FOR farmers of the Jamaica Network of Rural Women Producers (JNRWP) in St Catherine, the impact of prolonged dry conditions and rising temperatures is being felt through higher operating costs and shrinking returns, whether or not they have access to reliable water sources.

Susanne Uter, the organisation’s St Catherine representative, said while some farmers have irrigation systems that make accessing water easier, others are forced to grapple with limited supplies. Despite the varying degree of access to the vital commodity, however, she said farmers across the board are feeling financial pressure due to the drought.

“Persons working within the Agropark area, persons within the Amity Hall area and in Hartlands, they would have irrigation water, but persons in areas like Guy’s Hill, they would not have access to irrigation water, and so they have to depend on rainfall or river where that is available.

“For the persons in Guy’s Hill, for those who are into poultry and livestock, they’ll tell us of the heat they are experiencing and that they have to install fans in their chicken houses. For those who are in open field farming, they are requesting tanks, and we had already given some black tanks, but persons want to ensure that they have water storage,” she told the
Jamaica Observer.

One farmer said overhead costs have doubled due to added costs for pesticides and water to combat the heat.

She added that field farmers have also indicated that where they are able to grow produce, the yield is not sufficient due to the dry conditions.

“You need the water to have a good yield as it relates to banana planting and just about everything that you plant… If the banana or the plantain does not get sufficient water, what happens is that when it shoots, it plucks itself. What you’ll see is that, because it is thirsty, that bigger section that should bear the fruit falls out, and where it does not, then the fruits are just tiny, or the produce is tiny, so you’re not getting as much value for your money,” she explained.

For Tania Anderson, a farmer in Hartlands, though she has access to water through the irrigation system, she longs for rainfall, noting that the crops thrive better when they receive overhead water instead of drip irrigation.

“There is just something special about the rain. We need the rain,” said Anderson.

“We got the first summer rain in June, the first of June or something like that. When we got our local outburst of rain in June, we haven’t seen rain again. Even the other day there was no rainfall down here, so because of that now the crops are going through stress with the severe heat. Because of the heat, you end up using a lot of resources that help with the heat and crops going through heat and drought, so you end up spending more money,” said Anderson.

Susanne Uter, St Catherine representative for the Jamaica Network of Rural Women Producers

She added that increased temperatures also affect the crop yield and increase pests.

“When there is severe heat, pests increase…so you end up having to use more insecticide and foliar nutrients to combat this disease, and because the plant is under stress, you end up getting less yield. Most of the time, the science of farming is in the leaf. How big the leaves are determines the size of the fruits and the quantity that you’ll receive, so when the leaves are puny, puny and they’re diseased, you get less value for money…so that is the issue,” she told the Sunday Observer.

She said with added costs for pesticides and water to combat the heat, her overhead cost has doubled.

“If I’m doing an acre of melon, in a good season like the season that I had before in April/May, my overhead costs would run me into maybe $300,000 including fertiliser, pesticide, and land preparation for the acre, workers, chemical, gas, and water bill. You may look at $2.8 million in return, minus that [expense] you will be able to make $1.7 million or $1.6 million, depending on the price.

“But now, maybe you have to spend over $600,000 to bring out an acre of melon because you end up with more water bills. The water bill come the other day for the month was like $16,000. Now it’s $27,000 this month, because of the heat you end up losing more water and more gas because you pump more, because you give the plants more water because the land is so dry. Everything doubles,” said Anderson.

She said farmers are doing their best to cope, given the circumstances, but price increases are possible if the situation worsens.

“We need the rain,” she stressed.

Uter said the organisation has several partners who are supplying farmers with tanks to improve access to water. She added that they are also working closely with the Ministry of Agriculture to get farmers the resources needed. In the meantime, she urged farmers, where possible, to build on their water storage facilities.

“The storage facility does not have to be a big tank, meaning the concrete tank. It can be some barrels, and you set it up in such a way that should the need arise, you can do your drip farming or your drip irrigation, because the drip irrigation requires less water,” she encouraged.

The Ministry of Agriculture announced the injection of an additional $60 million into the national drought mitigation programme to assist farmers navigating the severe dry spell impacting the country. This is in addition to the $149-million drought mitigation strategy that was previously announced, based on projections from the Meteorological Service of Jamaica.