Northern Samar needs 800,000 seedlings to replace typhoon-hit coco trees

TACLOBAN CITY, Feb. 2 (PNA) -- The Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) initially needs more than 800,000 coconut seedlings to replace trees uprooted and sheared by typhoon Nona’s fierce winds on December 2015.

PCA Northern Samar provincial manager Renato Dubongco said about 226,000 seedlings has been delivered from a nursery in Burauen, Leyte to Northern Samar province.

“The 805,000 trees without chance of recovery are just estimates. We are still waiting for validated damage reports from the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC). Their report is the basis for seedlings allocation,” Dubongco said in a mobile phone interview.

Typhoon Nona has damaged about 16 million coconut trees in Northern Samar when it ravaged the province on Dec. 14, 2014. About 2.8 million trees were categorized as heavily damaged, 9.8 million moderately damaged, 2.6 million slightly damaged, and 805,000 totally destroyed.

The typhoon has affected about 31,335 farmers cultivating in 60,000 hectares, according to Dubongco.

Badly hit farms are the towns of Catarman, Mapanas, Palapag, Laoang, Catubig, Biri, Allen, Capul, Pambujan, San Roque, and Mondragon.

Despite massive loss, the official assured that the two coconut oil mills will continue its operation since they have raw materials sources in Southern Leyte, Masbate, Bicol areas, and Cagayan de Oro.

The Catarman Oil Mills in San Jose town and Sanvic Oil Mill in San Isidro town have a combined daily capacity of processing 16,000 metric tons of coconut oil. (PNA)
FFC/SARWELL Q. MENIANO