Bureau of Soils and Water Management (Philippines)
| Kawanihan ng Pamamahala sa mga Lupa at Tubig | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | June 5, 1951 |
| Headquarters | Visayas Avenue, Vasra, Quezon City, Philippines |
| Agency executive |
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| Parent agency | Department of Agriculture |
| Website | www |
The Philippines' Bureau of Soils and Water Management (Filipino: Kawanihan ng Pamamahala sa mga Lupa at Tubig, abbreviated as BSWM), is an agency of the Philippine government under the Department of Agriculture responsible for advising and rendering assistance on matters relative to the utilization of soils and water as vital agricultural resources.
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 1936, 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.
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.
On 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.
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