South Sumatra Fishermen Begin To Feel The Impact Of La Nina

Illustration (Photo: Antara)

WEST SUMATERA - Fishermen in Pesisir Selatan Regency, West Sumatra feel a decline in their catch due to the impact of La Nina, triggering an increase in the price of fresh fish.

Syafrizal (36), a fisherman in the Koto XI Tarusan sub-district, said that he had been unable to go to sea for a week due to high rainfall accompanied by waves and strong winds.

"Many of the fishermen here are forced to park in Mentawai because they can't go home. Some even choose not to go to sea," he said in Painan, quoted by Antara, Wednesday, November 10.

The La Nina event is back in October 2021. La Nina is an event that increases the growth of rain clouds in Indonesia.

This phenomenon is due to the interaction of the oceans and the atmosphere/air that affect the world's weather and climate globally.

According to him, this condition will automatically have an impact on the catch and the price of fish. For now, the type of cob, for example, from the usual only Rp. 500 per 30 Kilograms, has increased to Rp. 800-Rp. 900 per 30 Kilograms.

Likewise, anchovies at the local fish auction center have now jumped to IDR 1.5 million per 30 kilograms from the usual IDR 1 million per 30 kilograms. Meanwhile, the demand for fresh fish continues to soar.

"It can't be helped, this is a natural factor. On the one hand, it is about the necessities of life. On the other hand, it concerns the safety of life," he explained. Previously, the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) predicted that the peak of La Nina would occur around January-February 2022.

La Nina events are divided into three categories, including a weak category with a small value of minus 0.5-1, moderate minus 1-2 and a strong value above minus 2.

Since 2010 the Moderate Lanina event has occurred twice, namely June 2010 to February 2011 and September 2020 to January 2021.

BMKG on October 29, 2021 has held a National Coordination Meeting inviting all parties to prepare an action plan to deal with it.

BMKG said that La Nina is not the same every time, La Nina has various impacts in each region and the time and peak of lanina does not necessarily coincide with the peak of the impact of the incident.

The Padang Pariaman Climatology Station predicts the peak of the 2021 rainy season in November. Almost all areas of rainfall are forecasted in the medium to high category.

Flood potential areas with a high category forecast are West Pasaman, Mentawai Islands, western Agam, Padang City and South Coast.

Meanwhile, areas with flood potential with a medium category forecast are Pasaman, Padang Pariaman, Padang Panjang, Agam, Tanah Datar, Solok, Sijunjung, Dharmasraya, Payakumbuh, Fifty Cities and South Solok districts.