Farmers taking action for the environment

The Environmental Farm Plan (EFP) initiative is a popular tool that helps Canadian farmers and producers meet the highest possible standards of environmental performance. An Environmental Farm Plan (EFP) is a voluntary and confidential process used by individual farmers to identify environmental risks and benefits on their farm, and to develop an action plan to mitigate the risks. The EFP process allows farmers to set priorities for actions which address on-farm environmental concerns, as well as those which serve the public interest.

Environmental farm plans help ensure the production of safe, high-quality food, while helping to protect and improve the quality of Canada's soils, water, air and biodiversity. Farmers who have completed an EFP are helping to position Canada as a world leader in environmentally responsible agriculture production. Read their stories:

Name: Ray Arsenault
Location: St Nicholas, Prince Edward Island
Occupation: Dairy Farmer

√ Completed an Environmental Farm Plan

"It was a great self-assessment. And, actually, we found we were in better shape than we thought," says Ray. "But when you examine your operation closely, you often find situations that you didn't believe could be a problem with the environment. The good thing is that many of these issues can be easily resolved at little or no cost."

Since his first plan, Arsenault has updated his EFP three times and is working on it again under the new Enhanced EFP process. As he says, things are forever changing and it is important to keep himself and his operation up to date. He and his brother Joey feel the healthier they make and keep the land, the better the production, and the better it is for the environment as a whole.

"Through the process you develop a social conscience," Ray says. "Everything you do - such as spreading manure and spraying - is under scrutiny by your neighbours, and even your own relatives."

Besides being a dairy farmer, Arsenault is the Chair of the Enhanced EFP Steering Committee for the province. But when he replaces his chairman's hat with his producer hat, he sees the benefit his own farm has reaped from following through on his plan.

Name: Mary White & Mike Rabinowitz
Location: Port Blandford & Portugal Cove, Newfoundland and Labrador
Occupation:Dairy farmer and vegetable grower

√ Completed an Environmental Farm Plan

"I found the EFP process very interesting and informative," Mary says. "It gave us a pretty good idea of what we needed to do to improve our farm."

The plan identified manure management as an issue that required attention on Mary White's dairy farm. To address the concern, Mary has applied for assistance to install a new concrete manure bunker. Once completed, the bunker will store the manure from the barn until it can be properly spread on her land. In the process, the risk of nutrients and pathogens seeping into the ground or being washed from the site will be greatly reduced.

Mary insists that having an EFP will be a definite asset in allowing her to address any future environmental issues on her farm.

Much like Mary, Mike Rabinowitz has also completed an EFP for his organic vegetable and herb farm in Portugal Cove. Having an approved EFP was a positive factor in enabling Mike to access funding from the Soil Conservation Council of Canada's Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Program to establish a greenhouse gas mitigation demonstration project. He has initiated a program of applying green manure and using cover crops to improve the condition of his land.

"One piece of land we recently acquired needed special attention," says Mike. "It had been a traditional Newfoundland vegetable farm for about 75 years where caplin was/is used as a fertilizer. The sod was removed 25 years ago and the land was left fallow. When we began working on the land, there was very little organic matter left in the soil, leaving highly acidic, sandy soil that would not hold water." Thus, this ground was a perfect place to introduce green manuring.

"The program has been a great benefit to our farm and land," says Mike. "While improving the quality of the soil and reducing the need for commercial fertilizers, our efforts will also help reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases from our land."

Name: Delbert Edey
Location: High River, Alberta
Occupation: Grain farmer

√ Completed an Environmental Farm Plan

"I really enjoyed the process and found it very interesting, The workshop facilitator let each of us do our own thinking and just raised issues and points to consider as we went along. It really makes you think about what you're doing on your own farm."

At the EFP workshop, Edey learned that his fuel supply is too close to the buildings and needed a containment system in the event of a leak or spill. Now, he is looking into installing a containment bunker with proper electrical controls. Since he implemented his EFP, he has access to cost-shared funding for his projects.

