Agriculture Ministry assists farmers impacted by bush fire in Gillard, St Elizabeth
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Minister of Agriculture Floyd Green (second right) and Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Dermon Luke Spence, survey a scorched section of farmland in the Gillard community in Pedro Plains, St Elizabeth on Wednesday, August 26.
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Minister of Agriculture, Floyd Green (second right), hands over irrigation supplies to a farmer, Jeffery Barnes (centre), from the Gillard area of Pedro Plains, St Elizabeth, during a ceremony on August 26. They are joined by (from left) CEO of the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), Garnet Edmondson; Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Dermon Luke Spence; and Advisor, Silvan Walker.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining has responded to farmers affected by the recent bush fire in the Little Park/Gillard area of Pedro Plains, St Elizabeth, with the distribution of farming equipment and supplies.
This was carried out by the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) in the parish on August 26.
The intervention comes after a massive bushfire tore through farmlands in the community in July, which caused millions of dollars in agricultural losses.
The blaze, fuelled by an intense dry spell and strong winds, severely disrupted production and damaged critical farming infrastructure in one of the parish’s most productive agricultural belts.
Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Floyd Green, explained that the Government and RADA must respond quickly to times of crisis and that this situation was no exception.
“So today we will be distributing some irrigation supplies, drip lines, hoses and fittings to help our farmers who have lost their irrigation supplies to get back out there,” Green said.
“We’ll be providing you with some seeds and some nursery-ready plants, so that you can go out there and plant again. We’ll be providing some fertiliser, and of course, we will be going in some farms and helping to set up irrigation systems and set it back up in a way that will give you a better outcome,” he added.
He noted that the agricultural sector routinely faces extreme weather events, ranging from hurricanes to drought, and that just as the sector appears to be recovering from one setback, another often emerges.
He said the country is grappling with an extreme drought that has been compounded by an alarming increase in fires, particularly in highly productive farming areas like St Elizabeth.
“So today we are here launching what we call our resensitisation drive under RADA working with the Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB) and the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) to remind people that you should not be lighting fires,” Green outlined.
The Minister added that he has instructed RADA personnel to remain active in affected communities over the coming weeks to reinforce the message and work with the stakeholders to increase public awareness.
Green is also reminding farmers that they can seek assistance through the Ministry and RADA following unfortunate events that affect their agricultural operations.
Among the farmers affected was Marlene Ebanks-Lewis of the Gillard community, who lost both her farm and significant parts of her home to the blaze.
Ebanks-Lewis pointed out that the fire cracked all the windows of her house and destroyed much of her farm, including beetroot that was close to reaping; cucumber and other crops as well as bananas.
The farmer said she is glad for assistance from RADA and that it will help her restart her livelihood and recover from the losses.
- JIS News
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