Millions of dollars have been paid to prairie farmers and millions more are committed under a national program aimed at benefiting the environment.
The National Farm Stewardship Program makes $82 million available to western Canadian farmers wanting to make changes that protect soil, land and water quality or improve wildlife habitat on their land.
There was a lag in making the money available to prairie producers, particularly in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, since agencies had to be established to deliver environmental farm planning. An environmental farm plan is needed to become eligible for the farm stewardship money.
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As of late April, close to $2.5 million had been paid to producers in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba and another $12 million was committed under the stewardship program. The money is for what are commonly described as beneficial management practices.
Although there are less than two years left in the program, Dean Smith is encouraged by the increasing participation by prairie producers. Smith manages the stewardship co-ordination division for the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration.
“I think the potential’s there,” he said, when asked about the likelihood of seeing the $82 million allocated to farmers by the end of March 2008.
Some of the projects most popular among producers are improvements to the way they apply crop nutrients, improved wintering sites for cattle, better on-farm storage of fertilizer, petroleum products and pesticides, and changes in pasture management that help protect water quality while improving herd performance.
Farmers wanting to know more about the National Farm Stewardship Program can visit www.agr.gc.ca/env/efp-pfa/index_e.php.
