Bill seeks to promote 'soil-less' agriculture

MANILA, Philippines - Amid scarcity of land resources, a bill has been filed in the House of Representatives to promote hydroponics or "soil-less" agriculture. House Bill 5472 seeks to encourage this technology, which can also reduce pest problems while resulting in greater productivity. "The hydroponics agriculture technology is very useful in areas where soil is lacking or unsuitable for growth, it is an alternative. Also this technology is very suitable for plant hobbyist and for those who want to pursue urban agriculture, it can be utilized considering limited space and energy required," author and Las Piñas Rep. Cynthia Villar said in an article on the House of Representatives Web site (www.congress.gov.ph). Hydroponics is a method of growing plants using mineral nutrient solutions, without soil. Terrestrial plants may be grown with their roots in the mineral nutrient solution. Villar cited the United States as an example where hydroponics enhanced lush vegetation resulting in fresh produce with more nutritional value. She said Tagaytay City and Subic have made pioneering efforts at using hydroponics agriculture, saying they have yielded positive results so far. Potentially, she said a 100-square-meter hydroponics farm may yield a half a million yields of vegetables and food farm products. Under the bill, all idle government lands owned by either national or local governments or available land resources in state universities and colleges shall be considered for growing plants and vegetation using the hydroponics agriculture. Hydroponics agriculture shall also be integrated in academic requirements such as farming, practical arts, home economics or any appropriate subjects in elementary and secondary education of both public and private academic institutions. - GMANews.TV