Irrigating Alberta Fall 2012

Alberta

Volume Sixteen • Number Two Fall 2012 • Price $3.50

Water quality remains a priority for most Albertans, but.... Cont on Page 26

Water use efficiency is a buzzword in irrigation,... Story on Page 14 Return on investment is another marker... Cont on Page 24

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Table of Contents Table of Contents........................................................................ 3

Alberta

Editors Column........................................................................... 4 From Germany to Canada........................................................... 6

is a proprietary publication of

TECH FEATURE - Turning Corners with New Technology......... 8 Thanks to Irrigation............................................................10 - 11 Insect Outlook Summer 2012................................................... 12 ON THE COVER - Crop Yields & Water Conservation......14 - 15 Irrigation for the Future............................................................ 18 ASK THE PROS - Delon Crapo, Oliver Irrigation...................... 20 SMRID...................................................................................... 22 Ducks Unlimited....................................................................... 23 ON THE COVER - $$ Money Management in Farming $$....... 24 A Letter From the Minister....................................................... 25 ON THE COVER - How Clean is Your Water?........................... 26

Head Office 1320 - 36th Street North Lethbridge, AB T1H 5H8 Toll Free: 1-877-328-0048 Phone: 403-328-5114 Email: adsales@farmpressltd.com Reproduction or use of editorial content in any manner without written permission is strictly prohibited.

Thank you for supporting our advertisers.

Without them, this publication would not be possible. Irrigating Alberta is proudly produced in Southern Alberta and distributed inside the Farmer/Stockman AD-Viser.

Productive Yields are in your Fields......................................... 27

Publisher Jeff Sarich

Lethbridge Mayor Rajko Dodic & Irrigation.....................28 - 29

Design & Production Sarah Lyon

Importance of Farm Safety....................................................... 30

Editor Ric Swihart Advertising Consultants Al Such, Mel McDonald Advertising Co-ordinator Sarah Still

Alberta

Volume Sixteen • Number Two Fall 2012 • Price $3.50

Water quality remains a priority for most Albertans, but.... Cont on Page 26

Cover Photo Credits: Snow and Bridge picture courtesy of Kacey Shier.

Visit Kacey’s Photography on Facebook for more details.

Water use efficiency is a buzzword in irrigation,... Story on Page 14 Return on investment is another marker... Cont on Page 24

IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012 • 3

Ric’s Column w

o easy, you say.

S Sprinkle a little water on some plants, wait for

Ric Swihart

the sunny, warm days, and harvest a bountiful crop.

Some call it irrigation.

And in simple, very simple terms, it can be called irrigation. All it takes is to drive by most modern irrigation farms to see modern technology at work just to get a better idea of irrigation.

A more informed position of this vital sector of agriculture in southern Alberta should be mandatory education for all. After all, irrigation accounts for about four per cent of Alberta’s arable land, yet produces about 20 per cent of food production, either for direct consumer use like beans, carrots and sweet corn to processed foods like sugar, potatoes (aside from table fresh product) canola oils and margarine, and then the vital value-added meat sector which includes beef usually fed alfalfa grown on irrigated lands to chickens and turkeys which are fed irrigatedgrain rations.

The Alberta government has spent big bucks on the irrigation industry, mostly infrastructure to allow irrigation districts to improve water conveyance while enhancing the environment with less seepage into the soils. When you add the extensive spending on farms to replace less-efficient sprinklers with centre pivot machines, which allow farmers to tailor water applications to crop, needs, you see a vibrant future. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada has also contributed to irrigated crop research, especially at the Lethbridge Agriculture Centre. Now you throw in the contributions of industry and producers to the team concept, and you have a mighty resource. A perfect partnership is evident at that centre. It is the Canada

Alberta Crop Development Initiative that created the Lethbridge Irrigation Development Centre on a chunk of centre land equipped by various irrigation systems and run by people who know and understand crops and irrigation.

The centre was established in 2000 with some strong ideals from both partners. It was designed to support irrigation-based crop diversification and environmentally sustainable technologies with an emphasis on optimum water management. Last year’s crops and projects profile shows the potential.

Irrigated crops work included water management modeling, potato variety trials and seed bed modifications, pivot automation, zone tillage of sugar beets and forage crop water use with alfalfa, sainfoin and fenugreek. It also did work on water management for berry production while running a demonstration and research project on irrigation canals. The project checked open channel measurement and pipe flow measurement. On the environmental front, work included wetlands development and buffer strip planting alternatives to guard irrigation canals from pollution.

All will be happy to know that crop water management and optimum crop productivity per cubic meter of water remain essential components of research and demonstration projects at the centre. That is because water remains a limiting factor to the future of southern Alberta. Since irrigation is the major water user in the province, that industry’s continuing search to find better ways to find improved and more efficient ways to use the valuable resource spells a strong future.

And when you consider the planet’s population is heading for more than nine billion, and that a large portion of the increased food production to meet basic human needs will come from irrigation around the world, the value of irrigation, and as important, irrigation farmers and researchers, stands out in all circles.

Some of the 40 members of the Alberta Farm Writers Association for a close-up look at some of the technology and research work being done to benefit producers and industry at the Canada Alberta Crop Development Initiative at the Lethbridge Agriculture Centre.

4 • IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012

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From Germany to Canada

One Farmer’s Historic Journey

G

erman tanks opening fire over the heads of Alex Bankonin, his single mom and three siblings, as the family scrambled for safety in a war-torn land remains vivid memories. But the safety of Canada, despite early hardships, translates into vivid memories of a different kind.

Bankonin’s family arrived in southern Alberta to work in sugar beet fields. The family was sponsored by a Baptist church, which paid $2 per family member for the boat ride to Canada. “We paid that money back.”

