BMKG Asks Tobacco Farmers To Monitor Weather Conditions In Wet Dry Season

Head of BMKG Dwikorita Karnawati and member of Commission V DPR RI Sudjadi (center) picking tobacco leaves to start harvesting in Wonosari Village, Bulu District, Temanggung Regency, Saturday (13/8/2022). ANTARA/Heru Suyitno

TEMANGGUNG - Head of the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) Dwikorita Karnawati asked tobacco farmers to continue to monitor weather conditions in the wet dry season this year, because even though it is dry, it still often rains.

"That is why BMKG together with members of Commission V DPR RI Mr. Sudjadi and the Temanggung Regency Government are trying to convey various things that tobacco farmers need to know about weather and climate so that their crops do not fail," he said as reported by ANTARA, Saturday, August 13.

Dwikorita conveyed this at the opening of the BMKG Tobacco Commodity Climate Field School (SLI) in Wonosari Village, Bulu District, Temanggung Regency.

Dwikorita said that by monitoring the weather information issued by the BMKG, the forecast for the next six days could be known about the weather, humidity and wind.

"Don't want to dry the tobacco instead, the air is strong, the air is humid, it can't dry, instead it flies in the wind. This will all be discussed in the IDD discussion as well as practice in the field so that farmers can be empowered to respond to current conditions," he said.

He hopes that with this SLI, tobacco farmers understand and are able to read the weather and his party will complete the information digitally. So smart agriculture can know from digital information, it can know the weather conditions for the next six days, what it's like every day, even every hour or three hours.

Thus, farmers can plan when to start planting, how to plant patterns, when to start harvesting and are expected to avoid crop failure due to extreme weather, because it can be detected early to anticipate it.

Temanggung Regent M. Al Khadziq in a written remarks delivered by the Regional Secretary of Temanggung Regency, Hary Agung Prabowo, said that SLI is an effort by the BMKG to support national food security, which is a program from President Joko Widodo so that the Indonesian people continue to provide food.

Al Khadziq said that 25 farmers participated in SLI, namely 10 people from Wonosari Village, 5 people from Pandemulyo Village, 5 people from Wonotirto, and 5 people from Pagergunung Village.

Khadziq hopes that the implementation of the IDD companion operation for tobacco commodities in Wonosari Village can increase the knowledge and skills of farmers in consolidating climate information in order to anticipate the impact of extreme climate phenomena on tobacco commodities.