Drought spreads, badly affects Yogyakarta, Aceh<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Many rice-producing areas in Java and Sumatra
\nhave begun to feel the pinch of this year's drought which could
\nthreaten national rice production.<\/p>\n
The severe drought, expected to last until the end of October,
\nhas forced 74,000 people in Gunung Kidul, Yogyakarta, to travel
\nfar to fetch water or to buy water from traders.<\/p>\n
Many there have been forced to share the precious water supply
\nwith their cattle. Chickens even have to peck at banana trees to
\nget water in the poor regency.<\/p>\n
At least 262 man-made lagoons and hundreds of deep wells have
\ndried up in seven subdistricts covering 38 villages in the
\nregency.<\/p>\n
A local official said the local administration has tried to
\nalleviate the water shortage by transporting clean water to each
\nvillage, with each expected to receive a tanker truck full of
\nwater per day.<\/p>\n
But with only nine trucks, not every village can be supplied
\neach day.<\/p>\n
"Our budget allocation for water is only Rp 14 million, we
\nneed at least another Rp 40 million to enable us to supply more
\nwater to the worst hit areas," Antara quoted Suhardono, the head
\nof social affairs of the Gunung Kidul regency, as saying
\nyesterday.<\/p>\n
The scarcity of clean water has made drinking water a
\nlucrative business. Traders often go to the villages selling
\nwater.<\/p>\n
"We buy water for Rp 20,000 per tank, and the price may
\nincrease," complained Marto from Pacarejo Semanu village.<\/p>\n
In Aceh Besar, Aceh, thousands of villagers fasted for two
\ndays before performing Istisqa', a prayer for rain. The drying up
\nof wells has forced many to consume water from the heavily
\npolluted Leumpung river.<\/p>\n
An ulema from Lhoknga, Muhammad Ibrahim, said thousands of
\nhectares of rice paddies, mostly dependent on rain water for
\nirrigation, cannot be cultivated. The worst affected areas are
\nvillages in Lhoknga, Lampu-uk, Leupung and Kueh, 15 kilometers
\nfrom Banda Aceh.<\/p>\n
"If this drought continues I fear we may face a food shortage
\nthis year," said the ulema.<\/p>\n
However, local officials were more optimistic.<\/p>\n
"The drought hasn't affected rice or other crops here," said
\nprovincial agriculture office official Zainul Panglima Polem.<\/p>\n
The Agency for Meteorology and Geophysics predicted recently
\nthat this year's rainy season would not likely start until
\nDecember, three months later than usual.<\/p>\n
Agency chief Sri Diharto also predicted that rain intensity in
\nthe wet season would be "light" because of the presence of the El
\nNino weather system. An increase in forest fires also coincides
\nwith severe droughts.<\/p>\n
However, the dean of the Geography School of Gajah Mada
\nUniversity in Yogyakarta, Sutikno, said El Nino should not be
\nsolely blamed for the drought.<\/p>\n
"The drought will continue every year if we fail to stop
\ndeforestation and other environmental destruction," he said
\nyesterday.<\/p>\n
In Central Java, the worst drought-hit areas are Rembang,
\nKlaten and Boyolali regencies.<\/p>\n
Water levels in Central Java's reservoirs have dropped
\ndrastically during the dry season.<\/p>\n
But some local residents have taken advantage of the dried-up
\nreservoirs, including the Kedungombo reservoir in Boyolali, by
\nplanting rice, corn, soy beans and other crops on the fertile dry
\nbeds.<\/p>\n
The drought has affected a rice procurement program in the
\nprovince.<\/p>\n
Central Java's State Logistic Agency (BULOG) spokesman Ade
\nNugroho said the agency has only been able to purchase 250 tons
\nof rice from farmers per day from the average 500 tons per day.<\/p>\n
He said farmers are apparently stocking up on rice in
\npreparation for the prolonged dry season.<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, the good news is BULOG's total procurement for
\nthis year has doubled compared to last year.<\/p>\n
"Up to August we've procured 355,450 tons of rice, compared to
\nonly 175,066 tons for the same period in 1996," Ade said.<\/p>\n
BULOG allocated another 200,000 tons for "Operation Market" to
\nstabilize rice prices. "We can supply even more rice to stabilize
\nthe price when necessary," Ade boasted. (23\/prb)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/drought-spreads-badly-affects-yogyakarta-aceh-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}