Bali to protect paddy fields

DENPASAR, Bali: The provincial administration is drafting a spatial plan to protect paddy fields, which have declined markedly in acreage in the past 20 years.

I Gusti Ketut Swastha, head of Bali's agriculture office, said here yesterday that about 1,000 hectares of agricultural land was converted to other uses annually, an average decline which had begun in the early 1980s.

Only 88,000 hectares of rice fields remain in the province, he said, adding that at least 87,000 hectares were needed for local self-sufficiency in the staple.

Residential and industrial estates, and tourist resorts have been build on the land.

"Due to that trend, the Bali administration is drafting a spatial plan aimed at protecting the remaining agricultural lands," he said as quoted by Antara. (mds)