Heat waves: Farmers say high temperatures, drought show agriculture sector needs support
When an unprecedented heat wave “cooked” the cherries growing at his family's farm in Oliver, B.C., Pravin Dhaliwal tried to see past the financial loss to the passion that spurred him to follow in the footsteps of his father and grandfather.
“Seeing those trees go from seed to budding to leaves to fruit and actually eating that fruit is a rush, and that's why I'm in farming as well,” he said.
But scorching temperatures that recently hit a record 41.5 C in the Okanagan region and even higher elsewhere in British Columbia had over 54,000 kilograms of cherries at the Dhaliwals' farm shrivel up on trees that “looked like they'd been set on fire.”
Much of the apple crop was also ruined, with 40 per cent of it being sunburned.
“It's devastating,” said Dhaliwal, 23, who decided to carry on with the 16-hectare family farm two years ago after finishing a business degree at the University of British Columbia.
Now, he's looking to the future by relying on the lessons he'd learned on the farm - focus on better seasons to come while trying to stay competitive with growers shipping their produce north from California and Mexico.
However, that optimism is being tested by the ravages of climate change for the Dhaliwals and farmers across Canada as they look to provincial and the federal governments for support.
Dhaliwal's family has filed an insurance claim with the B.C. government, but he said the returns won't be enough to even cover expenses so farmers need more support.
“I would consider this heat wave a disaster. It's not a few farmers that are affected by the heat wave, it's impacted everybody There's drought in Alberta, in Saskatchewan,” he said.
British Columbia's Agriculture Ministry said growers can buy insurance to cover crop yield with a 20 per cent deductible as part of a joint program with the federal government for the loss of fruit and some plants damaged by weather.
Brent Preston, a founding member of Farmers for Climate Solutions, said the future of farming in Canada will require government support for growers trying to deal with big fluctuations in the climate.
“We're going to be in a lot of trouble if we don't try to insulate ourselves from these effects,” Preston said from his farm near Creemore, Ont., about a 90-minute drive north of Toronto, where he primarily grows cut salads.
Farmers need funding to implement practices specific to various regions of the country to help them become more resilient to extreme weather, he said, adding the cost of not taking action will add up for governments and those frustrated in an increasingly challenging livelihood.
More farmers could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by growing cover crops when they're not producing those they sell in order to build organic matter in the soil and make it healthier so less fertilizer is needed, he said.
“When you have an extreme rainfall event, that moisture stays in the soil instead of running off and eroding the field. And when you have a drought that moisture is available to sustain the crops in your field.”
The practice could have farmers risking money and time to figure out how to do it properly, sometimes without the help of a professional they can't afford, Preston said.
“The federal government has, in the last federal budget, included a fairly modest amount of money to subsidize farmers to plant cover crops. And that's a really, really good start,” he said of his group's lobbying efforts. “But I think these kinds of weather crises we're seeing show that we're really going to need to scale that up.”
Subsidies for growing cover crops could meet the cost of seed and equipment for about three to five seasons until the practice has been established and farmers start reaping the benefits, he said.
In Ontario, for example, there's a strong incentive for farmers to make the most amount of money by growing nothing but corn one year and soy the next, Preston said. But a short rotation of only two crops could result in increased use of nitrogen fertilizer, leading to higher greenhouse gas emissions because it can turn into nitrous oxide and contribute to climate change, he added.
Instead, farmers need government policies to help them switch to planting wheat after a year of corn and soy and then another crop later in the season over the winter, he said.
“We're not talking about huge disruptions in the agricultural system or the way people farm. It's tweaking systems and adding things so that they become more sustainable over the long term.”
Importing water-intensive crops like fruits and vegetables from drought-ridden California is not a reliable option overall and encouraging consumers to buy local will only go so far, he said.
“In every sector in Canada, the government is playing a role in supporting the transition to the green economy. And that has to happen in agriculture, too. We're not asking for anything different than what we're seeing in transportation or manufacturing or anything else.”
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada said in a statement that is “working very closely with the province of British Columbia as well as other provinces impacted by extreme weather to monitor and respond to the evolving drought situation.”
Hannah Wittman, a professor at the Centre for Sustainable Food Systems at the University of British Columbia, said expected higher temperatures mean farmers will have to switch to crops that are less dependent on water, but that could be an expensive proposition.
Varieties of carrots that can tolerate drier, hotter conditions are now being studied at the university and would require farmers to simply plant different seeds, unlike perennial crops including berries, grapes or apples, which take four to five years to come to full production, Wittman said.
“It's not something that farmers can do lightly. They need to be pretty sure that if they're replanting they need to choose varieties that are appropriate for the upcoming climate, not the climate we used to have.”
Many small-scale farming families diversifying and rotating their crops lack sustainable irrigation systems and the infrastructure to harvest and store their products or to market them, Wittman said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 28, 2021.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Most of Canada to receive emergency alert test today
The federal government will test its capacity to issue emergency alerts today, with the exception of Ontario, where the test will take place on May 15.
'A huge difference': These adults born in the '90s partnered with their parents to buy homes in Ontario
An Ontario woman said it would have been impossible to buy a house without her mother – an anecdote that animates the fact that over 17 per cent of Canadian homeowners born in the ‘90s own their property with their parents, according to a new report.
OPINION No reunion between Prince Harry and the King signifies a setback for royal unity
Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, has made headlines with his recent arrival in the U.K., this time to celebrate all things Invictus. But upon the prince landing in the U.K., we have already had confirmation that King Charles III won't have time to see his youngest son during his brief visit.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
How Drake and Kendrick Lamar's rap beef escalated within weeks
A long-simmering feud between hip-hop superstars Drake and Kendrick Lamar reached a boiling point in recent days as the pair traded increasingly personal insults on a succession of diss tracks. Here’s a quick overview of what’s behind the ongoing beef.
NEW For their protection, immigrants critical of China and India call for speedy passage of Canada's foreign interference legislation
Canadian immigrants threatened by hostile regimes are urging parliamentarians to quickly pass the 'Countering Foreign Interference Act' so they can feel safe living in their adopted home.
Ontario man devastated to learn $150,000 line of credit isn't insured after wife dies
An Ontario man found out that a line of credit he thought was insured actually isn't after his wife of 50 years died.
Spanish prosecutors recommend 2nd investigation into Shakira's taxes be thrown out
Spanish state prosecutors recommended Wednesday that an investigating judge shelve a probe into another alleged case of tax fraud by pop star Shakira.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.