A date as close and compromising as the month of March puts the few workers at La Teresa Alevinaje Center, in the Ciego de Ávila`s municipality of Venezuela, in a hurry to make use of the first ponds that will start the next reproduction of cyprinids campaign in the province.

Although it is made up of 28 ponds of one hectare (ha), at this time, seven of the first 14 reservoirs that have already been recovered are almost ready and the first cycle will begin with four of them to add another eight in the second half of this year.

The member of the Central Committee and first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba in the province, Carlos Luis Garrido Pérez, was informed about these details during a visit he made a few days ago to learn about the future outcome of the site where aquaculture is practiced, adjacent to the Zaza-Channel. Ciego de Ávila, which is associated with the Central-East Transfer.

He also learned that each pond has a capacity of 400,000 larvae in which the survival of 30 percent of them is guaranteed, that is, 120,000 fingerlings are obtained.

Besides, the supply of fuel, the responsibility of the Industrial Fishing Company of Ciego de Ávila (EPIVILA), has not been an obstacle to progress, other concerns keep Onel Rosales López, director of La Teresa farm, awake at night, who assured that since Last June the electrical fluid does not reach here due to the lack of some transformers, a promise made by the Electric Company in the municipality.

Without this, the two pumps that would guarantee between 15 and 20 days of vitality in the event of a lack of water in the canal cannot be started. Precisely, in the next few days, specialists from the Sancti Spíritus Hydraulic Exploitation Company will tour the area to assess possible leaks from the canal, which at some point was already full and does not present any serious difficulties, according to Ernesto Donis Almeida, technical director of the Provincial Delegation of Hydraulic Resources.

“For the month of March, 43,000 cubic meters (m³) of the liquid are guaranteed, an indicator that will rise until reaching 790,000 m³ per year; and we also have a demand for underground water for emergencies, because here three million pesos are committed to production”.

Now, Onel and his men are cleaning the hectares and working on the construction and repair of the locks (hydraulic works in areas of unevenness in canals). "In addition, we are left to outline the ponds and fill the slopes," he assured.

The commissioning of the Zaza-Ciego de Ávila canal could contribute not only to the safety of water in La Teresa Alevinaje Center, but also to the irrigation of crops and would serve as a source of liquid for livestock in the area.

According to a note from the Cuban News Agency, the projections of the Central-East Transfer are that it originates from the Agabama-Meyer dam, still to be built in Sancti Spíritus, to the rice-producing south of Camagüey. After its completion, it will have 315 kilometers of canals, 27 dams, two diversions and the underground basins of Sancti Spíritus, Ciego de Ávila and Camagüey, for a total management of 1,951 million meters that will allow more than 160 thousand hectares to be irrigated.

This week, Garrido Pérez also visited the Morón Alevinaje Base Business Unit, which also belongs to the Ciego de Ávila Industrial Fishing Company (EPIVILA), where the start of the campaign is expected to be on February 15 for all species (cyprinids , tilapias and clarias), according to Yosvany Pérez Valdés, specialist in aquaculture.

“We have a commitment this year to deliver 10 million cans of tilapia, but in the case of the cyprinid we depend on the repair of the ponds, which is the work that is being done now. Right now, we have the guarantee of the breeders, however, we are facing problems with feeding them”, he declared.

For his part, Humberto de la Caridad Hernández Suárez, director of the UEB Ciego de Ávila Cuito Cuanavale, predicted that 20.2 ha of ponds should be ready for the month of March, which are the ones that will guarantee the reproductive capacities in this fry.

The specialist explained that before the end of January 2 hectares will be delivered, "but for February we will be a little more ambitious, because we intend to finish eight". A plan that aims to avoid the consequences of the usual rains in April and May.