Malaysia eyes cloud seeding as drought drags on

The country’s national security could be threatened if it does not produce enough rice, the agricultural minister said Malaysia is attempting to use cloud seeding to bring much-needed rain to the country’s “rice bowl” north, where a drought has delayed planting of the staple crop and raised supply fears.“This year ... has been affected by prolonged dry weather, low rainfall and reduced dam water levels,” Malaysian Minister of Agriculture and Food Security Mohamad Sabu said. The conditions mean farmers have missed two of the three usual planting phases for “wet direct seeding” of rice, a technique that requires fields to be flooded. Dry direct seeding is an alternative that is viable until June.However, farmers say the technique provides lower yields and that weather conditions have rendered it impossible in some fields anyway.While more than 50 percent of the region’s rice fields have been prepared, just a fraction have been planted as farmers await the rain. Planting has “not been canceled,” Mohamad insisted, but “temporary adjustments and mitigation measures are being implemented.”In Kedah’s Muda Agricultural Development Authority areas, the main dam reservoir for the region is at just eight percent, according to local reports.HIGH COSTSFarmer Abdul Rashid Yob, who has a three hectare paddy in the region, said the drought’s impact was being compounded by rising fuel costs linked to the war in Iran.“Even where water is available, many cannot afford to proceed due to high costs.”Rice is a staple crop in Malaysia, which consumes about 2.5 million tonnes a year, about half of which is produced domestically.Most of that comes from northern peninsular Malaysia, with Kedah the biggest producer.The region is “strategically important to Malaysia’s food security”, Mohamad said.So with farmers facing dry brown fields that should be lush, flooded paddies, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim this week announced cloud-seeding operations to trigger rain.The process involves spraying particles such as silver iodide and salt into clouds from aircraft to produce rainfall and is used to affect weather patterns or even tamp down air pollution.But success depends on atmospheric conditions — without clouds, seeding does not work. Reports suggest officials hope to begin seeding soon, but no date has been publicly set.The government has announced programs to offset fuel costs, including boosts to aid programs.STRUGGLING WITH CONDITIONSFitri Amit, a small-scale rice farmer in the Perak region to the south, was skeptical of the measures, which he said were often delayed, arriving only once farmers’ “capital has already been drained”.“Farmers prefer that support be given by increasing the paddy price,” he said, referring to the sale price of cultivated rice.“If the paddy price is guaranteed, once they sell, they get the money,” he said. Although he is south of Kedah’s dire weather, he has also been struggling with dry conditions.“Irrigation was stopped because the reservoir levels were low,” he said.While Malaysian rice farmers have struggled with drought or erratic rainfall in the past, “this year’s challenges are more significant”, said Mohamad, citing “prolonged hot weather, lower-than-usual rainfall and declining water reserves in several irrigation dams.”The crisis comes with Asia bracing for a possible return of the El Nino weather phenomenon, which brings worldwide changes in winds, air pressure and rainfall.Forecasters say it could develop as soon as May to July, and initial observations suggest it could be particularly strong.Asia is often heavily affected by El Nino systems, which bring heatwaves and droughts to part of the region and heavy rains elsewhere.