The federal government paid the train tickets to Alberta. Cost was $50 a person, an amount that was forgiven if the family stayed to work in sugar beets for two years. That was 1954, and his first job was with the Bosnic family in the Shaughnessy area. It was a time with no welfare. “We did okay with everybody in the family contributing, especially since the sugar beet housing in the Raymond area was free.”

He married in 1957, and managed to rent 80 acres in the Raymond area. Without the qualifications for a bank loan, he secured a loan at 24 per cent interest.

With a lot of struggle, and some help from friends, he managed to buy a quarter section in the Coaldale area.

The farmer who sold him the land took his land payments in sugar beets. He already had most of the machinery he needed. He eventually added two more parcels of land, ending up with 380 acres of irrigated land. “I was fiscally conservative,” said Bankonin. “I tried to live on half the farm income and used the rest to pay bills. We made out good.”

His beloved sugar beets were relinquished when he turned 65. “It was just too much work for me by then.”

He continued to canola and flax. cows, and raised Marga, whom he

farm, growing wheat, barley, At one time, he milked 10 chickens and pigs. His wife, met while still in Germany,

6 • IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012

worked side by side in spite of his old country thinking that farmers were second-class citizens.

They raised two daughters, and both live in Raymond.

Bankonin has lived through ups and downs.

He remembers his first grain cheque. It was for $2.10 a bushel, and “we thought we were doing pretty good.” He remembers when fertilizer sold for $50 to $60 a ton, but it was also a time when calves sold for 16 cents a pound. He has seen the consolidation of farms with size considered a factor for success, and ponders the future.

Bankonin officially retired as a farmer just weeks before his 80th birthday. His last act as a farmer was to deliver his final load of wheat to Lethbridge Inland Terminal near Wilson Siding. When asked if he had a magic wand and could live his life in Canada over, Bankonin smiled. “I would do it all over again,” he said. “I loved every minute of my farming work even though it often was a struggle. I was my own boss. I didn’t have to wait for opportunities. I was able to take control in my own home and to farm how I liked it.”

Time is freer now for Bankonin. Hobbies have come alive. At one time, he considered opening a camera shop to foster his love of photography. Now, he specializes in scenic pictures. He also loves astronomy and has a collection of telescopes to scan the sky. He has been asked why he and Marga didn’t move into a seniors lodge. He bought a home in Coaldale instead because be felt they weren’t quite ready for the home yet. “I know it is more work for us to look after ourselves, but we are also saving the taxpayers some money. Besides, we like to be independent. We feel we have accomplished a lot.”

IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012 • 7

Turning Corners with New Pivot Technology

This is a Valmont photo of a Bender 160 with corner arm on a field in Nebraska.

P

ivots generally circle open fields, and now, new technology from Valmont Industries allow producers to bend machines around field obstacles.

Bender 30, an attachment that allows a selected portion of a pivot to bend 30 degrees beyond the straight line of the machine, has been available for a short time. Dana Williams-Freeman, manager for Oliver Irrigation in Lethbridge, said his firm is introducing the Bender 160, an option that can be ordered with a new pivot or installed on an existing Valmont Valley machine, is ready to go. An added feature of the Bender 160 is capability to use a corner arm system to expand water application into more of the field corners.

Basic cost is $7,500, adjusted by the complexity of the installation, mostly additional valves needed to assure required water flow across the entire pivot.

The option can be installed at any pivot tower. It requires a water bypass system to connect with the main pipeline downstream from the main pivot point.

At that tower point, a system of water flow controls

8 • IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012

assures proper regulation to the end of the pivot.

Controls also regulate the speed of the pivot to further assure water is applied at the right rate.

Williams-Freeman said that since the first portion of the pivot stops when the Bender takes over, the Bender tower becomes the new pivot point while the pivot is irrigating land in the new bend zone. He said most producers will likely allow the bend portion to travel empty to the end stop and irrigate back, minimizing tire track issues. Once back to the new Bend pivot point, the entire pivot become a straight unit, controlled again by the main pivot point. WilliamsFreeman said the option becomes more useful as land prices continue to increase because farmers can irrigate more land with a single pivot.

“Anything a producer can do to irrigate more land at a low cost is money in the bank.�

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Thanks to Irrigation...

Visit the website to find out more: www.thankstoirrigation.ca

T

hree large billboards hit Calgary streets this year when Alberta’s irrigation industry launched a movement to confirm water allocations for farmers. Thanks To Irrigation, the brainchild of the Prismatic Group of Edmonton and Rose Country Advertising, is Alberta Irrigation Projects Association’s to expose the host of benefits irrigation holds for society.

Ron McMullin of Lethbridge, AIPA executive director, said the campaign is designed to reach urban sectors, that part of Alberta representing about 97 per cent of the population and vote, with the real value of irrigation’s use of the major renewable resource. “We are already a few generations removed from the farm,” said McMullin. “If people have no idea where water goes or how it is used, they have a hard time to understand and participate in public consultations.

Many have a one-sided view.” He said AIPA decided the industry had to be proactive to protect its water allocation into the future. “We want to be seen as a reliable source of information from all sources.” The timing of the information campaign comes when other vested interest groups and government are committed to a water policy review.

Thanks To Irrigation initially has a three-pronged approach to water use education. Nine billboards were used through Calgary for one month, and the public was invited to a sector website for more detailed information.

10 • IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012

T

he key messages:

• I rrigation is a vital part of standard and specialty crop production across southern Alberta. Value-added components of the sector, including food processing, is a natural addition to basic farming.

• The irrigation network is the reason 60 reservoirs are available for general public most used for recreation.

• I rrigation’s reservoir system, and its license structure to take water from rivers and streams, still supplies water to 40 communities across the region. At one time more than 50 communities were served directly by irrigation until a potable water pipeline project using City of Lethbridge Water was expanded to include many communities.

