I was away for a month visiting my daughter and newly born grandson in California. Upon returning to my farm, I walked around and discovered model homes built on the new subdivision across my backyard pine grove area. I was away only a month. I can't think of anything more alarming to an organic gardener than to see how fast urban sprawl can creep up the upland areas of Silang. I moved out of the city, and have lived in the countryside, working hard, and developing my farm with compost and planting trees over 15 years. I enjoyed the view of rolling hills full of fruit trees across the Biluso river, and had been confident that I was in an agricultural zone. Then suddenly, after just one month, I see an entire field of coconut trees cut almost overnight, and in their place, there 3 houses just a few yards beyond my backyard fence! I was told that the area where my farm is located has been re-zoned to include residential and light industrial plants within an agricultural area. Down the road from my farm, are organic farms that rely on the pristine environment to guarantee clean air, and absence of garbage and trash sites that would contaminate water tables. Our area of Silang is the watershed that collects rain in the underground aquifers, and farmers draw this water to irrigate our vegetables. Once the water tables are contaminated by human sewage, golf course herbicide residue, and chemicals, organic farmers can no longer be assured of the clean water we need for watering our vegetables, herbs and fruit trees.
The government has no sense of priority in zoning residential areas away from agricultural areas. Industrial plants cannot be placed side by side with agriculure either. The whole point in organic agriculture is to make sure the plants are not contaminated.
I feel like throwing in the towel...and giving up....for what is the use of all this progress if eventually people will have to buy clean water in plastic disposable bottles which will end up as trash in land fields. Doesn't anyone listen to reason ?
