Guantanamo.- There is a crucial battle about removing the marabou or aroma (Dichrostachys cinérea) in the Guantanamo Valley, where this year it is expected that some 700 hectares will be free of the invading plant along some 1,900 hectares of cultivation area in the easternmost province of Cuba that is therefore unproductive.
According to a report of the collage José Llamos Camejo, a correspondent for the newspaper Granma, in the province, the purpose is to deliver to usufructuary producers these “decontaminated state lands” to be used for food crops as rice, bananas and cassava.
Arroyo Hondo, where the cleaning of the first 50 hectares began two years ago, is the main scene where 250 hectares of marabou land has been already cleared. The purpose is to clean a total 300 hectares of idle land this year.
La Jabilla, south of the city of Guantánamo, is another scene, where 40 hectares of marabou land have been already cleared, a task carried out by the Agricultural Technical Services Enterprise, the Revolutionary Armed Forces, and the Ministry of Construction, supported by a farmer who owns a bulldozer.
After fields are cleared, a platoon from the Guantánamo Agroindustrial Enterprise goes into action. They are the responsible for the preparation of the land for cultivation, a step that cannot be neglected to avoid the marabou reappearance, reinfecting the areas and ruining such an important investment for the food program promoted by the municipal government despite resource and fuel limitations.
Translation: Liubis Balart