McMullin said the irrigation industry also supplies water to five regional water co-operative pipeline projects to supply water to hundreds of landowners. One of the larger projects is the Southeast Alberta Water Co-op. It takes water from Ridge Reservoir south of Raymond to hundreds of landowners stretching east to Manyberries and the Cypress Hills area. To ensure continued water supplies for that co-op, the United Irrigation District sold enough water licenses to accommodate the needs of the co-op.

IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012 • 11

Berth

Insect Outloo k Summ er 201 2

But c a army au w proble tion is valu orms no t expe ms in able in cted t so Meers o said s uthern rea the Vulcan -Strat be issue in ches, urvey of Ber hmore s for B a pes tha. O south tm er e ften th a Officia ere is tha Armywo anageme rea, which rn Alber ta ls will nt from this ye a slow rms is could carefu that b ar. ecom impor have Brook builde the lly monitor t p u s said ant th otentia p and plantphero is T t l u y h e e en all killing m of a s ar. 2012 cou sday. Scott armyw one traps Diam u ld dd this ye orms. ar use en, a majo be typical expec ond Ba d c t this y t o k collec r outbreak mo ear. H warnin . t adult e kno ths pose g for moths ws the a prob produ fieldsm cers if lem be migra en did tio c a to be in gra the annua nd where t n of the pe ause Meers l gras ssland h s doesn and a t and e mot sho re ex ’t h a “We a poised for reas and a pper surve may hit. M pects to ha know what to djacen y. Mos an ou re on ostly v e som m tb th t pote t dema ntial p unicipal ag e early nd con e bubble if reak, espe farmland.

Ma cia rob ric tr id in the south ol measure eal conditio lly if weath ny saw lot lems are e ultural .” s of h s. Still, er is h ns pe opper xpected ot and most o rsist f s last o d f r r t y h h e pote o in Ma The P y and fall, ntial s ppers,” he e a till is e s J leaf W low p xpecte aid. “Than une. op it may d in th do we ulations. T eevil sur e gras ve he ll slands six-no in those co weevil m y in late M a o de pla ndition y t h a w n d early on’t fl nt gro nitrog s. By y b wt en Ju th into n -fer tilizer fi h stage, da e time the elow 15 de ne last yea xing a itroge y m g rs re come age n in t warm in dro es while th howed very he so bility of the usually is spring ves, e e pea limit il b leg , pea crops said. C leaf w y legume c ume crops ed. The ma specially b e . e r in N f a o e o p it v r b im e s r il o s cou . But bage t gen fr p early ld be if om th act can be he ca seed a prob the right e t a he condit nola fields ir p co is lem th od ha io is yea nditions p conver ted numb ns this yea d to be spr weevil e r in so r er was in ayed. r. He uthern sist with a H te e proble s this year Alber t in wha xpects to s e cautioned resting las m pes a, he ty e t t in so p uthern he called a e the cabb roducers n ear becau s a o r e Alber t g eboun t a. d yea e seed pod to expect th not all r. He c e sam w e e vil in alled t e signifi he we cant evil a persis tent

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Crop Yields & Water Conservation S

eeding date and rate are important factors for bottom line cereal and oilseed production, says a Lethbridge provincial research and innovation specialist. Part of a 27-speaker panel at the twoday Irrigated Crop Production Update Conference in Lethbridge, Ross McKenzie said there are many factors for both topics. “You should consider test strips of cereal crops as early as soil moisture and temperature condition allow,” he said. “Then determine how that compares to your normal farm practice.” Farmers should also consider frost risk, and use caution when deciding when to seed canola.

McKenzie said farmers should know crop water used and requirements, including total water use in the growing season and daily water use in the growing season. To achieve optimum crop yield, farmers must also manage agronomic requirements and know crop nutrient needs. His work, started in 2006, included hard red spring wheat, soft white wheat, Prairie spring and durum wheat; malt and feed and silage barley; grain and silage triticale and canola and flax oilseeds.

Water use efficiency is a buzzword in irrigation, and Shelley Woods of Lethbridge reported final results from a research project launched in 2006. Woods, a soil and water research scientist with Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development, said the study showed that optimal irrigation strategy, maintaining 60 to 90 per cent of available water in the zero-to-40 centimetre range, gave best results. That has become the industry recommendation for irrigation management. Still, deficit irrigation can be a viable strategy in times of water shortage, she said. Producers must also know

14 • IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012

that crops can respond differently to irrigation rates.

She said year-to-year variability in climate and sitespecific events like hail are why researchers do field research trials for multiple years in multiple locations.

She said the results of the water use efficiency study should help producers make most efficient use of irrigation water for decision-making during times of water shortages.

In another paper, Woods pointed to the irrigated crop diversity within the 13 irrigation districts. Fourteen per cent or 184,500 acres produced specialty crops in 2010, four per cent or 57,400 acres other crops, 31 per cent or 426,800 acres cereal, 13 per cent or 183,900 acres oilseeds and 38 per cent or 512,300 acres forages. Those figures varied by district.

For instance, forages accounted for 61 per cent of Lethbridge Northern Irrigation District production that year while Taber Irrigation District producers raised that crop on 28 per cent of acres. The top crops in 2010, in descending order were: hard spring wheat, canola, alfalfa hay, tame pasture, barley grain, barley silage, corn silage, dry beans, potatoes, sugar beets, durum wheat, alfalfa silage and grass hay. The factors affecting crop mix ranged from economics, rotation schedules and environmental factors to irrigation factors, irrigation district expansion and agronomic factors.

Frank Larney, a soils specialist with the Lethbridge Research Centre, released results from his team’s 12-year irrigated crop rotation study at the Vauxhall research substation.

