A GROUP of
battle-tested soldiers could not just let go of the survival tactics
they learned by practicing the benefits of “aquaponics” inside Camp
Aguinaldo, the general headquarters of the Armed Forces of the
Philippines (AFP) in Quezon City, where they are currently assigned.
They have spent half of their lives in service in countless battles in the field.
Aquaponics is a
sustainable backyard food production system that combines a traditional
aquaculture in tanks with hydroponics in a symbiotic environment. It
consists of two main parts, with the aquaculture part for raising
aquatic animals and the hydroponics part for growing plants. Aquatic
effluents resulting from uneaten feed or raising animals like fish,
accumulates in water due to the closed system recirculation of most
aquaculture systems. The effluent-rich water becomes toxic to the
aquatic animal in high concentrations but these effluents are nutrients
essential for plant growth.
It’s
amazing to see the creativity of soldiers from the Seventh Civil
Relations Group (7th CRG), a small support unit of the AFP Civil
Relations Service (CRS), led by their commander Lt. Col. Samuel Sagun. The
soldiers are able to maximize every small available space to grow
vegetables and raise fish including tilapia, dalag, hito and eel in
small ponds in front of their small office.
“We
call it aquaponics, a combination of backyard gardening and raising
cultured freshwater fish species. Although we’re still at an
experimental stage, we’re already benefiting from it for our food
supplement. It’s a big help, really,” Sagun said.
Sagun
said the soldiers called the lovely aquaponics site in front of their
office as “peace pond and garden for peace” to give emphasis to the
military’s anti-insurgency campaign line “Bayanihan” or the Internal
Peace and Security Program (IPSP).
How
did Sagun and his men discover aquaponics? It was through Rev. Father
Rocky Evangelista, the head of Don Bosco’s “Tuloy Foundation” located in
Alabang, an institution that caters to the needs of abandoned street
children.
“Yes, we
can! These were the words of Fr. Evangelista that inspired us to start
an endeavor we believed is immediately doable even without writing a
project proposal for funding. Last Jan. 12, Fr. Evangelista invited us
to visit their aquaponics site and we were surprised how easy it was to
do. If he can do it, why not us?” Sagun said.
The Tuloy Foundation has an aquaponics system and complemented with an area for vermiculture using African Night Crawlers.
Right
after that “Lakbay Aral” visit, Sagun and his men started gathering
reusable and recyclable materials. Plant boxes were converted into fish
ponds, which they later called “peace ponds.” Excess plastic softdrink
bottles, which they used in their 2011 project “Isang Litrong Liwanag”
(Solar bottle bulbs), were used as containers for plants.
While preparing to build their own aquaponics, Sagun has started to contact people for vegetable seeds.
“We don’t have a problem getting tilapia fingerlings or other freshwater fingerlings because we’ve a lot of sources,” he said.
The
Asia America Initiative (AAI), an international organization helping
stabilize conflict areas with their peace and development efforts, gave
Sagun’s group two balikbayan boxes full of assorted vegetable seeds.
“What
would we do with a lot of vegetable seeds? We distributed these seeds
to soldiers and nongovernmental organizations practicing backyard
gardening to as far away as Mindanao. In fact, Albert Santoli, president
of AAI, has even promised during his visit here to bring one million
seeds to be distributed in conflict areas,” Sagun said.
Using
social media as a medium, the 7th CRG began to receive support,
financial, material, moral or technology from friends and acquaintances.
Jojo
Rom, a Davao-based agriculturist who believes in the democratization of
agriculture, gave his insights to further improve the prototype that
the 7th CRG was developing.
He also gave tips on Urban Container Gardening (UCG).
“If
all households can convert their backyard or kitchen area into
vegetable gardens, then the Philippines will have a surplus in food.
When advocates for ecology and clean air could just help in this simple
endeavor, it is a giant step for humanity,” Sagun said.
His deputy, Capt. Genesis Gabrido, is currently designing the prototypes.
“The
7th CRG hopes to develop mobile prototypes for depressed areas and
relocation sites to help the people cope with the harsh realities and
alleviate their economic plight,” Gabrido said.
Sagun
is a member of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Class of 1992
while Gabrido belongs to PMA Class 2004. The tandem and their men are
now slowly earning the moniker “AFP GHQ Aquaponics Soldiers” by anyone
who visited and saw their resourcefulness and creativity.
In
fact, CRS chief Brig. Gen. Rolando Tenefrancia has given Sagun and
Gabrido the go signal to start a camp-wide advocacy on aquaponics and
UCG.
“Let us start within our backyards and offices,” Tenefrancia told the soldiers.
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Zaff Solmerin | BusinessMirror.Com.Ph | April 3, 2012 | Article Link