In partnership with a neighbour, Edey operates a diesel-driven pivot irrigation system on an 80-acre field. To reduce fuel consumption and to make more effective use of the water, they are investigating the possibility of re-fitting the boom with more efficient nozzles.

Delbert Edey feels that every farmer could benefit from going through the Environmental Farm Planning process.

"As farmers, we have to do everything in our power to ease our impact on the environment," he says. "I feel that the EFP Program is a positive step in that direction."

Name: Frank Poirier
Location: Enderby, British Columbia
Occupation: Cattle producer

√ Completed an Environmental Farm Plan

"I am fencing along the stream to protect the shoreline from erosion, and to control livestock access to the water," says Frank. "I have also built a bridge to let the cattle cross the river without having to get their feet wet."

Frank Poirier raises registered Red Angus cattle along Brash Creek, a small fish stream feeding into the Shuswap River near Enderby in British Columbia's Okanagan Valley. Until recently, his herd could roam into the stream, but since completing his Environmental Farm Plan (EFP), all that has changed.

Poirier's bridge can handle his farm equipment and side rails provide safety for the cattle. He is planning to relocate his winter feeding area away from Brash Creek to help improve water quality in the stream and is considering a fish habitat and erosion-control project, as well as a watering system that is not dependent on the stream.

"I can't say enough positive about the program, or the people delivering it," adds Frank of his experience. "Sometimes, people tend to be a little leery about new programs, but I highly recommend this one to every farmer."

Name: John Whitaker
Location: Erickson, Manitoba
Occupation: Cattle producer

√ Completed an Environmental Farm Plan

"It is very important for farm families to know that no one sees their environmental farm plan except themselves and the FSAM representative who reviews the plan with them in order to issue a Statement of Completion," says John.

Besides being a producer, John Whitaker is also a Farm Stewardship Association of Manitoba (FSAM) Board Member. He points out that the Environmental Farm Planning (EFP) process is voluntary and completely confidential.

John completed the EFP workbook which helped him identify best management practices for manure, as well as improvements to watering his livestock.

"We want to move our cattle out of the yard in the winter as much as possible, so we are in the process of applying for financial assistance to purchase portable wind breaks," says John. "These will allow us to move the cattle around during the winter which will distribute the manure around the farm more evenly, rather than have it build up in the yard. We are also applying for support to acquire a portable off-site watering system to keep the herd away from the creek that runs through our farm."

Name: Maarten Van Oord
Location: Millville, New Brunswick
Occupation: Dairy farmer

√ Completed an Environmental Farm Plan

"You live on your farm for 365 days a year, and because of that familiarity, you may not even notice there are things you could be doing better," explains Van Oord, who farms northwest of Fredericton in the community of Millville. "Having your plan reviewed by a third party can point out issues you have overlooked.".

Maarten is appreciative of the value of a trained opinion when it comes to evaluating environmental issues on the farm. As a result of his EFP plan, he now has a double-walled diesel fuel tank and plans to expand his manure-holding facility and improve the household septic tank. He also handles his manure spreading differently.

"We used to haul our manure across a small brook on the farm to take it for spreading on the other side," he says. "Each time we passed through, we would stir up the water in the stream. We have installed a crossing with a culvert to avoid that problem."

When implementing an EFP, Maarten maintains it's a question of balance and setting priorities. Some actions are simple and inexpensive, such as using Canadian Standards Association (CSA) approved fuel containers and locking the fuel tank. He says you can do a little at a time depending on what you can afford, or what is most important.

"I live right in the community and I have neighbours on both sides," says Maarten. "It is very important to be able to say that I have done everything I can to make the operation more environmentally friendly, for my own family and my neighbours."

Name: Tom Grieve
Location: London, Ontario
Occupation: former dairy producer

√ Completed an Environmental Farm Plan

"Obviously, identifying issues is a very important part of the process," says Tom. "But I think education is probably the main benefit. It makes you aware of how you fit into the environment, and what needs to be done to take care of it."