Some key highlights included beans planted in narrow rows showed equivalent yields as wide row plantings over time. The rotational effect on beans was nonsignificant over the 12 years. But there were higher levels of sclerotinia in narrow rows, with reduced yields in some years. Conservation practices were deemed essential when growing potatoes in a threeyear rotation, he said. The data suggests a nine to 19 per cent yield decline average in the period. It also showed that potatoes are most responsive to crop rotation. Sugar beets also responded to conservation practices with a six per cent yield response over the period. Wheat didn’t seem to care which rotation it was in, he said, as long as it wasn’t grown continuously. It was the least responsive to management practices of the four crops tested. Conservation practices received high marks for building up the soil over time. Plots farmed with conventional practices showed a drop of 10 per cent in soil organic carbon while soil organic carbon in plots farmed with conservation practices increased 10 to 20 per cent.

Ron Howard, a plant disease scientist at the Crop Diversification Centre South at Brooks, outlined a weather forecast from the Old Farmer’s Almanac as a setting for his crop disease predictions for this year. He said overwintering inoculums’ levels will be high for residue-borne diseases such as tan spot on wheat, net blotch and scald on barley, ascochyta blight on chickpea and pea, anrthracnose on lentil, and blackleg and black spot on canola. Cool spring conditions could delay germination and emergence, and late-season snowfalls may favour seed decay and seedling blight. Near-normal summer rainfall

and temperatures should result in moderate pressure from the common root, foliar and head diseases.

Warm and slightly wetter conditions in the fall may encourage development of late-season disease in some crops.

Rod Bennett of Lethbridge, a senior official with the irrigation and farm water division of Alberta Agriculture, spelled out new tools for on-farm irrigation management. The bottom line is when to irrigate and how much water to apply. Irrigation scheduling remains a strong suit in management, he said. It can help farmers save water and protect the environment, and potentially, to make money from production and save money by reducing energy costs for pumping water. Farmers use different ways to schedule irrigation. They include irrigate when the neighbour does, irrigate on fixed intervals, use visual plant stress indicators, measure or estimate soil water content, use a soil-water budget based on weather data or use weather-based computer models. Bennett pointed to the Alberta Irrigation Management Model software, and said combining with it pivot communication and control technology can produce a complete irrigation management system.

Shelley Woods

Frank Larney

IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012 • 15

16 • IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012

IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012 • 17

Irrigation for the Future S

ix nations, including Canada, will be expected to feed a burgeoning world population, and Alberta’s irrigation industry will be a key player, says a provincial agriculture leader. “My job is to put Alberta’s dry land and special crops irrigation sectors at the cutting edge of information,” said Brent Paterson of Lethbridge, executive director of Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development’s Irrigation and Farm Water Division. “We are doing things in different ways from 20 years ago go,” said Paterson. “The sophistication of growers is so high today and they are looking to the department for the latest technological and market information.”

The world’s population is predicted to pass 9.2 billion by 2050, but the middle class population will put even more pressure on food producers with expected demands of higher quality and variety of foods of their economic conditions continue to improve. “Those people will not want to continue to eat the same calories or types of food,” he said.

“They will want more of a western diet and the number of calories they will want will to up. I think the need for food will double, pushed up much more than just by increasing population.”

The good news for southern Alberta is the results of a number of studies — irrigation will be essential to meet a significant part of the increased food demand.

Paterson said already irrigation is essential to many of the foods grown here, and as the impact of warming trends through climate change arrive, irrigation will be the only way farmers will be able to grow many of the crops previously unavailable in the region’s traditional weather patterns. Researchers will be vital 18 • IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012

partners also when plant breeders find more crops suitable to southern Alberta conditions, he said.

Linked to increased food production will be increased food processing, with massive financial investment and many new jobs to meet the expected increased demand for processed food. Southern Alberta’s irrigation farmers already grow about 50,000 acres of dry beans, but most of that production is exported in raw form. “We have to find ways to process more of those beans here, and that can lead to greater rural development.”

Paterson’s division has been evolving; the latest move to put all water and irrigation programs under one umbrella. That also allows the division to work on three key parts of the world of water in agriculture — supply, management and quality. Alberta Environment and Water is another partner, he said.

That provincial department is caring for river,

stream and ground water issues, a massive job considering there are about 300,000 acres of irrigation directly from rivers and streams and 1.35 million acres within the 13 irrigation districts in southern Alberta.

There is room for more irrigation, and districts have sights set on another 160,000 acres. That expansion is proposed on the back of existing water allocations. Paterson said irrigation is only using about 55 per cent of the water allocated for farms.

While irrigation is the major water user in Alberta, and water license applications have been curtailed in some southern river basins, Alberta is not running out of water. The irrigation industry is helping itself through massive water use efficiency gains, said Paterson. “Districts are using 30 per cent less water than they did 25 years ago, and are irrigating more land.” Districts have been expanding about one per cent a year for many years.

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So here are a few tips that could save you some time and money and who doesn’t want to do that?

Drain the Equipment of water. When it freezes it is unforgiving.

Make sure that the spans, pumps, pipeline and valves are free of water. Keep in mind that if you use a Nelson valve at the pivot point it will hold the water in the riser pipe. The riser pipe must be drained.

Irrigation school comes around every year, hosted

by Oliver Irrigation. Delon Crapo is Oliver’s service manager in Lethbridge and he has divided the school information into two parts – for this issue matters that apply mostly to the fall season. In next spring’s Irrigating Alberta, Crapo will wrap up the school’s data with information more applicable to the spring season.

Plug holes and openings in panels, pipe and equipment.

When fall is in the air all critters are looking for a good place to hangout for the winter. Check all of your electrical equipment and panels for open holes that mice can get into. The damage that they can do by chewing electrical wires can be very expensive not only in repairs but the down time when the equipment isn’t ready to go when you need it to.

