El Nino may return in last half of 2001<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The El Nino weather phenomena that was blamed
\nfor severe droughts across Indonesia and the region in 1997 will
\nlikely return in the middle or at the end of this year, albeit in
\na milder form, experts said on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
The Meteorology and Geophysics Agency's Paulus Agus Winarso
\nsaid during a seminar held by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs
\nand Fisheries that it was also possible the El Nino weather
\nphenomena would appear at the beginning of 2002 and 2004.<\/p>\n
\"Therefore, all sectors must establish plans to avoid possible
\ncalamities, from forest fires to decreasing fish production and
\nfarm crops,\" Agus said.<\/p>\n
El Nino, however, could result in an increase in the country's
\nfish production, the director of the ministry's research agency,
\nIndroyono Susilo, said.<\/p>\n
\"Generally, fish production all over the world decreases
\nduring El Nino, but in several cases in Indonesia fish production
\nin the eastern part of the Indian Ocean, southern Java and
\nwestern Sumatra increased,\" Indroyono said.<\/p>\n
He cited the examples of yellowfin tuna and skipjack tuna, two
\nof the country's leading fish commodities that showed significant
\nincreases from 1996 to 1998, the period when the impact of El
\nNino was felt.<\/p>\n
\"Yellowfin tuna rose to 1.2 million tons from the previous one
\nmillion tons, and skipjack Tuna went up to almost two million
\ntons from the earlier 1.6 million tons,\" he said.<\/p>\n
These hikes in fish production were possible because during El
\nNino the sea currents that moved toward Latin America were
\nreplaced by those coming from Madagascar, carrying with them
\nchlorophyll and plankton for fish in Indonesian waters, he said.<\/p>\n
He suggested that aquaculture fisheries be alert during the
\ndry season brought on by El Nino and switch to other suitable
\nmarine products.<\/p>\n
\"During El Nino, it is better for fishermen to focus on
\nBandeng fish-farming, which can be done in saltwater, rather than
\nshrimp farming,\" he said.<\/p>\n
People can also switch to the production of seaweed because
\nthe price of dried seaweed is much higher than wet seaweed, he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"Seaweed can grow in three weeks and when the climate is dry
\nonly the sun is needed to dry the product,\" he said.<\/p>\n
El Nino could prove to be a blessing if we anticipate it with
\nthe appropriate knowledge and technology, he said.<\/p>\n
\"With accurate handling and mapping by the related sectors, we
\nwill know which areas are fertile and productive for fish
\nproduction. At the same time, we can anticipate the worst,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Besides causing massive harvest failures, El Nino also
\ncontributed to massive forest fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan.<\/p>\n
During the El Nino in 1997 and 1998, some 400,000 hectares of
\nforest were destroyed by fire, causing about Rp 9.5 trillion in
\nlosses.<\/p>\n
\"Many people are still suffering from severe respiratory
\nproblems from the haze caused by the forest fires.<\/p>\n
\"Therefore, together with related ministries, we will set up a
\nscheme to deal with this phenomenon,\" Indroyono said. (edt)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/el-nino-may-return-in-last-half-of-2001-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}