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The Early Pre-War Years
Post War Activities
Reorganization
Technical Cooperation with JICA
Milestone
The Early Pre-War Years
The first soil survey in the Philippines was conducted by Clarence W. Dorsey, an American soil scientist, in 1903. He classified the soils of Batangas Province. But it was not until 1921 at the Division of the Soil and Fertilizers was organized under the Bureau of Science. Its activities were confined to the studies of the chemistry of soils and fertilizers. Most of the studies were done at sugarcane areas.
In 1934, the Soil Survey Committee was organized by the Secretary of Agriculture and Commerce. The committee was composed of the Directors of the Bureau of Science, of Plant Industry, of Lands, of Forestry, of Mines and of Weather. The Undersecretary was the Committee Chairman.
In 1963, the Bureau of Science reorganized the Division of Soils and Fertilizers into the Division of Soil Survey staffed by 19 personnel. In 1939, the National Assembly enacted Commonwealth Act 416 mandating agronomical soil survey to the Division of Soil Survey. To accomplish this goal, the Division was reorganized and expanded to five sections.
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Post War Activities
World War II interrupted the activities and the Soil Survey Division was among those abolished. It was not until after the war in 1945 that the Soil Survey Division was reorganized. Unlike the pre-war activities, however, the focus of activities during this time was conservation survey. The outputs served as the fundamental basis for laying the principles needed to undertake soil conservation work. The first soil conservation project of the Division was established at the Buenavista Estate in San Idelfonso, Bulacan.
In 1948, the Soil Survey Division was again reorganized into the Division of Soil Survey and Conservation with four sections to carry out its function.
In June 5, 1951, the Congress of the Republic of the Philippines enacted Republic Act No. 622 organizing the Bureau of Soil Conservation consisting of five divisions. Dr. Marcos M. Alicante was named the first Director. It is this date that every year the Bureau celebrates as its founding anniversary. In 1964, the agency was renamed the Bureau of Soils. The Bureau's regional offices were created to bring the services closer to the farming communities. Since then, the Bureau has become a major planning, policy making, consultative and advisory agency of the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
Gloom dawned on the Bureau in September 24, 1972 when Presidential Decree No.1 reorganized the executive branch of the national government splitting the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources into two departments and merging the Bureau of Soils with the Bureau of Plant Industry. Vigorous and active representation was made, with no less than its director at that time of merging, Mr. Godofredo N. Alcasid advocating for the retention of the Bureau of Soils as a distinct agency from the Bureau of Plant Industry. He was supported by the members of the Soil Science Society of the Philippines. The gloom was replaced by joy in March, 1973 when the two merged agencies were again separated.
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Reorganization
In June, 1987, Pres. Corazon C. Aquino reorganized the Bureau of Soils into the Bureau of Soils and Water Management through Executive Order 116. The Bureau retained its staff function of soil resources survey, evaluation, conservation, testing and research but its mandate was broadened to include the development and generation of water resources utilization and conservation technologies as well as inclusion of rainmaking projects to alleviate the impact of prolonged drought on standing crops.
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Technical Cooperation with JICA
In October, 1988, the Republic of the Philippines through the Department of Agriculture entered into an agreement with the Government of Japan through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for the establishment of the Soils Research and Development Center (SRDC). The groundbreaking ceremony for the Center construction was made in 1989.
In January, 1990, the Bureau moved from Sunvesco Bldg. in Taft Ave. and Court of Appeals Bldg., in Maria Orosa St., Ermita Manila where the technical and administrative offices and the laboratories were then housed to its new home, the Soils Research and Development Center (SRDC) in Elliptical Road, Diliman, Quezon City.
In March, 1991, the new SRDC Building was inaugurated by Her Excellency, President Corazon Aquino with the Honorable Toshi Goto, the Ambassador of Japan to the Philippines. SRDC's goal to become the center for soil and water based researches and technologies to sustain self-sufficiency in agricultural production was boosted with the SRDC-JICA Technical Cooperation, Phase I. This was completed in 1995.
Phase II of the technical cooperation was started in 1996. The second phase focused on three (3) areas of research:
- Soils and Fertilizers
- Soil Conservation
- Soil Productivity Capability Classification
With the completion of the Phase II of the technical cooperation in January, 2000, another project with JICA was launched in February, 2000 - The Environmental and Productivity Management of Marginal Soils in the Philippines (EPMMA).