It’s hard to believe that the irrigation season is almost at a close for 2012. After all it seems as though it was just yesterday that the water started flowing and this year it never really quit. Coming from a couple of slower years and not much use on the machines, this year it was non-stop. So now is the time to put your feet up and take life easy. Not!

Park the machine properly.

We get a lot of wind here late in the winter and the early spring and they can do a lot of damage. You can minimize the damage to your machine if you park it in the same direction as the prevailing winds. Do not park your machine in deep wheel tracks. A section machine can shrink almost two feet and a standard machine a foot as the temperatures changes with the extreme cold to Chinook winds.

There is much that can be done to alleviate the stress and strain on your pivots for next year and now IS the time. I was taught a few lessons that stuck with me throughout my life and have served me well -- your first expense is your cheapest expense, do it right the first time, and just because it costs more, doesn’t mean that it cost more. (Think about it)

Check the Drive Train & Tower Boxes Drain any moisture off of the gearbox and center drive and top them off to the proper level. Blow out the tower boxes and panels and check the micro switches for leaf cutter bees as well as the contactors. Plug any holes with silicone to prevent any future problems. Do your panels as well while you’re at it.

Delon Crapo from Oliver Irrigation 20 • IRRIGATING ALBERTA -Fall 2012

IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012 • 21

SMRID

T

he massive St. Mary River Irrigation District St. Mary River Irrigation District continues to live its 112-year legacy to turn water into continuing and new benefits across southern Alberta.

LeRon Torrie of Grassy Lake, SMRID board chairman, says construction of the St. Mary River Irrigation Project and the arrival of water through the irrigation system to the then Town of Lethbridge in the Northwest Territories Sept. 4,1900 sparked the growth of the city, region and economy of Southern Alberta. This area, once described as a “treeless plain not fitted for the permanent habitation of man” has been transformed into one of the most densely populated and prosperous agricultural regions in Canada.

The benefits of irrigation extend beyond the direct impact of stabilizing, diversifying and increasing agricultural productivity, says Torrie. Domestic, municipal, industrial and recreational water users and wildlife conservation efforts rely on the irrigation infrastructure for their water supplies.

Irrigation is an important economic driver for the region that also provides significant community benefits for southern Albertans.

Today, the economy of the region is based on a thriving agricultural industry with more than 1.6 million acres under irrigation, including 1.36 million acres within Alberta’s 13 organized irrigation 22 • IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012

districts. It is estimated that the total annual agricultural benefits resulting from irrigation are in excess of $5 billion and account for more than 13,000 fulltime jobs. The monetary impact of recreational activities on reservoirs, including fishing, has been estimated at $29 million annually and more than 87,000 acres of wetland habitat have been created.

The SMRID delivers water through 2,060 km (1,280 miles) of canals and pipelines to approximately 375,000 acres of land south of the Oldman and South Saskatchewan Rivers between Lethbridge and Medicine Hat. The SMRID’s mission is to ensure the sustainability of the district through the development and maintenance of an efficient and cost-effective water delivery system for all water users within the district, while contributing to the economic, cultural and environmental viability of the region, says Torrie.

It operates with a team of 60 staff who operates and maintains canals and pipelines during the irrigation season as well as completing about $8 million of rehabilitation work annually.

SMRID has embraced technology and opportunities to improve the efficiency of water delivery and to make more water available for irrigation and other uses. Much of the District’s rehabilitation efforts consist of the

replacement of earth ditches with PVC pipe as well as automation of control structures and flow measurement.

Specialty crop production comprises 20 per cent of total crop production in the area.

Three distinct soil and climatic areas exist within the district with each suited to produce different specialty crops: • The Lethbridge/Coaldale area is a major producer of sugar beets and potatoes • The Bow Island area is well known for bean, corn and sunflower production and • The Medicine Hat area produces alfalfa, canola and flax.

The combined water savings from improved water conveyance through canals and pipelines and on-farm irrigation techniques were a major factor in the SMRID’s decision to proceed with expansion in 2011. An additional 53,600 acre feet of water was made available for use in southern Alberta since 1990. With water being a limited renewable resource in southern Alberta, SMRID’s emphasis is on the management and conservation of water resources through more efficient methods of conveyance, storage and application of water to meet the ever-growing demand for agricultural, domestic, commercial and recreational use.

D

ucks and water go together, some say, like bread and honey. With southern Alberta a major spot for migrating ducks and geese north and south, finding more habitats for various species has been a major role for Ducks Unlimited.

Morgan Stromsmoe of Blackie, head of uplands restoration for DU in Alberta, sings the praises of southern Alberta’s irrigation industry, which has been working in partnership on major water habitat developments since the 1940s.

The bias of the American-based wildlife organization, which raised millions to support habitat projects in western Canada, shows in some of the names of early projects in places like the Eastern Irrigation District, Western Irrigation District, Bow River Irrigation District, St. Mary River Irrigation District and Lethbridge Northern Irrigation District. Stromsmoe said irrigation was chosen for early conservation and habitat projects because of access to water to fill drained areas and created new wetlands, which could be maintained. He praised the co-operation of district boards, which supported development of natural wetlands. It boasts of 55,000 acres of wetland developed in and supported by irrigation districts. Stromsmoe said work in irrigated areas slowed in 2000, and armed with a new philosophy, DU shifted its target on areas outside of irrigation which had been drained by farmers in the search for more cultivated land or to improve efficiencies with the

advent of larger farm machinery. They included the Kitsim Project southwest of Brooks, which has 69 wetland basins, supplied with irrigation water. As part of a livestock-grazing lease, the wetlands create a water source for the cattle in addition to the waterfowl habitat.

Some question development of habitat for waterfowl, and while some crop can be damage, DU feels the birds generally frequent areas closer to rivers and streams. It has also developed a feed bait station program to attract birds away from crops. It also makes scare canons available if needed. Stromsmoe said DU has noted a decline in hunter numbers, and has launched programs to bring more youth into the sport. “It is sportsmen who are big supporters of conservation work. Hunters pour a lot of money into the general economy.” Until such programs pay dividends there likely won’t be as much incentive to create more habitat.

