While farmers are using fertilizer efficiently today, drainage is mobilizing phosphorus already stored in the soil.  photo: ©thinkstock

Manitoba farmers credited for using fertilizer efficiently

Manitoba farmers credited for using fertilizer efficiently New research by the International Institute for Sustainable Development has confirmed what Keystone Agricultural Producers president Doug Chorney already knew about how farmers manage fertilizer in this province. After comparing how much synthetic fertilizer Manitoba farmers use in every municipality across agro-Manitoba against the nutrients removed by crops,



New study says Brazil beats Iowa in protecting waterways from eutrophication

Brown University study finds deficient Brazilian soils hold 
on to phosphorus while rich Iowan farmland is spoiling 
waterways even though much less of the fertilizer is being applied

A new American study has turned a long-held belief on its head by discovering that — in one respect, anyways — growing soybeans in Iowa is environmentally worse than growing them in the former Amazon rainforest. Researchers from Brown University found Iowa farmers are doing more harm to waterways than their counterparts in Matto Grosso,

Tripartite agreement signed to promote nutrient management in Manitoba

The Canadian Fertilizer Institute will spend $150,000 over three years 
with the Manitoba government and KAP as its partners

Anew program promoting improved nutrient management among Manitoba farmers was launched last week by the Canadian Fertilizer Institute (CFI), the Manitoba government and the Keystone Agricultural Producers (KAP). The three signed a 4R Nutrient stewardship memorandum of understanding Jan. 15 during Ag Days. CFI will provide $150,000 over three years to fund the extension program,


Milk house waste considered manure

Dairy Farmers of Manitoba is looking at ways to assist producers in the face of an upcoming ban on winter manure spreading, which will also affect milk house waste. Under the Save Lake Winnipeg Act, milk house wastewater is considered a manure product, and must be stored until spring. This regulation also rules out the

City charged for releasing sewage into Red River over seven-week period

They’re not blaming farmers for this one The provincial government has charged the City of Winnipeg for releasing “a large amount” of partially treated sewage into the Red River a year ago. The release of the effluent, which had high levels of fecal coliform and E. coli, began on Oct. 7, 2011 and lasted for


Netley-Libau project wins innovation award

The Netley-Libau Nutrient-Bioenergy Project has been recognized by the Manitoba Round Table for Sustainable Development as it seeks commercial opportunities for its findings. After receiving the award for Innovation and Research for Sustainability at the Manitoba legislature, lead researcher Richard Grosshan said the focus of the project has changed since he began work at the

Farmers want an exemption

A warm, dry spring has the Manitoba government reconsidering its new nutrient application rules that prevent fertilizer applications before April 10, a provincial official said March 15. “If the warm weather conditions continue and soils across the province are fully thawed, then the department (Conservation and Water Stewardship) will consider a blanket variation for all


Red River nutrient management plan in the works

Plans for a nutrient management strategy for the Red River watershed have been endorsed by the International Red River Board of the International Joint Commission. Representatives of North Dakota, Minnesota and Manitoba, the Red River Basin Commission (RRBC) and federal agencies from both countries have agreed to work together across various jurisdictions within the watershed.

Egypt Searching For Alternatives To The “Black Cloud”

Each autumn, Egyptians take a deep breath and brace for the black cloud, a thick layer of smog from burning rice straw that spreads across Cairo and the Nile valley for several weeks. Burning agricultural waste, mostly rice straw, turns the capital s already noxious air into an even more toxic mix. Farmers produce about