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NMI pig raisers taught of ways to conserve water
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Posted on Feb 24 2005
The Northern Marianas College-Cooperative Research, Extension and Education Service has adopted a novel way of conserving water needed for raising pigs.
Through the Rainwater and Dry Litter Waste Management: An Alternative Water Conservation System In Swine Operations project, CREES-licensed veterinarian Dr. Allan Sabaldica has taught swine farmers how to make rainwater catchment basins that capture and store water for swine operations.
For instance, Sabaldica and his team have introduced the “RoofRain” spreadsheet program, which designs storage tank sizes, configures gutters, and roofing sizes that consider animal sizes and numbers for use in piggeries.
His team has also introduced the use of wood slabs and coconut husks as inexpensive swine beddings. Sabaldica said the setup leads to a dry litter waste management system, which conserves water and reduces the leakage of waste components.
Sabaldica pointed out that swine farming is a growing business in the CNMI. He, however, said that inadequate water supply is not favorable for swine farming because water plays an important role in pork production.
He also said high cost of piping systems has turned off would-be investors in swine farming in the past, which has led CREES to research rainwater catchment systems.
Sabaldica stressed that water conservation by maximizing rainwater potential could lead to positive results in the local swine farming industry.
The U.S. Geological Survey, Water Institute Program funded the project with seed money of $14,767.
The CNMI continues to suffer from water supply deficiencies, especially in many agricultural homesteads, despite annual rainfall of 42.5 inches, according to IPM Trap Monitoring.(Marconi Calindas)