One major change needed is to show how wildlife habitat development is an economic generator, but society, not farmers and ranchers, should pay the cost. Also helping is a pending wetland policy which should become a permanent policy. It is already working. Oil and gas companies must pay compensation if they cause harm to wetlands. If one acre of a wetland is damaged, three additional acres of wetland must be created elsewhere.

IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012 • 23

M

oney anagement in Farming M

anagement has never been so important in agriculture, says a specialist with Meyers Norris Penny in Lethbridge. Mark Wobick told the Irrigation Production Update Conference there are many myths in farming yet there is no silver bullet to solve problems. “Management matters,” he said. “The key is to know your numbers and use them to make good management decisions for your farm.” Cost of production is a major player in the management of a farm, he said. Knowing the cost of production will allow a farmer to identify the most profitable crops on the farm, set price targets in a marketing plan, make it easier to know when to sell and help set target prices with buyers. “Many farmers are shocked when they see their cost of production for the first time,” he said.

It helps farmers build a disciplined management approach. Wobick said the cost of farming is up over time. He compared prices from 1995 — dry land up 320 per cent from $500 an acre to $1,200 to $1,600 an acre; irrigated land up 350 per cent from $2,000 an acre to $3,000 to $7,000 an acre, and; a large combine up 250 per cent from $150,000 to $375,000.

Return on investment is another marker. It is the net income as a percentage of the farm’s total farmbased investment, and a measure to determine how well the investment is performing.

24 • IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012

Economies of scale was one, and his figures show that bigger is not always better for return on investment on an Alberta irrigated or dry land farm.

Another myth is increasing machinery investment increases yields and reduces costs, or result in a higher income. Linked to that is the myth that the more acres farmed, the lower the machinery costs should be. Also on the cost side, Wobick showed that repair costs would not decline with investment in better or newer equipment. Wobick said there are many economic factors on farms. “Yield matters, what you seed matters, investment in machinery, buildings and land matters, cost control matters, prices matter, size doesn’t matter and does matter,” he said. But he stressed management really matters, especially for 2012-2013 which will be uncertain for grain companies, the Canadian Wheat Board and farmers.

Farmers can best prepare for the year ahead by knowing all their costs to produce a unit of crop.

“Don’t just rely on gross margin.” He said the toughest numbers to calculate are overhead costs, especially on a mixed farming operation. Remembering that gross margin doesn’t include many costs, overhead includes fuel, repairs, maintenance and utilities; land and building taxes; depreciation or replacement cost for buildings and equipment, and; living expenses.

A Letter from the Minister Diana McQueen

is Alberta’s new minister of Environment and Sustainable Development in her second term as MLA from her home at Drayton Valley. She has taken on new responsibilities from her first cabinet position as minister of Environment and Water. She has extensive experience as a co-chair of Climate Change Central, a non-profit organization that encouages citizens to use consumer rebate programs, demo projects and educational outreach plans to take action on climate change.

T

here’s nothing more fundamental to life than access to a safe and secure water supply – the importance of water to Albertans’ quality of life was highlighted by the recent name change of the department to Alberta Environment and Water.

Adding water to the official title of the department signals the government’s commitment to ensure better management of this finite and essential resource.

Several important water initiatives are already underway to ensure the quality and quantity of water that’s required to support the environmental, economic and social needs of Albertans remains strong for the future, including the review and renewal of Alberta’s water allocation system, the creation of a made-for-Alberta wetlands policy, the South Saskatchewan River Basin water management plan, and the creation of a new environmental monitoring system for the entire province, starting in the oil sands region.

Alberta’s current system for allocating water has been in place for more than 100 years – and our system must allocate water in a way that protects the resource for the environment and human use while allowing economic growth to continue. I’m prepared to take a hard look at how our water resources are allocated, and how agriculture, municipalities and industry can best continue to thrive in a sustainable manner.

This is one area where input from Albertans is crucial.

If we are to build a system that upholds the values of Albertans, they must be involved in decisions that help us strike the right balance between the needs of the environment and those of growing communities, the agricultural sector, and the economy.

Though a timeline for public engagement has not yet been finalized, it’s important that Albertans become involved in the process to ensure a strong water management system long into the future. No decisions on a renewed water allocation management system will be made without first consulting with Albertans.

And I must make it clear that Alberta’s water is not for sale.

Another area where government has made significant progress is a province-wide wetlands policy. Work done to date has shown us that a one-size-fits-all policy does not take into account the regional diversity that exists in the province. What we need is a madein-Alberta solution, a policy that works for all regions in Alberta and considers that wetlands vary in form, value and function.

In wetland-depleted southern Alberta, for example, the concept of a strict one-for-one replacement of wetlands may not go far enough, whereas in northern Alberta where wetlands are abundant, we need to ensure we don’t put ourselves in a box that may require us to replace a higher value forest with a wetland. Work going forward will ensure we make the most appropriate management decisions about wetlands. A completed wetlands policy is expected in 2012.

In addition to these two major initiatives, the South Saskatchewan River Basin water management plan has been in place since 2006. It is a long-term plan for managing water supply in southern Alberta. In developing the plan, tough decisions were made to balance the environment with economic growth to help build southern Alberta as we know it today – a region with vibrant communities and a thriving agricultural sector.

Together, in consultation with Albertans, will take action to make a good system even better. Through regional planning and cumulative effects management we intend to further strengthen our approach to managing water from source to supply.

