Environmental Farm Plan

[dalek]

Cakadu may have mentioned this before but in the spring of 2004 one of the big chem companies had a contest on radio stations all over offering local listeners a chance to win 20 acres of a new corn herbicide. Gave out a 20 acre box every morning here for 5 mornings. On the 5th morning, the manager of our local chem dealership, who didn't know about the contest but was supposed to supply the chemicals when the winners brought their vouchers in, happened to hear the contest on the radio when my mother called in and won a box for me. He figured that was fine, he'd put it in my name and use my license since I would be the one using it, but it made him curious enough to phone the radio station and ask about the contest. Turned out they knew nothing about any license requirements, the previous 4 mornings the prizes had all been won by non-farmers. 3 were intending to use the whole 20-acre box on their single rows of sweet corn (which it wasn't labelled for anyway), the 4th was planning to resell it on eBay. He refused to deliver any prizes other than to me. Don't know what ever happened between the other "winners" and the radio station but he was in the right all the way.

[dalek]

Oops make that I may have mentioned. Not long after that, I was in at the dealership when a gardener came in wanting to buy a tote of Touchdown IQ for his garden. I forget how many hundreds of spray bottles of Roundup he had used on his half-acre the year before but it was scary. He left empty-handed too.

[cowman]

Well I believe it is supposed to be the law, in Alberta, that you have to have at least 40 acres before you can buy certain chemicals? So in reality emeralds co-worker either owned other land, had an industrial license, got a neighbor to buy it or the distributor just ignores the law? A farmer(40 acres or more) does not need a license, in Alberta to buy herbicides, nor does he need any training! I find it funny that a lot of farmers have trouble with metric so usually just let the chem dealer make the calculations...which often are right at the maximum or beyond!
dalek: There are no regulations for deisel or gasoline tanks yet, but like emerald says there are recommendations through the environmental farm plan. Apparently the local Co-op stores are supposed to be getting in a steel catch basin type of containment system sometime in the future, but right now the best option is a cement catch system? I do know that industrial users of deisel are supposed to have a double tank but I don't think it is ever
enforced.

[cowman]

Our local general store still has an old underground gas tank, which actually is buried in the county right of way. The estimate cost to move it is $50,000.

There are some requirements for pesticide applicators lic. aren't there cowman. I know our county used to offer them annually for farmers.

Some municipalities provide products such as Lontrel free to local farmers that rent the county sprayer. Counties are not allowed to decant and sell product but are not prohibited from giving it away.

As Linda says, completing the Environmental Farm Plan allows producers to become aware of the environmental issues on their own farm and do what they can to mitigate any adverse effect on the environment, however, my beef with it is the lack of information about regulations. What I was told by the folks in charge is that putting reference to regulations in the voluntary plan might create a liability if the operator was in violation with them !

There are supposed to be some changes coming with the plan, which likely will address some of what I have been concerned about. I always feel that it is best to be aware of any legislation that I am required to be in compliance with vs being in the dark.

[cowman]

emerald: A chemical applicators license isn't all that easy to get anymore and it is the gift that keeps on giving! You need so many credits every year to keep it up and like all the government BS it costs a fair bit...about $450/year. Not all that many licensed applicators around any more.
Of course in Alberta, like just about all their government BS, there is little enforcement, so who cares, right?
Just recently there was an incident where some unlicensed person got caught for killing off the neighbors trees. I guess the really big question was where did he get the chemicals?
Farmers are exempt from the licence requirements, just like they are from most commercial regulations such as transportation of dangerous goods. I guess they figure you get a brain or something when you buy a piece of dirt.

[cowman]

cowma, there are times when regulatory bodys do their upmost to provide an excellent level of inspection and required compliance but then they get BEAT UP by those who they are regulating !!!

[cowman]

Well emerald that may be true? Many come to mind who are probably trying? Usually government agencies that seem to degenerate once they realize that all the rules are sort of a joke and subject to "political influence"!
The EUB comes to mind. So does the Pest Control Act? Example: In 2002 when the drought was bad in Alberta, the Alberta government clearly violated its own rules by encouraging an influx of fusarium infected feed into the province. In reality the rules stated they must keep out a known pestulence...with fusarium gramminearum being listed as one of the pests!
Instead we got "Best management practices for FG"! A total violation of the governments own laws! How would any regulator feel about that set of events?
All the arguments against this violation were casually disregarded as the government swept them away to save the cattle industry! Well what about the grain industry? Sorry guys you just didn't have enough political clout!
Do you ever wonder why some people might be a little sceptical when it comes to regulatory bodies? Do you think the farmer should be sceptical about any program that asks him to clean up his little problem while other industries continue to do whatever they want? Are the farmers spending good money cleaning up their water sources real happy when that water gets pumped down a hole so some slick company can sell out for twice their book value and ruin the resource at the same time?
I would suggest before the government gets all gung ho on whipping the farmers into line they actually enforce some of the rules they already have in place for other industries?

[cowman]

you are right cowman that all regulations should apply equally to every sector and government should set the bar pretty high for industy's use of water.

I read an editorial in the Calgary Herald calling the EUB 'men without chests' likely meaning men without hearts for their willingless to allow sour gas drilling near Calgary.
The EUB is a huge organization, bogged down in beaurocracy.
The NRCB comes to mind, in that they are an organization of less than 50 people charged with administering both the NRCB Act and the Agricultural Operations Practices Act.
In some areas they get criticized by municipalities for not being tough enough and responding at break neck speed to every complaint, and some areas of the livestock industry criticize them for doing their job and trying to bring the 'bad actors' into compliance.

[cowman]

I can admire some in the EUB and NRCB for trying to do a decent job under very frustrating conditions. It is tough when you have a government that can be swayed or "bought" on a whim! If you have some "pull" or know the right politician to bribe...all things are possible in Alberta! Sad but true?

[cowman]

I think that it is who has the most clout. Industry or the public ? That goes for the oil and gas industry and the livestock industry.
The reason for regulating the livestock industry was to ensure the growth of that sector can be accomplished in an environmentally sustainable manner.
The public has one view of that and the industry has another. The NRCB is caught in the middle and are doing their utmost to administer the legislation and be as balanced as possible. The oil and gas industry pays a huge chunk toward the EUB, the livestock industry pays nothing toward the NRCB.