BINMALEY, Pangasinan - The National Irrigation Administration (NIA) has confirmed that the proposed Agno River Irrigation Project (ARIP) is one of the priority projects to be built by the Arryo administration in order to create a strong agro-industrial economy.

This was disclosed on Saturday by NIA Administrator Arturo Lomibao when he opened a calling center for relatives of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) under his own Project Compassion, the 10th of its kind in Pangasinan, except those in Legaspi and Davao.

The other priortiy irrigation projects, said Lomibao, are the Banaoang Integrated Irrigation Project in Ilocos Sur to service farmers in that province and in adjacent Ilocos Norte, and the Casecnan Integrated Irrigation Project in Nueva Vizcaya to provide water for the farms not only in Nueva Vizcaya but also in Pampanga and Bulacan.

The ARIP, formerly called the irrigation component of the San Roque Multi-Purpose Project in Pangasinan, is the biggest of the three with a projected service area of  more or less 70,000 hectares in Pangasinan, Tarlac and part of Nueva Ecija.

Reynaldo Mencias, project manager of ARIP, said this will cost P7 billion, the larger part of which is foreign loan, now being negotiated by the government with the lending international financing institution.

The project will involve the construction of a large circular re-regulating pond of approximately 100 hectares that will catch all the water from the San Roque dam being released during its power generation, and a network of irrigation canals.

Lomibao told newsmen that initial work on the ARIP actually already started with the relocation sometime soon of families to be affected by the construction of the project’s giant re-regulating pond.

ARIP said Lomibao will tremendously increase rice production as well as the production of other agricultural crops, increase incomes, improve livelihood and invite tourists as the structure will have tremendous tourism potentials and willa lso have the capability to prevent erosion and siltation.

Lomibao visited the office of the San Roque Power Corporation in San Manuel town on Friday where he conferred with its officials regarding the construction of ARIP.

NIA was tapped to build the project which is set to be completed in 2011.

The project was identified as among those to be constructed in order to hasten the growth of the North Luzon Agribusiness Quadrangle super region as a food basket to supply the needs of the Central Luzon Metropolitan Beltway as well as north of Asia. (PNA)