We know that the world is watching and we will continue to be at the forefront of effective and groundbreaking environmental policy. I am proud of the work to date on water management in Alberta. We have a proven record of effective conservation and protection thanks to the cooperation of Albertans, agricultural industrial and municipal partners and water stewardship organizations. I encourage Albertans to learn more about the ways the Government of Alberta is addressing water conservation and protection at www.environment.alberta.ca.

IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012 • 25

How Clean is Your Water? - Water Quality Study each site four times a year. She said assessed changes in water quality as water travels through the irrigation system, and from district to district. In the St. Mary River Irrigation District, seven sites were sampled to determine differences in water quality in closed pipelines and open canals. Only at two sites — one in the Western Irrigation District near Strathmore and a return flow site in the Eastern Irrigation District near Brooks — were rated for marginal water quality due to elevated concentrations of herbicides, bacteria, and even salinity. Kalischuk said the water quality standards for nutrients and metals were met most of the time.

Head of the Water Quality section for Alberta Agriculture’s Irrigation and Farm Water Division Andrea Kalischuk

W

ater quality remains a priority for most Albertans, but most have no worries with water treatment plants meeting the standards for most urban residents.

Andrea Kalischuk of Lethbridge, head of the water quality section for Alberta’s Agriculture’s Irrigation and Farm Water Division, is working to make sure the province’s major water user — irrigators — also have access to quality water for their crops.

A major study determined that water quality for irrigation in Alberta was generally good or excellent.

“Water quality is linked to agricultural production . . . and quality production is reliant upon clean source water,” she said in an interview. Quality can be an issue because it can deteriorate in a number of ways, including land use impacts from agricultural, industrial, urban and rural development. Kalischuk set out to assess the quality of source water used to grow food with irrigation.

The two-year study examined water quality in 11 of southern Alberta’s 13 irrigation districts. Eighty sampling sites were selected with water tested from 26 • IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012

Pesticides were detected in most samples, and herbicide guidelines for irrigation were frequently exceeded, a possible concern for some specialty crops. No work has been done to document potential impacts of herbicides in irrigation water on crop production in Alberta. The work has paid dividends, she said. The irrigation industry has decided five more years of monitoring should be done. That work will end in 2015. That study will look at irrigation’s impact on water quality, including movement of water off irrigated fields. About 20 best management practices, such as creating buffer zones between irrigated lands and streams or rivers to halt movement of possible contaminants from fields, or excluding cattle from water sources, will also be monitored. “We want to measure changes or improvements,” she said.

There are many reasons for more research on water quality. Doing it now may prevent bigger problems.

That urgency has broadened the research web, said Kalischuk. The Alberta Intensive Livestock Working Group, headed by manager Ron Axelson, is on board.

That group speaks for cattle, pork, poultry and dairy sectors. “It wants to work with us,” she said.

Taber Irrigation District

TID

Specialty Crop Country

(Established in 1915) Taber is the centre of specialty crop production and value added processing in Alberta including sugar beets, hay, potatoes, corn and many other vegetable crops.

4420 - 44 Street, Taber, Alberta T1G 2J6 Telephone: (403) 223-2148 • Fax: (403) 223-2924 Email: tid@telusplanet.net

TABER IRRIGATION DISTRICT Serving over 82,000 acres and 750 water users in the Taber area

Productive Yields Are In Your Fields M

apping soil variability on irrigated fields can help producers boost production, says Rob Dunn of Lethbridge, an agriculture land management specialist with Alberta Agriculture.

Remote sensing imagery and electrical conductivity meters are important tools, Dunn told a pack house at Irrigated Crop Production Update 2012.

He said a produce can consider mapping a field, but such work “obviously is not for everybody.”

Many who map a field realize benefits because they know the zones of a field. “That can become a potentially important management tool,” said Dunn.

Soils are important drivers for yield, and for potential crop and rotation options. It is not just for fertilizer inputs. For instance, seed populations are potential factors for production advantages. But producers must target soil and land management options, including how to manage water. Dunn said there are challenges with field variability, and it becomes obvious when looking at a soil map. For instance, it allows a producer to check the impact of root-zone salinity on wheat types.

Research shows the variability between species types of wheats on saline soils even at low saline rates. Barley also shows production variability even when it is considered a more salt-tolerant crop.

Special crops are also affected. Yield impact has been found on seed potatoes and dry beans are very susceptible. Dunn said the work has provided some knowledge of soil variability; it can be really valuable for producers who want to use variable rate applications for some production inputs.

Soil Description for Soil Polygon: (example)

Producers must realize variable rate applications rely on sound agronomy zones. Ideally, producers should be using several soil layers to determine the most appropriate zones. Usually, they could be managing for five to seven zones. Dunn said topography maps could be another valuable management tool.

Topography can affect dry land fields even more than irrigated land, he said. It relates profoundly to soil type. Unique texture and fertility of the soil and soil water levels can all be factors. Sensor based soil electrical conductive mapping is a practice that can be combined with other data as an effective way to identify field agronomic zones, he said. For our soil types, most of the variation of electrical conductivity is likely due to soluble salts that are unique to most soil type.

IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012 • 27

Lethbridge Mayor Rajko Dodic and Irrigation

If not for agriculture, “we would not be here,” is Lethbridge Mayor Rajko Dodic’s strong message about the industry many feel is the economic engine for all of southern Alberta.

“That is my simple message,” Dodic said in his second floor City Hall office, comfortable running the city with a strong background earned in his lawyer career. And irrigation is a major part of the agriculture sector, he said.

Dodic isn’t a stranger to agriculture. He arrived in Lethbridge in 1957 with his family, immigrants sponsored by the Catholic Church, to work in the sugar beet sector. A Boras farm in the Picture Butte area was the family’s first stop, and the waiting sugar beet field needed hoeing.

