Porfirio Salas Castillo, the leader of the CNC in the southern state of Sinaloa, said that the sector devoted to mango production was very concerned because the Agustina Ramirez dam, which is better known as El Peñon, doesn't have enough water to guarantee the irrigation of thousands of hectares due to a lack of heavy rains in the municipality.
"The problem has been caused by the climatic changes we are experiencing and that are now is affecting our water supply. The dam is a little less than half full and the authority in charge of it has already told us that they will only conduct one limited irrigation," Salas Castillo said.
With this measure, which will be applied to manage the water of the dam, producers won't have enough water to ensure a good development of the fruit.
"This isn't enough for the fruit to get fat. It requires two irrigations, one when the tree flowers, and another other later on. This year, mango producers are worried because this is their livelihood and we expect it will be a bad season due to the lack of water," he said.
Salas Castillo said he wanted the Federal Government to speed up the construction of the Santa María dam, which would be the definitive solution for producers in the southern part of the state as it would guarantee the irrigation system for the different varieties of mango and vegetables that are harvested in this region.
Source: debate.com.mx