Govt hopes to save drying rice fields

Govt hopes to save drying rice fields

JAKARTA (JP): The government is taking major steps to save
crops on over 500,000 hectares of rice fields in Java and West
Nusa Tenggara which are affected by the current severe dry spell.

The Ministry of Public Works is confident that at least
100,000 hectares can be saved if it can channel enough water to
the drought-stricken areas.

Minister of Public Works Radinal Moochtar told reporters on
Thursday evening that the dry spell has already affected rice
growing areas in the provinces of West Java, Central Java, East
Java and West Nusa Tenggara.

"But I am hopeful that damage can be contained by the efforts
of the Directorate General of Irrigation," he said.

The directorate, which is under the Ministry of Public Works,
is operating a number of "balloon dams" designed to conserve as
much water as possible during the dry season.

The directorate has also experimented with cloud seeding to
induce rain. The initial attempts have proven successful.

Director General of Irrigation Suparmono said three balloon
dams have been installed along the Brantas river, one in Gubeng
in Surabaya, one in Kali Pepe in Solo, and another in Kali
Kumpulan in Demak.

"We are now installing three other balloon dams near Madiun,
Indramayu and Banten," Suparmono said.

One such rubber dam costs between Rp 3 billion to Rp 10
billion but this remains cheaper than building steel dams.

The balloon dams, which are imported from China and Japan, can
store water for months.

Suparmono said his office, in cooperation with the Agency for
Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT), has launched
cloud seeding operations in many parts of Java to induce rain.

The operation is intended to raise the water level of the
irrigation networks which pass through some 1.9 million hectares
of rice fields in Java.

The cloud seeding involves spraying chemical salt into a
cloud. The efforts began in West Java on July 21 and rain has
started to fall since then, raising the water level of a number
of rivers in the province, Suparmono said.

The operation will move to Central Java next week before
moving to East Java and West Nusa Tenggara. (rid/fhp)