Land Use Workshop

[Deb]

I wish I could have gone to the Landuse workshop. I went a couple of years ago and was interested to see what they are doing in the U.S. about loss of ranchland and other open spaces.

I have an example of why subdivision of ranches is a pain:

We purchased our 240 acres in the foothills (zoned agricultural)after a rancher sold his ranch and it was subdivided. Before the little 5-acre pieces were sold, we rented the land out for cow-calf grazing. Now the six 5-acre lots are sold and the new owners want us, or the cow-calf owner, to fence all the parcels. He can't afford it and neither can my husband and I. So our 240 acres is lost to agricultural use this year (and we will miss the income). We will try to fence one of the 5-acre pieces this year and maybe part of another, but it will be a couple of years till we can have cattle in there again. The only positive side is that the grass will have a nice chance to grow this summer (assuming there isn't a drought).

We used to have lots of elk around but a bison fence around some 75 acre parcels has stopped their migration and moved them west, further into the foothills towards the mountains. I try to manage our place so the cattle graze is lightly and there's some left for the wildlife, which we value esthetically. We do have a moose and 2 whitetails around that browse on the willows, so that's nice. And the bears like the rose hips when there aren't any saskatoons. I'm planning on starting a bit of a bed and breakfast or cabin rental thing if all goes well. But I will still need cows to graze the meadows a bit. It is all a balancing act and I am grateful that we don't have to make a huge living off it.

[Deb]

better stay on the good side of your acreage neighbours because they will have input when you apply for a development permit from your county for a Bed and Breakfast.

[Deb]

beleive me, I am on their good side already because I am putting together welcome wagon style baskets with info on the benefits of grazing, what vegetation one needs to attract certain wildlife, a bag of native grass seed, books on nature, and some rose hip jam or tea. Plus I will invite them on my nature walks through the aspen forest and the flowered meadows.

Also, my cabin is only 600 square feet and solar as well. I would most likely only have it available four times a year, and only to people I know can understand how the solar system works. We won't get rich on the B & B either but maybe with that, plus a few firewood sales, then some grazing once the fences are done, maybe I'll feel more secure.

[Deb]

Great proactive way to introduce your new neighbours to life in the country in an agricultural area.

[cowman]

Emerald: Deb definitely thinks outside the box! She has been absent for a little while. Not to disaparage her but frankly she is...lets be diplomatic... a wee bit "out There"?
Consider your worst nightmare...where the NDP runs the country?....There you have Deb!

[Deb]

One can see further from "out there"!!!

I find it easy to see future consequences of actions we are taking now, that's all. Maybe it comes from being a multi-tasking mother. I have learned that I cannot tell my husband the end result of my schemes because he has no clue how my thought process got there and thinks my idea is ridiculous. So I write/explain every step with drawings and everything so he can see the sequence of events. I can see sequences of events as easy as anything in the world. I see what will happen to moose, swans, bear, etc. if large ranches are fragmented into little pieces. I see what will happen to agriculture when fossil fuels run out. I see what will happen when the drought deepens and the St. Mary reservoir is empty (it's full now, by the way - obviously somebody was THINKING AHEAD). I see what will happen if Cor and Rick sell their feedlots to Cargill. Just because I think of things ahead of time doesn't mean I'm weird. Lots of people do this, they just are able to keep their thoughts to themselves. I have visions that almost always come true but I guess I waste my breath telling people about it. I'd like to say to hell with the world, but I like people too much, so I continue to try to make them care, which is impossible but I'm a sucker for lost causes.

I admit that if this was 400 years ago I'd probably be burned to the stake by now. It may interest you to know that I don't ALWAYS agree with EVERYTHING the NDP says or does

[cowman]

Well Deb, I suspect you probably don't always agree with the NDP...probably think they are too right wing or something!LOL
I'll try not to rip you too bad just because I might not agree with everything you say! It takes all kinds of people to make this old world go around...and that includes the tree huggers and other assorted "different thinkers". Who is to say they aren't right?

[Deb]

Thanks. Wouldn't you say that the NDP was right to try to stop NAFTA all those years ago, speaking from a cow-calf rancher's perspective?

[cakadu]

What a boring world this would be if we all thought alike. It is those "out there" thinkers that have provided some of the most revealing and innovative breakthroughs at various times throughout history.

Bottom line is that we cannot make any more land, so we need to be very thoughtful and forward-thinking to use what we do have wisely and sustainably.

[cowman]

Deb: NAFTA was the best thing that ever happened to Alberta...and for that matter to Canada. Just take a look at the increase in trade and the real wealth created by NAFTA? That is money that we wouldn't have had otherwise to spend?
Actually we always had free trade in cattle and beef with the USA? NAFTA really did not affect that trade one way or the other?
Our present crisis does not have anything to do with NAFTA. Our spineless eastern Liberal government has not used the tools available, under NAFTA, to get this trade dispute settled? Our eastern government also created the problem in the first place by leaving our grain farmers out in the cold in the grain wars...thus leading to the massive increase in the beef and pork sector?
When they killed the CROW and never challenged the US and EU on their massive grain subsidies, they set the Canadian livestock producer up to fail?
We need a government who will deal with the Americans like a business partner, not like a flunky? The NDP would take us down a road that would further alienate us from our major partner? How can that be a good thing?
There is one hell of a lot more to trade than a bunch of old cows? We need to move into a much tighter alliance with the USA...not further away! I would suggest in the case of Alberta, we need to first of all seperate from Canada, then negotiate to join the USA?
I'm sure you agree?LOL

[Deb]

The United States is using NAFTA to ensure their own energy security, for one thing. Canada is required by NAFTA to continue exporting oil and gas to the U.S., even if Canada experiences a shortage (which just about happened this year as far as heating oil goes). That means when the oil and gas start seriously running out, we can cut 50% of the oil and gas off to the U.S. but we have to reduce our consumption by 50% as well.

So even though we may experience cold winters, the southern States that get our oil and gas can still get their share and fritter it away in their cities, on flashing billboard lights and other silly things. The might just take it all anyway and let "the nothern bastards freeze in the dark."

The same will apply to water some day.

Short-term, NAFTA works for some sectors but long-term it is a disaster for Albertans and all Canadians. The United States is in the process of eating us up and will spit us out when our resources are gone.