Project aims to counter infestation in ways that benefit local farming communities
First the idea was to feed them to chickens, now the plan is to grind them into fertiliser.
But worries that the pesticides could be harmful to plants, animals and people have motivated researchers to seek chemical-free methods of cutting the locust population. During an infestation this spring, villagers in Okara district plucked locusts — which are largely immobile at night — off trees in a nearby forest, gathering about 20 tonnes of the flying insects. The project team bought the bugs then sold them to a processing plant, which dried them and mixed them into chicken feed, Ali said.
Last month, communities living in the desert areas of Cholistan, Tharparkar, Nara and Thal were trained how to catch locusts as they head there to breed for the season. The next step is to look at how to turn the pests into organic fertiliser, Pakistan Agricultural Research Council chair Muhammad Azeem Khan said.
July’s monsoon rains arrived 10 days earlier than usual in Pakistan, creating moist soil conditions favourable for the locusts to breed in the border desert area, Khan said.The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation estimates losses to agriculture from locusts this year could be as high as 353-billion rupees for winter crops like wheat and potatoes and about 464-billion rupees for summer crops.
“The government needs to look into procuring eco-friendly pesticides — otherwise entire ecosystems are going to be affected,” he said.
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