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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1997-04-02, Page 13THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2,1997 PAGE 13. Members of_Parlia!nent dinner MPP Johns defends government OMAFRA cuts Concerns that the budget for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food will be cut by 25 per cent are premature and probably exaggerat­ ed, Huron MPP Helen Johns told the Members of Parliament meet­ ing of the Huron County Federation of Agriculture, in Clinton, March 22. When the Huron County Dairy Producer Committee opened the subject of budget cuts to OMAFRA, saying the ministry's budget has already been cut 44 per cent in the past five years and the government is now proposing to cut 25 per cent more, Johns said "Obviously I believe this (the con­ cern) is premature at this point. Nobody knows what is happening with the budget.” The government has asked every ministry to look at the budget and start at the beginning, looking at all priorities in the programs. "Every­ body says (the government) asked for 25 per cent cuts. I don’t believe 25 per cent cuts are going to hap­ pen. I don't believe it will be zero per cent." Johns said the Conservative par­ ty's rural caucus has "done the best we can to convince cabinet there should be no more cuts (to agricul­ ture). I can't tell you today if there is or isn't cuts in the next budget." Ken Kelly, vice-president of OFA wondered why, if there weren't going to be substantial cuts to OMAFRA, the government asked the ministry to prepare a business plan to deal with 30 per cent cuts. "It takes a lot of staff, time and resources from a ministry already cut to the bone," he said. "If we are not making substantial cuts, why are we wasting resources?" Johns argued at length that mak­ ing a business plan was just a busi­ ness-like way of running government. Kelly said he agreed, but it was the 30 per cent cut he was asking about not the business plan. Johns took issue with a proposal from the Huron County Com Pro­ ducers Association that the govern­ ment should be putting money back into agriculture. Agriculture they argued, "has strong growth poten­ tial and is the primary economic engine of rural Ontario. OMAFRA plays a vital role in this growth." Johns said it would not be realis­ tic to think the government could put more money into agriculture when it is trying to balance the budget. The government did, how­ ever, reinvest money by the retail sales tax rebate on building sup­ plies and through the Grow Ontario program, she said. The government has also reformed the farm tax sys­ tem, something farmers have been demanding for 26 years. But Wayne Hamilton told both Johns and federal MP Paul Steckle that cutting funding to agriculture is hurting one of the engines of the economy. "You're just shooting yourselves in the foot. You're short-changing the deficit (fight). It's like planting com and cutting your costs by not using nitrogen (fertilizer)." Henry Boot, HF A president, said the Ontario government is regularly comparing itself to the Alberta gov­ ernment, yet Alberta has 1962 peo­ ple working for its agriculture department compared to 970 in Ontario, despite the fact Ontario produces 25 per cent of the farm income in Canada while Alberta produces 22 per cent. Jack Flanagan of the Huron County Beef Producers said if Ontario farmers are to compete with American farmers they must have access to the kind of research and advice U.S. farmers are getting through their state agricultural departments. Kelly said the ministry is being asked to do more with less when Rural Affairs was tacked onto its mandate. OFA, he said, supports the idea of rural affairs but new money must be provided for this. Bill Wallace, a past president of the Huron Federation, said the emphasis of the restructured OMAFRA seems to be toward get­ ting farmers information about new technologies. But equally important for OMAFRA is being in the field and getting information on the needs and concerns of farmers and feeding this back to the top, he L NMP implications draw concern Huron County farmers are con­ cerned about the implications of a new bylaw that requires large new livestock buildings to have a Nutri­ ent Management Plan. The concerns were raised by the Huron County Pork Producers in their brief to the Huron County Federation of Agriculture's Mem­ bers of Parliament Dinner in Clin­ ton, March 22. Speaking for the pork producers Henry Vanderburgt said the county needs a policy that "is safe as well as workable". Not everyone at the meeting was sure the new county plant, which townships can adopt or adapt if they wish, is workable. The plan calls for large livestock operatqrs seeking to build a new facility or expand an existing one, where more than 150 livestock units are involved, to prepare a Nutrient Management Plan (NMP), which will look at the amount of manure to be produced and how it can safely be disposed. Taken into consideration will be the type of land to be spread on, the size of the acreage and the ability of the crops to take up the nitrogen before it can contaminate water supplies. Bill Wallace, a Seaforth-area dairy farmer, said he was con­ cerned about the amount of land required for spreading manure. His son, away at university, says they will need 180 cows if they are to work together on the farm, Wallace