PILI, Camarines Sur -- Gov. Luis Raymond "L-Ray" Villafuerte is one of the frontrunners in the extensive cultivation of jatropha curcas or popularly known as "tuba-tuba" as an alternative cleaner fuel source. Villafuerte's initiative is in response to the national government's call for finding an alternative source of fuel and energy to cushion the impact of the high cost of fuel and to lessen the country's dependence on imported crude oil. But the province is utilizing only local funds for the extensive propagation of jatropha. Danilo B. Cea, project manager of the Jatropha Project Management Office, said the province has a 200-hectare plantation and nursery farms in the towns of Del Gallego, Libmanan, Pili, Caramoan, Iriga City, Sipocot and Calabanga. Cea reported that the plantations yielded only 600 kilos of tuba-tuba seeds after super typhoons "Milenyo" and "Reming" hit the province last year. The seeds are now ready for germination and transplanting to another 250 hectares. Energy experts consider jatropha curcas as the fuel of the future and could be the answer to the continuing price escalation of petroleum products in the world market.
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