The Rural Voice, 1995-06, Page 26It has travelled down its glacial
valley of spectacular scenery
from the southwest. From the
Grey County townships of St.
Vincent, Sydenham, Euphrasia
and Holland, well to the north of
the Dundalk Highlands; from
among the rough lands of the
Niagara Escarpment, the
drumlins and pre -historic
beaches; a network of tributary
rills trickle from the marshes, and
farmers' field tiles. Gathering
volume as they flow — the
SHOWING THE WAY
Bighead River Demonstration Progam
shows farmers can work together to
help the environment
Story and photos by Merle Gunby
Minniehill, Walters, Bognor and
Rocklyn creeks — add their measure
of water to the Bighead River which
delivers it into the harbour at
Meaford where the glacier -carved
valley has been inundated by
Georgian Bay.
Unfortunately, even this little
river, in the enthusiasm of spring
run-off or after heavy rains, delivers
more than clear water to the harbour.
Doug Grant, Reeve of the town of
Mcaford, put it this way, "We have
about 240 acres of St. Vincent
Township in the bottom of our
harbour!"
That is why in July of 1993 when
Ray Robertson, a beef farmer from
Euphrasia Township, noticed a
pamphlet outlining a program that
offered funding for conservation
demonstration projects, he realized it
was a chance for local farmers to
rectify, in a public way, some
insidious erosion problems in the
Bighead River watershed.
The Grey County Soil and Crop
Improvement Association (GCSCIA)
agreed to sponsor such a project in
partnership with other organizations
and ministries. But someone still had
to prepare a detailed proposal (up to
40 pages). Robertson said he
believed it was out of his league, but
it finally came down to the old adage,
"If you want something done, you
have just got to do it." So with help
from people from the supporting
groups, a successful plan for the
Bighead River Demonstration
Project was prepared.
"We didn't get all that we asked
for," Robertson says. Of the
$600,000 applied for, the Bighead
project is allocated $300,000. "Some
of the proposals that we suggested,
such as the properly dealing with
milkhouse waste and barnyard
runoff, don't qualify for funding
under this plan."
At an introductory information
meeting the organizers were amazed
when a standing -room -only
crowd showed up. To date there
are 31 landowners participating
and 62 projects underway. By
the end of the sign-up period next
year Robertson expects there will
be about 65 landowners and 100
projects on the way to
completion.
The Bighead River Dem-
onstration Project is the largest of
10 similar ventures that are being
organized across Ontario under
the Wetlands/Woodlands/Wild-
life (WWW) program. This program
is a unique example of co-operation
between intergovernmental and non-
government organizations (NGOs).
It is funded by Agriculture and Agri -
Food Canada in co-operation with
the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture,
Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA)
and administered by the Canadian
Wildlife Service (CWS) through
Environment Canada. The WWW
program is part of the Agricultural
Green Plan, a Canada/Ontario
program intended to promote and
assist farmers with the design and
implementation of environmentally
sustainable agricultural practices.
There is $1,800,000 allocated for the
WWW program. That is scheduled
to end in 1997.
There is a diverse group of NGOs
sponsoring each of the 10 projects
John Brown has reinforced the bank
of the Bighead River where it runs
through his farm under the Bighead
River Demonstration Project.
22 THE RURAL VOICE