By Danilo P. Padua, PhD
The El Nino phenomenon has once more, presented itself into our midst, uninvited. It is unwelcome but it is already a reality. This time, it is described as super thus, it is not much different from a super typhoon in terms of destructive capabilities.
Our officials have acknowledged El Nino’s inevitable presence in all its natural rawness and roughness.
In one of his public statements, PBBM was suggesting to everyone to prepare their “balde”. Some people were quick to ridicule it, then dismiss it as too trivial a solution. They consider it as a laughable matter.
They missed the point that balde is a relatable container to all of us. That it is really used to store water or other things for future use. In a way, it is symbolic of what we could do. Besides, it is one way of saying that all of us, individually or collectively, could be part of a solution. Of course, the government alone cannot provide the perfect antidote to the problem that is called El Nino. It has to be a whole-of-nation approach.
Those who made fun of the President’s suggestion about the balde probably don’t think that it is also up to them to help ease the problem that could be posed by the environmental phenomenon.
For her part, VP Sara also acknowledged that El Nino is a real problem to all of us based on the experts’ viewpoints. But look at her answer when she was asked in an interview what she could suggest to the people as a response to the environmental anomaly: “The El Nino is here, we just have to know how to handle it.” Whoaa!
The headline of this paper in its latest issue is about El Nino and what Baguio city officials plan to mitigate it. It would be nice to go over such plans to be somehow guided in our own response to the malady.
I am inclined to believe that this present El Nino is really super. As of Oct 22, 2026, DA officials have already reported around PhP8.5 billion losses in crop production, mainly in corn. That means, crop failures, crop shortages, higher commodity prices and food security challenges. Big deal really.
The current complaints of our pork producers in relation to over importation of frozen meat resulting to a staggering PhP350.00M daily losses to the industry, could even worsen in the next few months as El Nino is predicted to be at its worst towards the end of the year or early next year.
According to experts, El Nino is not a hazard in itself. It is actually a risk multiplier. El Nino does not mean absence of rain; it is the interval of rains that maybe prolonged. When it comes though, the torrent could be much more than the usual average bringing floods. By its nature therefore, the phenomenon could usher in not only flooding but also longer drought period, heatwave, and water shortages.
The heatwave could have very bad consequences to the children, elderly and those with grave medical conditions. This is one thing that we need to prepare for, so we could avoid or at least minimize, deaths to the vulnerable people as we experienced earlier. Temperatures above 43degrees (this could mean a heat index even reaching 50degrees), are already dangerous to us.
For agriculture, the advisory is to adjust planting schedule, optimize irrigation, or switch to more drought tolerant crops. Also for the decision makers to target food and fuel subsidies.
As a long-term solution, Senator Kiko Pangilinan is calling for adequate funding for irrigation, also for water storage facilities. Meantime, he is batting for immediate assistance to farmers and fisherfolks who are currently suffering because of the phenomenon.
Being a sub-tropical vegetable basket of the country, Benguet is in a unique situation. When water is scarce the veggies suffer. Consequently, the veggie industry itself will be affected dragging our economy down. Or, veggie smuggling could become rampant. So a more permanent solution has to be crafted. Water impounding systems, and other rain water harvesting strategies must be carefully studied, planned and implemented. I think the National Irrigation Administration will be more than willing to help along this line. For the home gardens, the use of the “balde” (or drum as you wish) system should be in place for rainwater harvesting purposes. Just make sure that it will not be used as breeding ground for mosquitoes. By the way, according to studies, dengue and malaria cases increase during the El Nino period.
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