Growing Opportunities

July 2023 - Issue 17

AG TEAM UPDATE

There have been lots of happenings and goings on in the last few months! Everything except much rain. Earlier this spring, we had a great discussion about food hubs and networks at the 2023 Regional Business Forum in Telkwa, and there was a flurry of Annual General Meetings and other gatherings - cattle associations, farmers' institutes, farmers' markets and other grassroots agriculture associations - all making plans for this growing season and beyond.

For those with ambitious projects in the works, there has been some funding available this spring through the Provincial government, and there should be more to follow. Much of the program funding comes through the newly inked Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (SCAP). This overarching agreement is between the federal government and the provincial government, and has a 5 year term. This is year one of the new agreement, so there has been a transition time as we move from the previous Canadian Agricultural Partnership Agreement into SCAP.

Everyone has their head down trying to keep up with the crazy schedule of summer, but please keep your ears and eyes out for the different opportunities and events that are coming our way over the next few months!

RDBN Information Notice - Drought

Important drought information including links to the Drought Information Portal, Soil Moisture Maps, Water Conservation Tips and a link to the BC Wildfire Services Dashboard.

Drought Information Notice

Dryland Forage Selection

Several factsheets were developed for a project focused on "Selecting Suitable and Adaptive Dryland Forage Crops and Varieties" completed by Nadia Mori as part of the Climate Change Adaptation Program (2023). Objectives of the project included pulling together regionally-relevant information on forage species and different varieties that have adaptation potential, and evaluating the efficacy of the Forage U-Pick tool for our zone in BC (check out the Forage U-Pick tool here).

A couple of the factsheets are included below (click on the photo for the link), the rest and more information on the Forage U-Pick case studies can be found on here.

Alfalfa Fact Sheet

How to select and manage your alfalfa stand for quality, quantity, and longevity.

Prepared by Nadia Mori, P.Ag.

Brome Grasses Fact Sheet

Prepared by Nadia Mori, P.Ag.

Wildfire Season & Livestock Evacuations

Livestock Emergency Information

The video below contains essential information for producers that have livestock, regardless of what size of farm you own. The Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako website has other links containing information on livestock emergencies here.

Also the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako has a link to Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) information on their home page: www.rdbn.bc.ca. Check this link out to access information on current Evacuation Alerts, Evacuation Orders and Hazard Notices.

Agriculture Water Infrastructure Funding

Improving Water Security

A new funding program has become available through Investment Agriculture Foundation of BC (IAF) that focuses on areas increasingly affected by climate change. Program objectives include increasing water infrastructure efficiency, increasing water storage, with emphasis on irrigation and livestock watering. To find out if you are eligible, and to apply for funding, go the the IAF website here. Make sure that you register in the Investment Agriculture Foundation client portal as it can take a couple of days for your registration to be confirmed. You need to be registered before you can apply for any of the funding programs offered through IAF.

Water Infrastructure Program

Please let us know what you'd like to see in the next Growing Opportunities eNewsletter!

Megan D'Arcy, Agriculture Coordinator
Phone: 250-692-0783
Email: megan.darcy@rdbn.bc.ca