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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider Visayas devider ‎Bacolod under state of calamity due to RSSI

‎Bacolod under state of calamity due to RSSI

Published Aug 9, 2026 08:50 pm
‎A Red-Striped Soft Scale Insect (RSSI) infestation has prompted Bacolod City to declare a state of calamity. (Glazyl Masculino)
‎A Red-Striped Soft Scale Insect (RSSI) infestation has prompted Bacolod City to declare a state of calamity. (Glazyl Masculino)
BACOLOD CITY - This highly-urbanized city declared a state of calamity due to Red-Striped Soft Scale Insect infestation (RSSI) which has caused severe damage to the city’s sugarcane industry and raised concerns over its economic impact.
‎The Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) recently approved Mayor Greg Gasataya’s urgent request for the declaration, citing official damage assessments from the City Agriculture Office showing that 65.45 percent, or about 2,000 hectares, of the city’s 3,056 hectares planted to sugarcane have been affected by the infestation.
‎Gasataya, in a letter sent to the SP, said the declaration is crucial as it would allow the city government to access its Quick Response Fund (QRF) and immediately implement agricultural interventions, provide financial and material assistance, and launch recovery programs for affected farmers and workers.
‎Councilor Jude Thaddeus Sayson, chairperson of the SP Committee on Agriculture, described the situation as critical, noting that the RSSI infestation could result in an estimated P100 million to P200 million in losses to the sugar industry.
‎Sayson clarified that government assistance will be limited to sugarcane farmers and workers.
‎He said the final list of qualified beneficiaries will be validated through the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) and the City Agriculture Office.
‎Sayson also cited assistance being extended by the national government through the Department of Agriculture (DA), where small sugar farmers are entitled to a P10,000 emergency cash assistance.
‎The provinces of Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental have declared states of calamity due to the RSSI infestation and its impact on the sugar industry.
‎While Negros Oriental has supported aerial spraying as a control measure, Negros Occidental has opted for a more environmentally friendly approach, backing biological control methods instead of aerial pesticide application.
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