A native of the former Yugoslavia, Dodic remembers living in a refugee camp in Italy for more than a year before the move to Canada. He also remembers weeding rows of sugar beets with his family members, and others, including First Nation’s workers who amazed him by their work efficiency and speed. He also worked at Marty’s asparagus farm located about where the former Woolco Mall was built.

The Veldman family, harvesting sugar beets in Coaldale, Alberta in 1956. This would of been a similar experience as Rajko Dodic’s on the Boras farm in Picture Butte in 1957.

Photo from Glenbow Museum Archives.

He has long realized the impact of the agriculture industry, pointing to new and old processing firms like Parrish and Heimbecker in the former Ellison Milling facilities, Maple Leaf Foods and Canbra Foods to the newer Sakai Spice and Sunrise Poultry.

Sakai moved into Lethbridge on the back of years of faithful service supplying mustard to the Tokyo-based firm

by Demeter Agro and the McDonnell family.

Dodic recognizes a limited hands-on agricultural experience, but a willingness to learn. Meetings with the County of Lethbridge across 4th Avenue S. from city hall, contact with Hutterites, experience with Exhibition Park through city ownership and aldermanic representation on the park’s board of directors, attendance at Ag Expo and the North American Seed Fair, and mingling with producers at the two Lethbridge farmers’ markets adds to his understanding.

He isn’t certain of the level of understanding of the importance of agriculture among rank-and-file city residents.

But all have an opportunity to appreciate farmers and ranchers with every morning breakfast. They should know most of it is grown, processed and distributed here, and the grocery store can be considered the final link between farm and consumers.

Dodic recognizes that agriculture touches the lives of many city residents. Lawyers and accountants, for instance, do major work with agriculture. City car and truck dealers benefit, and the list goes on.

28 • IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012

Dodic points to the Lethbridge College and University of Lethbridge as magnets for farm and ranch students. The U of L’s water chair is a signal of the importance of irrigation to the region’s economy.

He takes pride in the contributions of many long-serving farmers and ranchers. Former MLA and MP Ray Speaker has been involved with the U of L, and his wife Ingrid followed suit.

And while some next-generation farm people return to carry on the tradition, others leave the industry to make their mark on society, people like Ron Sakamoto who runs Gold and Gold, a major entertainment firm.

While hands-on knowledge of agriculture may be lacking in urban southern Alberta, support in times of crisis has been proved, said Dodic. When BSE hit Alberta in 2003, urban and rural Albertans rallied to support the beef industry, and to work to re-open global markets.

“It proved that when an issue comes up that affects our rural neighbours, we all become Albertans,” he said.

Dodic welcomed the interview, admitting it brought back memories.

Like the time his mother worked at the Broder Canning Co. plant when it was located in north Lethbridge. It canned corn and peas.

One payday, his mother home with 40 1959 silver “That must have been a good week.”

1959 Silver Dollar

came dollars,

Broder Canning Co. Lethbridge, Alberta in 1960.

Photo from Faye West, My Genealogy Pages (www.fayewest.ca: viewed Nov 2010).

And he remembers milk deliveries at the family’s two-storey home at 13th Street and 7th Avenue N. in 1958 and 1959, a milk wagon pulled by horses. Later, when the family moved and met neighbour John Credico, the horse-drawn milk wagon was discussed. It turns out Credico was the last horse driver for one of the two Lethbridge dairies.

IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012 • 29

Importance

of

Farm Safety A

uto reclosure following a power disruption might be convenient for customers and utility companies, but it might be a major injury and death threat for farmers and their families and workers, says the head of the Farmworkers Union of Alberta.

Auto reclosure is a technical term for the automatic resumption of electrical service following a disruption to service for any reason like a bird or farm machine making contact with a power line.

Eric Musekamp of Winnifred asked for a study into auto reclosure and its potential impact on farm safety about two weeks ago. Pierre McDonald of Edmonton, administrator and chief inspector for electrical safety services for Alberta Municipal Affairs, summarized his findings with a report to Musekamp and other government officials Friday.

His enquiry highlights include: • Utility companies reported that only individual local operating staff extract reclosure information for analysis and there is no database to provide the number of reclosure operations on all distribution lines; • Statistics related to the cause of reclosures are not typically recorded by utility companies, and; • Utility companies confirmed that automatic reclosures are necessary to maintaining reliable service on distribution lines and there is no alternative solution to the use of automatic reclosures.

McDonald said his department also continues to work with Alberta Agriculture Food and Rural Development to develop education materials and to promote awareness of the dangers when working around electrical lines. Musekamp admits increased safety education is critical, but too often, at farm safety seminars and workshops, participants appear uninterested. He doesn’t notice any increase in talk about farm safety and electricity following such sessions, but feels there may be some hope by starting the safety education message with producers’ children. That is the thrust behind the Alberta Farm Safety Centre in Raymond. It has the mandate to send its farm safety lecturers to every Grade 1-6 class in rural schools in the province.

Last year, the safety centre visited 2,620 classrooms in 468 rural schools, including 165 Hutterite colony 30 • IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012

schools, to provide farm safety material to 52,420 students. That is up from 47,611 students educated in 2008-2009 when the program was implemented province-wide. Musekamp said education might be working, but it will be years before those students are farmers or farm workers when they can implement their safety knowledge. He continues McDonald learned a little about auto reclosure, but is disappointed with the lack of statistical data available through utility companies.

Musekamp admits he can only estimates the number of auto reclosure incidents that are triggered by farmer involvement with the potential for injury and death.

While utility companies may not have that information, Musekamp is certain the linemen know the number of auto reclosure incidents. In the trade, linemen call auto reclosure a “trip saver.”

3005 – 18th Ave. N., Lethbridge, Alberta

PHONE: 403-329-8686 Daytime & After Hours: Call Toll Free 1-800-461-5356 email: hanloneq@telus.net www.hanlonag.com IRRIGATING ALBERTA - Fall 2012 • 31

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