said, but that would require more land for manure and he didn't know if he could get the needed land. With rising land prices, he said, "the corporations are the only ones who can afford the land." But Wayne Caldwell, senior planner with the Huron County Planning and Development Depart­ ment, who has shepherded the NMP plan through the early going, said there is no requirement under the plans that the farmer own the land to be used. "Part of the chal­ lenge is to look at manure as a ben­ efit," he said. Wallace agreed manure is a resource, but he worried about reports he'd heard that some town­ ships are considering a requirement that 80 per cent of land used in the NMP be owned by the livestock producer. Neil Vincent, East Wawanosh farmer and OFA regional director for Huron North East, worried about the policing of the NMP. Caldwell said there is no provi­ sion for policing by the townships. "The idea is to make sure when the operation is set up it is working well," he said. "It doesn't go beyond the (issuing of) building permits." Norm Fairies, reeve of Howick Twp. warned there is a saturation point for putting manure on land. "I don't think anyone here wants another North Carolina," he said. (There have been bad cases of manure pollution from large live­ stock operations in that state.) Henry Boot, president of the HFA agreed, saying, "We don't want to wait until we get to North Carolina's state before we act." But Ken Kelly, OFA vice-presi­ dent, warned against over reacting. OFA, he said, wants farmers bound by the Environmental Protection Act and the Water Resources Act. The vast majority of farmers are concerned about doing the wrong thing, he said. It's only a few peo­ ple society needs to be protected against. "Farmers are concerned about doing the wrong thing for the right reason, putting up too many barri­ ers," he said. Foreign buyers boost land prices As land prices start rising again, new concerns are being expressed by farmers about demand from non-Ontario residents driving up prices to the detriment of young people trying to get into farming. Dave Linton of Morris Twp. told the Members of Parliament Dinner of the Huron County Federation of Agriculture, March 22, of a 23- year-old neighbour who tried to buy a farm but was outbid by a for­ eign buyer who used the house as a country home while renting out the land to a relative. This kind of trend, Linton said. "is just going to kick the hell out of the rural community. This is a long-term disaster waiting to hap­ pen,” he told Paul Steckle, MP for Huron-Bruce. In recent months farm land prices have started to increase again with prices reported, in a recent issue of The Rural Voice, as high as $4,000- $5,000 per acre for land in southern Huron and Perth. Steckle agreed with Linton's con­ cern but said "it's an impossible issue." Selling a farm is an agree­ ment between a buyer and a seller, he pointed out. The seller wants to get the best price possible. "We can't interfere in an agreement between two people," he said. ”1 think there needs to be a way of helping young farmers get start­ ed," Linton said. Mason Bailey said this has been a concern of farmers for 30 years and still the number of farmers con­ tinues to drop. In 30 years from now, he wondered, will there be two farmers left in each township? Still, he said, the problems of young fanners aren’t unique. "Kids can't start in a hardware store either." said. "If OMAFRA is cut much more, then you might as well trash the whole thing," he said. Picking up on Johns' remark about the gov­ ernment helping people make deci­ sions at the local level, he told her "They're not going to be making decisions in Huron County because there aren't going to be OMAFRA people in Huron County." Thie news from ondesboro Compiled by June Fothergill Phone 523-4360^ Happy Gang gathers The March meeting of Londesboro Happy Gang Seniors was held at the Hall on Wednesday, March 26. Blyth Swinging Seniors were guests. Everyone enjoyed a delicious potluck. The meeting opened with O Canada. Minutes of the February meeting were read. Entertainment was presented by Harvey McDowell and Gladys Van Egmond. Spring rally is at Zurich on April 17. There will be a bus trip on June 20. Cake for April is to be taken care of by Mary Peel and Florence Snell. Ice cream will be June Fothergill. There were four tables of euchre. Winners were: high lady, Vietta Hoggart; high man, Ted Fothergill. Lost heir and court whist were also played. Choirs sing at United Greeters at Londesboro United Church on Sunday, March 30 were Lome and Addie Hunking. Ushers were Shannon Duizer and Kelly Bosman. The junior and senior choirs sang. The sermon topic was "The Most Awesome Event of All Time." Ministry and Personnel Com­ mittee will meet on Wednesday, April 2 at 8 p.m. in the Sunday School room. People The sympathy of the community is extended to Jim and Dorothy Carter on the death of Dorothy's mother at Huronview. 71k Homehardware burner’s Dome JDariJtoare Come in and meet Owen Turner Owner of Turner's Home Hardware Our friendly service will keep you coming back YOUR SIMPLY MOBILE REP 24 Albert St., Box 99 Clinton (519) 482-7023 (©lb ffixrunfrg ^Breakfast Sunday, April 6 9 a.m. -1 p.m. at Londesboro Hall •Eggs *Bacon *Sausage • Pancakes and Homefries Adults Children Under 12...$3.00 Syrup by Pullen Maple Products Proceeds for Blyth Emergency Rescue Unit $5.00