Manila: Scientists have warned that the Philippines will be experiencing its worst El Nino long, dry spell in 18 years even as governments take steps to cushion the effects of this particular weather phenomenon.
“The El Nino phenomenon will this year be the worst since 1997,” Secretary Mario Montejo of the Philippines Department of Science and Technology said recently in Ozamiz City in Northern Mindanao during a speech.
According to Montejo, starting this September, they expect 12 of the total 81 provinces of the country to experience El Nino.
“By October, [a] dry spell and drought conditions will affect 29 provinces, and by the end of the year, the number will rise to 79,” he said.
According to the livescience.com, El Nino is a climate cycle in the Pacific Ocean that has an impact on weather patterns across the globe.
What is El Nino?
“The cycle begins when warm water in the western tropical Pacific Ocean shifts eastward along the equator toward the coast of South America. Normally, this warm water pools near Indonesia and the Philippines,” explained the website.
El Nino has been affecting the normal rainfall pattern in the country, resulting in reduced rainfall.
Some parts of the country are already experiencing below normal rainfall, which holds particular significance for a predominantly agricultural country like the Philippines. That is causing a slowdown in the production of certain agricultural products.
Yvette Assunto, a researcher for the Philippine Banana Growers and Exporters Association (PBGEA), tells Gulf News that they are experiencing some disruptions in the supply of their product.
PBGEA members supply a sizeable portion of the export supply for bananas.
“We are experiencing some problems with the supply [of bananas] as production volume is [already] affected by the El Nino,” she said.
PBGEA members export to countries in the Middle East, Japan and China among others.
During an El Nino episode, different parts of the country may experience varying impacts on rainfall.
While revealing the dire outlook for the country’s weather conditions in the coming months, Montejo said the Philippine government had foreseen this event and its effect on account of the fact that the country had already experienced El Nino in 1997.
Back then, the government had to cut down drastically on the supply of water to conserve it; some places had to resort to steps such as water rationing.
Montejo has assured that the government is preparing for any eventualities. Food security and health are priority in the government’s preparation for the 2015 El Nino, he said.
The presidential palace also said steps to mitigate El Nino had long been prepared.
“It is a matter of implementing this measures that had long been readied,” Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said during a press briefing on Thursday.
