Agriculture Secretary William Dar on Friday said that the total damage to agriculture due to Taal Volcano’s eruption has risen to P3.06 billion. In a roundtable discussion with the Manila Bulletin editors and reporters on Friday, Dar said the P3.06-billion damage and losses is just an initial estimate from the affected areas in Southern Tagalog or Region IV-A and is expected to further rise. “This is just an initial, but I’m hoping the volcanic activities will stop soon,” Dar said, citing the devastation already affected 15,790 hectares of land and 1,923 animal heads in the region, particularly in Batangas.

Tiangco, M. K., & Leyco, C. (2020, January 18). Taal eruption's damage to agriculture now at ₱3 B; farmers, fishers get aid. Manila Bulletin, pp. 1, 8.