The Department of Agriculture (DA) is targeting to launch a program aimed at helping farmers profit from animal waste by 2016, the head of the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) said over the weekend.
BAI Director Rubina O. Cresencio said the agency attached to the DA is currently crafting the road map for the National Animal Waste Resource Management Program (NAWRMP).
“We can probably finalize the road map by October, especially if stakeholders will be supportive,” Cresencio said in a telephone interview.
In February Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala issued Administrative Order (AO) 2, which authorized the creation of the NAWRMP, and directed the BAI to lead in its implementation.
AO 2 also called on the BAI to create a technical working group which will draft the road map and determine the budgetary requirement for the implementation of the program.
Cresencio said the goal of the program is to make the livestock-production system in the country more sustainable, reduce environmental pollution and provide another livelihood opportunity for the farmers.
“There are some issues that livestock production in farms is creating pollution. In fact, it’s one of the issues in the Manila Bay cleanup project. They are conducting a survey to answer if [some of the waste] can be attributed on various agriculture activities,” she said.
Animal waste can also generate other forms of livelihood, such as fertilizer and renewable energy, according to Cresencio. She said small-scale farmers can also use it as a source of energy for cooking and electricity.
Currently, the BAI is promoting the use of biogas facilities in its regional offices.
A study by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in 2009 showed that livestock production can cause environmental problems, such as water pollution and depletion, land degradation, greenhouse-gas emissions and reduction of biodiversity.
Alcala noted that there are existing policies and regulations in the Philippines that aim to address the livestock waste-management system of the country, such as the Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act of 1999, Philippines Clean Air Act of 1999, Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 and the Philippine Clean Water Act of 2004.