By CHRIS V. PANGANIBAN
PROSPERIDAD, Agusan del Sur— President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. visited Friday, February 16, for the P250-million state-of-the-art soils laboratory at the provincial capitol government center complex here.
Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Hae Kyong Yu coincidentally joined the president in the site visit where they were briefed by Dr. Junvie Goloran, consultant of soil health development program of the provincial government of Agusan del Sur.
The modern soils laboratory, the first of its kind in the country, is capable of physical, chemical, and biological characterization of soils using a range of advanced analytical capabilities.
It can analyze 50-100 samples per day, thus ensuring that test results are released in less than 2-3 days. The laboratory can analyze soils, plants, water, fertilizer, and gas samples. It boasts a spacious laboratory with a total floor area of 1,687 square meters.
The laboratory, which is expected to significantly increase the yield of farmers in the Upland Sustainable Agriforestry Development (USAD) program of the provincial government, is the brainchild of Rep. Adolph Edward Plaza of Agusan del Sur’s second district.
In a study, the provincial government emphasized “the need to assess, know, and take care of our soil. But we can only do this if we invest in modern and state-of-the-art soil testing facilities.”
President Marcos and Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Hae Kyong Yu brave the rains to make a site visit to the state-of-the-art soils lab in Agusan del Sur. Photo courtesy of Provincial Public Information Office in Agusan del Sur.
The study also noted that while there have been substantial investments in seed quality and training, there has been limited investment in soil testing and soil nutrient management.
“If your soil test results show that your farm is rich in Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium, but very poor in micronutrients, then you just need to buy the fertilizer that can increase the micronutrients in your soil,” the study highlighted.
Marcos, in his keynote address at the 1st National Health Summit at Diamond Hotel in Manila on June 22 last year, acknowledged Plaza’s advocacy on soil health analysis through the modern soils laboratory, stressing the importance of implementing innovative measures to address the growing problems of soil degradation, acidification, and pollution in the country’s soils.
“Therefore, I cannot emphasize enough how significant and influential this First National Soil Health Summit is,” Marcos said in his speech.
An Australian delegation, led by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), arrived here on October 11 for an in-depth review of the USAD program.
The visit, featuring Australian Deputy Ambassador to the Philippines James Yeomans, Dr. James Quilty, the chief scientist of ACIAR, and Australian Embassy Political Second Secretary Alexander O’Hara, marks a step forward in implementing the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Philippines and Australia.
The MOU focuses on a “National Soil Health Strategy” that seeks to elevate production levels within the country’s agricultural lands.
Although the construction of the Soils Laboratory is still expected to be finished next year, the provincial government, through USAD, has seen promising developments in using soil test technology on at least four trial farms producing rice in the province.
The results of palay production have surpassed the national average. The experiment is part of the USAD program’s soil test fertilization project.
In the towns of Loreto and Trento, at the provincial capitol complex in Barangay Patin-ay in Prosperidad, and Bayugan City, the yield per hectare of palay (unhusked rice) increased from 3.6 tons to an average of 5.6 tons after implementing the USAD trial, said Dr. Johnvie Goloran, a soil scientist from Griffith University in Australia who hails from Agusan del Sur.
Goloran cited as a case model the three-hectare trial palay farm in Loreto town managed by farmer Fred Alvizo, which was originally a peatland with low fertility and high acidity. Addressing those challenges, the USAD program improved the soil fundamentals by making nutrients readily available for plant growth, Goloran added.
Similarly, the trial farm in Trento, with a soil component akin to Loreto due to its proximity to the Agusan marshland, witnessed an increased yield during the cropping season in June. Even the Bayugan City trial farm, with less problematic soil, saw a substantial boost in yield to 6.8 tons per hectare, surpassing the traditional yield of four tons per hectare before the trial, he said.
Goloran also educated farmers on the correct fertilizer inputs available in the local market to increase the productivity of their farms.
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