17 June 2016
These army worms are destroying a rice paddy field in Cambodia. Farmers
are facing attacks from millions of worms followed a climate change.
(Courtesy photo: Ministry of Agriculture's General Department of
Agriculture)
Neou Vannarin
VOA Khmer
The worms are attacking crops in at least eight provinces, the government said on Friday.
PHNOM PENH —
Experts
have blamed anthropogenic climate change for the recent outbreak of
army worms in Cambodia, following the worst drought the country has seen
in decades.
The
worms are attacking crops in at least eight provinces, the government
said on Friday. Army worms are common in Asia, and each year they wreak
havoc on crops including corn, lettuce and beans.
Dy
Sam An, deputy director of the department of crop protection and
production hygiene at the Ministry of Agriculture, said that the latest
onset of the pest had begun in June.
The
affected provinces were initially named as Preah Vihear, Tbong Khmum,
Kampong Cham, Banteay Meanchey, Oddar Meanchey, Prey Veng and Stung
Treng, with Siem Reap and Kampong Thom provinces later added to the
list.
“Until
[June] 17th, the outbreak of army worms had spread to 7 or 8 provinces
already, and it’s destroying [the crops],” Sam An said. “The General
Department of Agriculture is taking action and assigned specialists to
every affected province.”
A
squirm of army worms are seen destroying a water melon farm in
Cambodia. (Courtesy photo: Ministry of Agriculture's General Department
of Agriculture).
A
squirm of army worms are seen destroying a water melon farm in
Cambodia. (Courtesy photo: Ministry of Agriculture's General Department
of Agriculture).
According to a statement on Wednesday, the ministry blames climate
change for causing the recent drought, which in turn led to a worse army
worm infestation than usual as the heavy rains that followed the dry
spell encouraged their spread.
“Yes,
it is because of climate change, which caused highest temperatures this
year, and the drought,” Sam An said. “When it is dry and then we get
sudden heavy rain, it gives suitable weather for this insect to breed.”
Some 80 percent of Cambodians are said to rely on farming for their livelihoods, according to government data.
Temperatures
soared to near record heights over the past few months, leaving rice
paddies, streams and ponds bare. Millions of farmers have struggled to
find water, while rare and endangered species of animals have died en
masse from dehydration.
Cambodian
farmers are using fishing net to collect army worms from destroying
their rice paddy field. (Courtesy photo: Ministry of Agriculture's
General Department of Agriculture)
Cambodian
farmers are using fishing net to collect army worms from destroying
their rice paddy field. (Courtesy photo: Ministry of Agriculture's
General Department of Agriculture)
The worms, which destroy crops, do not pose a direct health risk to
humans, Sam An added, but the full scope of the damage they have
inflicted is not known.
Sam
Vitou, executive director for the Cambodian Center for Study and
Development in Agriculture (CEDAC), said the worms targeted vegetables
that had been sprayed with chemical fertilizers and had been subjected
to other intensive cultivation techniques.
“But,
I have not seen them in the farms, where farmers use organic
fertilizer, compost, or their own home-made fertilizer,” Vitou said.
He also expressed concern over the potentially severe impacts on rice crops in Cambodia if the worms continued to spread.
“If
the rain keeps falling like nowadays, I think it will not be affected
very much,” he said. “However, it will destroy farmers’ plants and
seedlings if the rain stops one or two months from now.”
The
agriculture ministry instructed farmers this week to use butterfly
traps and dig water channels around fields to avoid the further spread
of the worms.
8 comments:
when all else fails blame it on ''climate change'' and why not! even the economists of wall street are doing it when the expected economic numbers don't meet their growth prediction... Army worms exist for hundred of years and kept in check by its natural predators , such as birds , frogs ,toads etc.. and other insects which feed on them... where are those predators now, probably kill by insecticides/pesticides [ farmers just spray it indiscriminately , killing the good and bad all at once ] or in case of birds and frogs eaten to extinction .. there used to be this variety of tiny frog [ in khmer cow dung frog ] which nobody eat even during the khmer rouge time , now they are all eaten especially by the men who drink sour palm juice...
You must be kidding when you said that you would not eat កង្កែបអាចម៍គោ !
During the KR, they were my delicacy over grass hoppers, lizards, snakes, centipedes …
The frog name may sound odd, but they are not born of cow dung!
[You must be kidding when you said that you would not eat កង្កែបអាចម៍គោ !]
nope ! not kidding... even the farmers/villagers did not eat them and i was slaving in pursat ... sent there by the khmer rouge to live in small remote village called ''prey sangkum '' ....did not eat grass hoppers, lizard, centipedes or snake either .. although i had eaten field rats and regular big frogs...i stuffed my plate with wild veggies instead ...and occasionally caught small fishes in small puddles.
definitely, the "climate change" will also bring about a One World Government. If you can't understand the changes that are updated constantly by the globalists then you are giving to chain that will never break your yoke of slavery. Yes, a climate chain has been in progress to chain all the lessor of people to live like chickens in a poultry farm. No kidding, the devil hates people who has God given rights to freedom opposes to UN given rights that all the NGO's are selling to the masses.
I live in upper northern Wis. I've seen massive army worms a few times in my life. When they strike, trees are stripped bare of foliage. Road surfaces can be treacherous as cars run over millions of worms crossing for the next green pasture. Trees will survive if it has plenty of moister.
Tis month, the Bilderberg group meet somewhere in Germany to decide the fate of our future--not good. That's right, the Bilderberg's group is secretive. Nobody know what are being plan only those in attendant do and their mouths are zipped. These are the globalist that rule the nations through their conspiracy agenda via banking systems, economic, politics and religion....
They lists all the attendees at their website.
With this knowledge, the health of Cambodia is not in the hand of CNRP nor PM Hun Sen...they are only playing the role of the conspirator (which are the Bilderberg group and CFR) directing from UN and Washington DC or EU headquarters.
Somebody must be a very good ass-kisser during the KR.
[Somebody must be a very good ass-kisser during the KR.]
just because people refused to eat certain undesirable food , does not mean they are good ass-kissers... sometimes death is better than living under such torturous condition..as they say the one who accuses other is USUALLY the guilty one...and you 're definitely that one....
When you were starving to death but refused to eat a frog that is hard to believe.
But it depends on how people look at it: Reality vs. Bullshit.
Ok, to person who would not eat កង្កែបអាចម៍គោ during the time under KR regime! Would you share us your secret? How did you deal with hunger?
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