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Growing public concern over run-off from livestock farms has prompted
several municipalities across Canada to introduce new environmental
regulations. It has also resulted in a progressive new research project
supported by the Canadian Water Network to ensure that farmers have
the tools they need to comply.
Nutrient management has become a critical agricultural issue, with
several jurisdictions passing new rules governing how manure should be
handled and managed on livestock farms. Finding practical ways to deal
with this issue is the goal of a Canada-wide research project studying
the social and economic effects of manure-management practices on farms.
Supported by the Canadian Water Network (CWN) and led by Dr. David Rudolph
of the University of Waterloo, the research will help evaluate the efficacy
of new environmental regulations.
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Saving the family farm
Canada's economic health has always depended on agriculture, and the heart of agriculture has always been the family farm. In recent years, however, with the global demand for economic efficiency, industrial-scale farms are replacing family-run operations. Rapid changes in the business and practice of agriculture across Canada are unprecedented, especially in the livestock sector.
The public pressure that led to stricter environmental regulations has also changed farm practices and inadvertently threatened the future of the family farm.
"Small-scale farmers wonder how they can afford to satisfy all the new requirements," says Dr. David Rudolph, a hydrogeologist at the University of Waterloo. "We are looking for management practices that will allow the average farmer to maintain an economic base without being unduly hampered by environmental restrictions." He adds that new small-scale technologies could help preserve the economic viability of the family farm.
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"Our work should give farmers tools for prioritizing the environmental risks that grow out of their livestock operations, and then show them how to minimize the greatest risks," says Dr. Rudolph, a hydrogeologist who is working with investigators and research associates from nine universities in five provinces and with collaborators from as far away as California. Their expertise spans the research spectrum, including economics, engineering, agriculture, statistics and risk management.
The project also includes participation from all three levels of government and from industry, consumer groups and non-government organizations. As well, livestock?commodities organizations and private companies have contributed funding for research. The CWN has brought the partners together often, both within and outside their specific research area. They have shared facilities and equipment, trained students in each other's laboratories and worked at each other's research sites.
"We're especially proud of the fact that this is very practically-based research," says Dr. Rudolph. "Much of our work takes place on farms and involves farmers. Bringing in economics makes it unique scientific research."
With its cross-pollination of ideas and resources, the team has installed the first passive wastewater system on a dairy farm to treat milk-house wastewater and run-off. Researchers have disseminated their findings at several conferences and seminars, and in more than 20 publications. The results will be valuable to livestock farms across Canada.
The future looks bright for this collaboration. Two provincial ministries have invited Dr. Rudolph to participate in the advisory committee that will develop and implement Ontario's new Nutrient Management Act. Some of the technologies growing out of this research might also yield new market opportunities for Canadian manufacturers.
www.cwn-rce.net
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