Site-specific tech helps mitigate climate change

Rita De La Cruz in the Philippine Star: There are many ways of mitigating climate change and one of them is adopting …a technique called site-specific nutrient management (SSNM). At the same time, the application of SSNM brings in higher yields while reducing the costs incurred by farmers resulting in more income for them. This was proven in an experiment involving 42 farmers tilling some 30 hectares of cornfields in Brgy. Arubub, Jones, Isabela. From an average of five tons per hectare, the farmers were able to harvest 8-10 tons per hectare. The farmers’ cornfields were showcased during a Farmers’ Field Day.

Dr. Carmencita V. Kagaoan, chief of the Program Development Division (PDD) of the Bureau of Agricultural Research (BAR) who was present during the farmers’ field day, said: “The cornfield showcased is farmer-managed, given that farmers know what do to maximize the full potential of their lands by applying only the right amount of fertilizer. Aside from the promise of an increased yield, what is good about the SSNM technology is that it helps in the mitigation of climate change because of the lesser use of inorganic fertilizer. The use of synthetic fertilizers contributes to the global warming as it can cause the loss of soil carbon dioxide.”

The SSNM technology is an approach that recommends the use of available organic nutrient sources and inorganic fertilizer in meeting the nutrient demand of a high yielding crop. The use of organic matter increases the water holding capacity of the soil while the use of Bio-N, a microbial soil inoculant for root and shoot growth, enhances root development of corn at the early stage resulting in well-developed rooting systems that penetrate deeper into the soil….