The Rural Voice, 1980-08, Page 9carry away more top soil - it doesn't make
sense."
Without water runoff controls, Mr.
Alexander says we are subjecting our-
selves to disasters like the recent flood in
Port Hope. In that situation, he says, six
area children were killed because of
flooding of the Ganaraska River.
"We need reforesting programs to
prevent the excessive runoffs that result in
flooding."
Speaking of farm land, Mr. Alexander
suggests a minimum of 10 per cent of a
farmer's land should be treed. This, he
adds, helps prevent fast water runoff,
controls flooding and acts as a windbreak.
"We don't want to lose good farm land
to trees, but you should have that 10 per
cent on the farm at least," he explains.
Trees are only one solution and to
further explain his point, Mr. Alexander
has a model he hauls around in a small
green trailer that demonstrates 12 different
methods of erosion control.
SLOW RUN OFF
Some of the methods he demonstrates on
the operational model are used to slow the
speed of water runoff, others are used to
absorb excess water. Rocks embedded in
cement break the flow of water and help
slow it down; tiles that widen at one end
will also slow fast moving water; making
ditches wider, shallower and seeding them
is another method; and letting the water
drain into bush land to manage the water
table is yet another of Mr. Alexander's
ideas to prevent the incredible yearly loss
of soil.
"With this model, I'm not trying to give
answers, but rather raise the questions,"
he says, explaining he has taken the model
to plowing matches for farmers to look at.
"In the United States, water and land
management was the predominant thing,"
he says. "They then took advantage of that
land and used it for recreation."
"Here," he adds, "we thought of using
land for recreation first and not of land and
water management."
Land management, including erosion
and water runoff controls changing the
water table, affects us all, says Mr.
Alexander, "from the farmers in Huron
County to people in the cities in the south
suffering from a water shortage."
Norm Alexander farmed In Klppen until about
1940, when he moved to Londeaboro to work at
the General Store. It wasn't long after that he
opened his own seed business. Now, 40 years
later, Mr. Alexander has retired from the seed
business and begun a new career In erosion
control. Standing In front of his portable model,
Mr. Alexander demonstrates 12 different
methods he has developed to help control
erosion, a growing problem for Huron County
farmers.
THE RURAL VOICE/AUGUST 1980 PG. 7