…says it threatens not only agriculture, but also mining sector
The recent livestock-related deaths caused by the El Niño weather phenomenon on the Corentyne, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) are a challenge that the Government is paying attention to, with President Dr Irfaan Ali assuring that the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government is confronting the El Niño threat.
During a recent live broadcast, President Ali noted that the PPP/C Government has experience rebuilding after disasters such as major floods and the COVID-19 pandemic. He assured that the Government stood ready against the El Niño phenomenon, which results in below-normal rainfall and above-normal average temperatures.
“In the battle of COVID, we still had politically-driven instigation to destabilise our path on development. Our path to progress and prosperity. In those years, you would recall, too, that almost all our regions were affected by major floods,” President Ali said.
President Dr Irfaan Ali
“We brought relief and benefit to tens of thousands of Guyanese all across the country. We reinvested in agriculture and built back from those two major floods. Today, as part of the challenge we face, we now confront the El Niño situation that, again, affects productivity, not only in agriculture, but also in the mining sector.”
President Ali further assured that these challenges would not deter the PPP/C Government from continuing its efforts to expand the economy, the results of which are evident across the country. Added to this are the Government’s continued efforts to transform the social landscape of the country.
Over the past few days, cattle, sheep and goats have been dying, as a result of the loss of their pastures between Number 52 Village and Number 66 Village on the Corentyne, as a result of the El Niño phenomenon.
Scores of farmers rear thousands of animals on 12,000 acres of the 20,000-acre savannah designated as a pasture for animals. Most of the animals do not have water to drink even with efforts being made by the farmers to access water from the Seaforth Canal – a situation compounded by the drying up of the grass.
Water from the Canje River is being pumped into the Seaforth Canal by the Region Six Administration. Farmers say they are losing animals daily as cattle are finding it difficult to find food.
The scorched landscape left by El Niño
Lalbeharry Setaram, who has 300 head of cattle, says he has been pumping water every other day onto the land.
“Most of the animals pine away and dead out,” he explained.
According to Setaram, he has already lost about 30 head of cattle. “Dem ah walk and fall down and dead, up to yesterday four dead,” he continued.
Many of his animals have lost a lot of weight and are feeble. Seetaram says he has nowhere to carry them so that they can get food. Each head of cattle costs an average of $90,000, but now because of the state of the animals, Setaram says if he tries to sell them, he will not be able to get more than $40,000 per head.
He predicts that all of the animals will die if there is no urgent assistance.
“If the Government dig a canal we can full it with water to go down to the back. We could get water from the front trench but they got to keep the pump working.”
That trench he was referring to is the Seaforth Canal. Currently, sections of it are blocked making it difficult for a steady stream of water to flow even with the pumps constantly working.
Meanwhile, the weather forecast has not predicted exactly when the rains will begin to significantly impact the current dry conditions. However, in Guyana, there is usually a rainy season from December to January, bringing wet conditions in Regions One, Two, Three, Four, Five, 10, and northern Region Six.
This period is considered the ‘short’ wet season, with the transition starting from mid to late November. The highest occurrence of short-duration, high-intensity rainfall is observed during this period, which often leads to flash flooding. (G3)
