Farmers face imminent crop failures in Lampung<\/p>\n
Oyos Saroso H.N., Bandarlampung<\/p>\n
The effects of the dry season and a plague of rodents have
\nsparked fears among farmers that harvest failures affecting
\nthousands of hectares of crops across Lampung province are
\nimminent.<\/p>\n
Some parts of the province are already feeling the effects of
\nthe dry season, which started to kick in a few weeks ago. The
\nworst-hit regencies are West Lampung (55 hectares of crops), East
\nLampung (257 hectares), South Lampung (2,500 hectares),
\nTulangbawang (5,000 hectares) and Tanggamus (28,000 hectares).<\/p>\n
In order to help farmers save their crops, the Lampung
\nprovincial administration has provided a couple of dozen water
\npumps to farmers in Tanggamus, said Masdulhaq, the director of
\nthe Lampung provincial government's agriculture agency.<\/p>\n
At least 3,000 hectares of unirrigated rice fields in Rawajitu
\ndistrict, Tulangbawang regency, have completely dried up. As a
\nresult, many farmers in North and South Rawajitu districts, for
\nexample, have abandoned their rice fields altogether.<\/p>\n
A South Rawajitu rice grower, Sugiharto, 45, said that farmers
\nwho previously planted their fields with various second crops,
\nwere now leaving their fields fallow as they expected the crops
\nwould fail due to lack of rain.<\/p>\n
Farmers are also complaining that even if there was enough
\nrainfall, the irrigation canal constructed for transmigrant
\nsettlements in the Rawajitu area 15 years ago would no longer be
\nable to channel enough water to the rice fields as it had become
\nshallow due to silting.<\/p>\n
Besides the water shortage and infrastructural deficiencies, a
\nplague of rodents in Daya Murni subdistrict in Tulangbawang
\nregency has destroyed more than 100 hectares of ready-to-harvest
\nrice.<\/p>\n
A local farmer, Karyono, 40, said he had suffered millions of
\nrupiah in losses as 14 hectares of his rice fields had been
\nravaged by rodents.<\/p>\n
At least 2,000 hectares of unirrigated rice in Katibung
\ndistrict, South Lampung regency, are now parched and threatened
\nwith failure, while around 500 hectares of ripening rice have
\nbeen ravaged by rodents.<\/p>\n
Pests have also devastated the rice crop in Central Pesisir
\ndistrict in West Lampung.<\/p>\n
The chairman of the Gunung Maju Farmers Association, Hendri
\nYusri, 37, said that rodents were even attacking one-month-old
\nrice plants. He said that the pests had also ravaged the rice
\ncrop during the previous planting season in February.<\/p>\n
Data from the Lampung government's food crop office stated
\nthat previously unirrigated rice fields in Katibung were now
\nbenefiting from irrigation schemes.<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, large areas under rice are still reliant on rain
\nin a number of subdistricts in Katibung, including Pemulihan (165
\nhectares), Purwodadi (221 hectares), Sukamaju (267 hectares) and
\nBanjarsari (337 hectares).<\/p>\n
The water flow from the Way Sulan dam and Sulan river, water
\nsources for farmers in Katibung, has now dropped due to the
\neffects of the dry season, and water is no longer available for
\nirrigation purposes.<\/p>\n
Farmers in Tanggamus regency may also be facing crop failures
\nas the water flow from the Batutegi reservoir and Way Sekampung
\nriver has dropped drastically with the result that no water is
\navailable for their rice fields, even though their crops have
\nstarted to ripen.<\/p>\n
Tanggamus Farmers Irrigation Association (PPPA) chairman Indra
\nPrayogi said that if there was no rain over the next 15 days,
\n28,000 hectares of rice could be lost.<\/p>\n
He expressed disappointment that water from the Batutegi
\nreservoir was not being provided for irrigation purposes to local
\nfarmers, despite the fact that it was still being provided to
\nfarmers in other areas, such as in Central Lampung and Metro.<\/p>",
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