Ontario was the first province to introduce the environmental farm planning process. More than half of Ontario farmers are addressing potential environmental issues on their farms through the development of Environmental Farm Plans (EFPs), and the number continues to grow.

The key to the final process, says Tom Grieve, a member of the peer-review committee for Middlesex County, is "absolute confidentiality."

"When we review a plan, we have no idea who the plan belongs to, or where the farm is," says Grieve, who farms near London. "The vast majority of action plans are approved outright, which is a credit to the efforts of the EFP coordinator and the producer. Occasionally, we might suggest some minor adjustments to the plan, but it is very rare a plan is rejected."

Grieve completed his own EFP about 10 years ago. While there may not have appeared to be any serious environmental issues to be dealt with immediately, he chose to improve a well casing cap and install eavestroughing to direct water away from his barn and the surrounding manure. Like most who participate in the program, Grieve admits he learned a lot more about the environment in the process.

"You come to realize where the water from your farm goes - into streams, then into larger rivers and finally into the Great Lakes. There are millions of people who drink water from the Great Lakes."

Name: Bryan Hostrawser
Location: Dufferin County, Ontario
Occupation: Poultry farmer

√ Completed an Environmental Farm Plan

"It was a real eye-opener," Bryan says. "Just the awareness of how water moves through your yard, for example, and where it goes, and how it relates to the location of the well was very interesting. It gives you a whole new perspective."

When Bryan Hostrawser completed his EFP about ten years ago, he found the process enlightening. Bryan agrees that creating awareness is one of the most important benefits of the EFP program.

"It gives a farmer a chance to look at his operation in a different light," says Bryan. "It allows him to improve on the quality and safety of the product he grows. It is also important for creating a healthier environment - for the family living on the farm and for the community at large."

Name: Usne Butt
Location: Saskatchewan
Occupation: Manager of Agriculture and Environment, First Nations Agricultural Council of Saskatchewa

"Environmental planning provides a real opportunity to make an impact on First Nations-owned land and we are in a position to promote attitudes towards agriculture and the land that are synonymous with the values taught by our elders." says Usne.

"It is very important to everyone for First Nations farmers to be able to participate in the EFP process," says Keith LePoudre, General Manager for First Nations Agricultural Council of Saskatchewan (FNACS). "There are 75 First Nations communities in Saskatchewan and about 1.6 million acres of agricultural land being managed by First Nations. That amount could double with treaty land entitlement."

"In effect, First Nations land is held in trust for the people by the federal government, so anything we do is subject to the Indian Act," says LePoudre. "In developing environmental farm plans, we work with the Chief and Council in each community to incorporate their input while at the same time ensuring the special requirements for First Nations lands are met."

"So far, the response has been very positive." says Usne. Keith LePoudre says credit for developing the program must go to the Agriculture Task Force under the leadership of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN) Vice-Chief Guy Lonechild and Lester LaFond, Chair of the FNAC. Without their vision and efforts, he says, the program would not likely exist.

Name: Gary Chapman
Location: Windham, Nova Scotia
Occupation: Blueberry producer

√ Completed an Environmental Farm Plan

"One of the things that made a difference for me is my environmental farm plan. My farm plan has helped me in terms of questioning some of my practices," he says,"...thinking about what benefits the operation."

Gary Chapman has been growing blueberries for a long time and has successfully minimized the use of pesticides and herbicides in his operation. His EFP identified practices that he could use to address concerns about soil erosion and pesticide storage. Recently, he built a separate pesticide storage area and implemented practices which are helping to correct severe erosion in certain areas of his fields.

"I have not been actively pursuing programs but when I read about this new Environment Program on the Internet I started to become excited," he says. "I was impressed with the program...the program has helped me speed up my timelines. Once I became involved in the program, I was amazed by the turnaround of a few weeks between the time I sent in the information and the feedback received. I will be there until the program is over."