Youth engaged in world food security issues

A Manitoba high school student outlines what he learned from attending the recent World Food Prize Global Youth Institute Conference in Des Moines

Attending the World Food Prize Global Youth Institute Conference in Des Moines, Iowa, October 15-18, 2014 was an amazing opportunity. Through loads of very informative and thought-provoking information, the intense three days were an eye-opener to me about the world food production situation. This was the first time Canadian youth had participated in the event.

Don Cruikshanks, manager of the Deerwood Soil and Water Management Association, at a unique research site in the Pembina Hills where two watersheds meet. The location allows researchers to do comparative analysis of farm management practices related to water and nutrient management.  Photo: Laura Rance

Agriculture’s role in nutrient loss

Ultimately, storing water on the land isn’t just about flood control, it’s about capitalizing on available nutrients as well

Checking the news feeds across my conservation agriculture news, I see a common thread. Increased nutrient loads at Lake Erie, Chesapeake Bay, the ever-present “dead zone” of the Gulf of Mexico and calls for more action on the state of Lake Winnipeg. The human contributions are relatively constant, albeit constantly increasing, so when things go


No need to run for cover

No need to run for cover

Have we reached a "tipping point" on the issue of land drainage?

For farm writers who value their safety, there are usually two cardinal rules — don’t print anything bad about any breed of cattle, and don’t put good news on the front page (you get calls saying that we shouldn’t give the impression that farmers have lots of money). For Manitoba farm writers however, there is

wetland

New drainage regulations and water management strategy needed

Smaller drainage projects will be expedited under proposed regulations in the province’s new water management strategy

The Manitoba government last week announced two new plans for water management in the province, and while they won’t take effect until a public consultation process occurs, they will be positive for farmers. In the first document, Towards Sustainable Drainage new drainage regulations are outlined that mean producers will no longer need to complete a


Flooding at Portage diversion in Manitoba.

Rural infrastructure to get cash infusion

The numbers look impressive, but the breakdown between provincial and municipal spending 
needs to be examined when funding is announced

Municipal officials are welcoming the provincial government’s commitment to invest in infrastructure over the next five years. “On the municipal side we were pleased with the announcements that came. It’s nowhere near enough to cover the $11-billion deficit that we have in infrastructure, but this is a pretty good start,” said Doug Dobrowolski, president of

Storm clouds hover over the Arabian Sea in the southern Indian state of Kerala. India’s monsoon rains may arrive on the southern Kerala coast around June 3, a late debut that will raise fears any revival for drought-hit tracts of southern and western farmland could be delayed. photo: REUTERS/Sivaram

The Bonn Declaration

The following is the full text of a declaration released following a conference of 500 leading water scientists who attended the “Water in the Anthropocene” conference earlier this month in Bonn, Germany. In the short span of one or two generations, the majority of the nine billion people on Earth will be living under the


Drainage critics predict more water heading our way

Critics say Saskatchewan’s plan to increase crop production by 10 million tonnes by 2020 will greatly increase illegal drainage — and send more water rushing towards Manitoba. The provincial government’s ambitious plan, which also includes doubling agricultural exports by decade’s end, needs to be coupled with better water management, said Charles Deschamps, a Wadena-based resource



Blame the ditches for downstream woes, says border farmer

Ducks Unlimited expert says many farmers aren’t obtaining drainage permits 
because “it’s much easier to dig the ditch and then beg forgiveness later”

If farmers along the Assiniboine River are wondering where all that water came from this spring, Peter Onofreychuk believes he has a pretty good idea. On a giant aerial photo unrolled on his kitchen table, the farmer from MacNutt, Sask., shows where drainage ditches have been dug on land upstream from him by a 12,000-acre

Fury over new flood peg

The province’s apparent decision to make 2011 Lake Manitoba flood levels the new standard has raised the ire of area ranchers and municipal officials. “It’s fine for Mr. Topping to hope that we will raise our cottages and homes up to levels that would be safe in another flood. But we can’t raise the farm-