Agricultural Policy Framework Newsletter - September 2007
1500 Environmental Farm Plans Completed in British Columbia
Farmers are stewards of the land. They depend on the long-term health of their farms and good relationships with their neighbours to manage the business.
Producers’ commitment to a cleaner, healthier environment for all Canadians, and safe healthy food for consumers, is what the Agricultural Policy Framework counted on when it introduced the Environmental Farm Plan (EFP) program. Funded by both federal and provincial governments, the EFP program helps farmers and ranchers identify environmental risks in their operations and develop and implement a plan to reduce those risks over the long term.
The program offers workshops and one-on-one meetings to give farmers technical assistance and guidance to perform an environmental assessment of their farm operation to outline their risks and benefits. Farmers can then develop an action plan to set priorities to mitigate agri-environmental risks. Once the plan is complete, farmers can apply for financial assistance through the National Farm Stewardship Program to implement the improvements.
Applications to the National Farm Stewardship Program can only be made once producers have successfully completed an EFP.
Since 2003, thousands of farmers in British Columbia have inquired about the program, and in April 2007, the completion of 1,500 EFPs was celebrated at Driediger Farms in the Fraser Valley.
Water conservation was a priority for the operation, and the program meant it could irrigate some 50 acres of the 160 acre berry farm.
“With our new drip system, we use 40 per cent less water to irrigate our plants,” said co-owner Rhonda Driediger. “There are lots of benefits to doing this. We save a lot of water, which is a direct benefit to the environment. Our use of overhead sprinklers is dramatically reduced and now, we’re delivering water directly to the root system of the plant instead of broadcasting it all over the grass – and the weeds!”
Driediger is an avid supporter of the EFP program, saying the benefits go much further than simply protecting the environment. “We always want to reduce overhead watering because water splashing on the ground can send spores and bacteria bouncing up over the berry plants. So we’ve managed to reduce a food safety risk, too.”
“And finally, this system is much easier to run and control,” she said. “Before, someone with a licence to drive a tractor would have to move the enormous water guns around to different parts of the farm in order to water. With this drip irrigation system, everything is set up in zones, and we can easily program what areas get water, and when. We have more technology, but we don’t need to have technical skills to operate it. It’s much simpler.”
The Environmental Farm Plan and National Farm Stewardship Program in British Columbia received $18 million, over five years, in federal funding for on-farm beneficial management practices. The program runs until March 31, 2008.The BC Agriculture Council delivers the EFP for the federal and provincial governments. These days, the Council is concentrating on helping farmers who have already expressed an interest in the program complete their EFP and implement improvements to their farms.
“The BC Agriculture Council takes environmental farm planning seriously and we recommend all farmers and ranchers take advantage of this program,” said BCAC Chair Dick Klein Geltink. “We see this program as vital to a prosperous, sustainable future and the ongoing confidence of our consumers.”
For more information on AAFC’s stewardship programs, visit www.agr.gc.ca or for more information on Environmental Farm Plans in British Columbia, please visit www.bcac.bc.ca/efp_programs.htm.
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