and watershed areas of Bohol; plane rental including wages of pilot, mechanic and loader; take off and landing fee, miscellaneous fee (airport charges, security), and allowance of two pilots and crew.
He bared that during the El Niño/La Niña Task Force meeting last June 24, 2015 at the Governor’s Mansion attended by Governor Edgar M. Chatto, Forecaster Leonard Samar from the local PAG-ASA said the international prediction centers such as the International Research Institute, the Tokyo Climate Center in Japan, Bureau of Meteorology in Australia and the APEC Climate Change Center in South Korea also confirmed El Niño conditions present in the Tropical Pacific.
Pamugas said PAG-ASA forecasted that on June and on the early part of July some provinces of the country to include Bohol have experienced near normal rainfall conditions, but in the later part of July the Weak El Niño will intensify again endangering the vegetative stage of rice lands in Bohol.
He stressed that Gov. Chatto has adopted some mitigating measures including the conduct of artificial rain to ensure that Bohol remains to be the food basket in the Central Visayas. (By Atoy Cosap)