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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1989-03-29, Page 14Page 14 Times -Advocate, March 29, 1989 Becker s sponsor clinic - Len Lobb and Bob Becker of Becker Farm Equipment chat with area farm- ers Doug McBride and Bill Pincombe during Thursday's Hardi Sprayer clinic. Artists love to paint a picture of cattle placidly chewing their cuds while standing belly -deep in a stream. It is a picture of rural Canada fa- miliar to many. It is another myth that should be blown out of the wa- ter. Why? Because too many farmers underestimate the amount of pollu- tion generated by their livestock operations. It has been said that more than 75 percent of the phos- phorus pollution in the Great Lakes could be prevented if dairy farmers in the basin practiced proper milk- house waste disposal. Most of them allow milkhouse waste to run directly into drains. In a recent survey around Pittock Lake, 39 of 41 dairy farmers said they put milkhouse waste water di- rectly into field tiles and saw noth- ing wrong with the practice. Writing about agriculture for more than 30 years has kept me on the side of farmers. I feel a great sympathy for them and their prob- lems. However, many of us are too quick to point an accusing fin- ger at big business, industry and Comp -Account Computerized Accounting For small & medium sizedjbuslnesses Private corporations, manufacturers, • Financial statements and projections • Accounts receivable/payable • Payroll • Management reports • Complete management accounting and bookkeeping • services Don't fly by the Seat of Your Pants! Let up help you manage your. business better with accurate, timely management reports. CaII Now - 262.3431 Highway 4 - Hensall fr towns and cities for the ground, wa- ter and air pollution in the country. Not necessarily so. A 100 -head dairy operation gener- ates as much pollution as a town of 2,000 people. Hard to believe, isn't it? A single dairy cow ex- cretes 65 pounds of phosphorus a year compared to 1,8 pounds from an adult human, according to the ministry of environment. And who wants the sewage from a town of 2,000 being dumped in the backyard? Pittock Lake near Woodstock, mentioned a moment ago, usually is off limits every summer because it is unfit for swimming. Oxford County , of course, has one of the largest •populations of dairy cattle of any county in Canada and it is, perhaps, unfair to use it as an ex- ample. However, it does suggest that improper waste disposal is a major culprit in water pollution from farms. Pollution does not just come from milkhouse wastes and man- ure. I personally know farmers who leave weedicide, pesticide and herbicide containers sitting in the bushes or at the back of the barn or in hedgerows. These containers eventually rot or rust and split and the contents end up in drains, streams and rivers. This pollution impact from farm wastes is not going to go away. I have no statistics to back me up but I'd be willing to bet that 50 to 60 percent of farmers have no pol- lution control plan. They allow cattle to pollute drains, perhaps streams, just as they have done for generations. They sluice the milk - house waste directly into the field tile. They allow septic household systems to be improperly connected and to run directly into field tiles. I was at a rural meeting not long ago when a well-known farmer in the township was complaining that his septic bed was not working Anhydrous Ammonia SAFE USE`"V1kSHOP THURS., MAR. 30 '' I 4 ! ,r tilnity Centre - Beginning 10 Topics include: • Safe Handlinggof Nurses Tanks • Application Equipr eat.,. ,;... • Fire Safety • Protective Equipment Call 262-3002 for registration Hensall District Co-operative Inc. 62-30 properly. He had to get a backhoe in to replace the tile and the gravel, 450 feet of tile, he said. A neighbor said he had a single tile running outbehind the house, along the fence and into a'ditch. "It's been working for 50 years," he said. "I was just a kid when my father dug it in." Sure, it has been working for 50 years but it has not been working properly. It has been polluting the ditch for most of those 50 years. But that farmer has adopted the if - it -ain't -broke -don't -fix -it attitude to the detriment of his neighbors. How many other farms are guilty of the same thing? r. Our readers write Organization helps sightless Dear Editor. After 42 years as a journalist - and more as a reader for pleasure - I have no doubtwhich is the most important sense to me: sight. Without it, I could never have read thousands of wonderful books, seen the great films of the past half century or the great plays and oper- as of several centuries. And as a travel columnist, who has been in more than 100 coun- tries, I could not have been perpetu- ally amazed at the scenic variety of this universe without sight. That is why I support Operation Eyesight Universal. For anything that can be done to help sightless persons provides them with the i first step to the wonders we, the sighted ones, so much enjoy. I suppose I particularly consider the benefits of sight at Easter be- cause it occurs at a time of year when there is beginning to be so much more to see. One small ex- ample: we have crocuses planted in a protected place outside our kitch- en window. My wife always records the date of the first bloom. The earliest has been March 9. But they have always bloomed by East- er. A donation or a few spare hours of work or a contribution of unused eyeglasses will help someone else see the flowers growing in their gardens. Operation Eyesight Universal's address is P.O. Box 123, Stn. "M", Calgary, Alberta T2P 2H6. It only takes $25 to restore a blind person to sight in a developing country. Sincerely, Percy Row#' Contributing Editor, Travel, Toronto Sun March is Red Cross Month CUSTOM CLOVER SEED •APPLIC..AT[ON • March & April is the time to apply clover because it will get a better catch in the spring • Our Honda ATV & broadcast spreader offer an even spread with little soil compaction. • Applying clover now means that you can apply "N" at your leisure. PSON Hensall 262-2527 FERTILIZERS Port Albert 529-7901 `..� r. ,---•. . / ,'or • You're Invited to our annual `-i Please join us for a look at the exciting line up of equipment for 1989. We will have on display the ALL NEW AMERICAN SERIES WHITE TRACTOR. Plus you'll have a chance to win some exciting door prizes. Don't miss it. WHERE: Zurich Community Centre WHEN: April 6, 1989 TIME: 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. 4 -Refreshment s Sausage on a bun -'-w served 11:30 - 3:00 '1 0 % Discount on all parts Open House Special - one day only . Up to 50% off selected items Limited quantities • C.G. Farm Supply Limited Sates and Service - Repair Phone 236.4934 22 Main Street E., Zurich Ont.