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Milestone
| 2000 DOST Tanglaw Awardee |
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| 2002 Performance Team CSC PAGASA Awardee |
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| 1921 |
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The Bureau of Science created the DIVISION OF SOIL AND FERTILIZER (DSF). |
| 1934 |
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DSF became the DIVISION OF SOIL SURVEY of the Bureau of Science. |
| 1939 |
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All government and agronomic surveys were transferred directly under the DIVISION OF SOIL SURVEY by virtue of Commonwealth Act 418. |
| 1945 |
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The Soil Survey Division was renamed DIVISION OF SOIL SURVEY AND CONSERVATION (DSSC). |
| 1951 |
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DSSC became the BUREAU OF SOIL CONSERVATION (BSC) by virtue of RA 622 with Dr. Marcos Alicante as its first Director. |
| 1957 |
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BSC was renamed BUREAU OF SOILS under Section 54 of the Reorganization Plan No. 30-A. Soils Regional Offices were created and established. |
| 1972 |
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Pursuant to PD No. 1 dated September 24, 1972, prescribing the reorganization of the executive branch of the national government and in accordance with the pertinent provisions of the Integrated Reorganizarion Plan for the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Natural Resources. As per Letter of Implementation No. 9 dated November 1, 1972, the Bureau of Soils and the Bureau of Plant Industry were merged into one agency. |
| 1973 |
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Taking cognizance of the vital role of the Bureau in the government's economic program, the then President Marcos approved the retention of the Bureau of Soils as separate entity from the Bureau of Plant Industry on March, 1973. |
| 1974 |
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Proclamation of Presidential Decree dated May 17, 1974 creating the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources thus the Bureau of Soils was authorized to establish regional offices. |
| 1978 |
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Proclamation of Presidential Decree No. 1475 authorizing the Bureau of Soils to supervise, regulate and control the establishment and operation of all soils laboratories in the Philippines. |
| 1987 |
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Executive Order No. 116 broadened the functions of the Bureau of Soils to include the management of water resources of the country. At the same time, it was renamed BUREAU OF SOILS AND WATER MANAGEMENT (BSWM) and remained a Staff Bureau of the Department of Agriculture. As a staff agency, it retained its innate functions like soils resources preservation, soil surveying and research, land resources evaluation, soil erosion control and soil conservation. The EO No. 116 dated January 30, 1987 mandated the BSWM "to engage in rainmaking projects to offset the effects of prolonged drought on agriculture watershed areas". |
| 1988 |
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October 24 was the signing of documents by the Government of the Philippines and of Japan which formalized the establishment of the SOILS RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT CENTER (SOILSEARCH). |
| 1989 |
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June 24, was the approval of a PROJECT-TYPE Technical Cooperation for SOILSEARCH and of the Training Center Complex of the Grant Aid. |
| 1990 |
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March 22, the Research and Survey Building of the SOILSEARCH Phase of the Grant Aid Project was completed and turned over to the Philippine Government through the Department of Agriculture and the BSWM. |
| 1990 |
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December 19, the Training Center Complex, Phase II of SOILSEARCH was completed and turned over to the Philippine Government. |
| 1990 |
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March 18, Inauguration of the SOILS RESEARCH and DEVELOPMENT CENTER by Her Excellency Corazon C. Aquino, President of the Republic of the Philippines. |
| 1995 |
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Five-year Technical Cooperation Project called SRDC Project Phase II officially commenced. |
| 1997 |
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Launching of the BALANCED FERTILIZATION STRATEGY (BFS) Program and issuance of Presidential Proclamation No. 1071 for BFS. |
| 1997 to 1998 |
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El Nino Years. The BSWM was tasked to head the DA Task Force and successfully implemented the Small Scale Irrigation Projects as the primary intervention against the impacts of El Nino phenomenom. |
| 1999 |
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Implementation of AFMA which specifically designates BSWM to delineate and map the STRATEGIC AGRICULTURE AND FISHERIES DEVELOPMENT ZONES (SAFDZs) - Implementation of the 2nd BSWM-JICA Technical Cooperation Project entitled "ENVIRONMENTAL AND PRODUCTIVITY MANAGEMENT OF MARGINAL AREAS (EPMMA)" |
| 2000 |
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BSWM was conferred the DOST Tanglaw Award for being the Most Outstanding Research Institution in the country |
| 1996 to 2001 |
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Awarded accreditation from Australia Soil and Plant Analysis Council (ASPAC) for laboratory performance in the Soil Proficiency Testing Program and Plant Quality Assurance Program for a number of tests conducted in various periods.
- Iron, Magnesium, Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Zinc and Potassium
- pH, Extractable Phosphorus, Electrical Conductivity, Organic Carbon, Total Nitrogen, Extractable Copper, Extractable Zinc, Extractable Sodium, Extractable Boron, Extractable Iron, Extractable Manganese
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| Oct. 1-2, 2002 |
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BSWM was conferred the Performance Team PAGASA Award for 2002 by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) last October 1, 2002 at Camp Aguinaldo and presented on October 2, 2002 at Malacañang to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. |
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