Sask. farmers say new federal funding for greener farms a good start, but more clarity needed

A pair of Saskatchewan farmers agree that new federal money to help reduce emissions on farms is a good start, but  say there needs to be more clarity.

The federal government made several funding commitments in the recent budget to help make farms more environmentally friendly, including $200 million over two years to implement practices that help reduce emissions, such as improving nitrogen management, increasing cover cropping and normalizing rotational grazing.

Ian McCreary, a grain and livestock farmer near Bladworth, Sask., said the funding won't create change overnight, but will get the ball rolling.

"It's an unprecedented investment in the sense that it's an investment in farmers — recognizing that farmers, in the end, have to be the vehicles that make the change, and it respects the fact that farmers are innovating, and it allows some of the innovations that are happening to get more widely adopted."

McCreary was also part of a task-force with Farmers for Climate Solutions that researched ways of making farm operations more sustainable and environmentally friendly. He said it appears the federal government is listening to the task-force's findings.

"Emissions from farms in Canada are rising, and our customers and consumers are demanding that we find more sustainable ways to produce our products," he said.

McCreary also said an investment like this has been a long time coming.

"As a producer, a farmer, who has been concerned about this for some time, it's been frustrating," he said.

"I don't think this is an issue that should ever get politicized… Science has been really clear that we need to make changes to improve our sustainability."

More clarity needed

McCleary said the next hurdle will be ensuring farmers can access the money and implement the desired practices.

Todd Lewis, president of the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan, echoed McCreary, saying the money is a good start but there needs to be more clarity on how to access it.

Lewis said the funding plans are "very short on details."

"Agriculture is the major pillar of the economy, like they said in the budget, and so it'll be interesting to see how some of that money can be leveraged to come back into Saskatchewan."

The federal Ministry of Agriculture and Agri-Food said in and email that farmers can't access the funding yet, but it expects a program to be developed over the coming months.

McCreary also said he expects further government consultation soon.

Carbon tax money, moving away from diesel

The federal government also said it intends to "return a portion of the proceeds" of the carbon tax directly to farmers in backstop jurisdictions — Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario — starting in 2021-22.

Farmers would collectively receive an estimated $100 million in the first year, according to budget documents, and then future amounts would be determined by how much money is generated by the tax in the previous fiscal year. It says the amount will rise as the price on carbon increases.

Lewis said there needs to be more clarity on that as well.

"What activities is that going to cover? Is it just on grain drying? Is it for every farmer... is it going to cover natural gas and propane that is burned in farm shops and barns?"

Furthermore, Lewis said he doesn't expect $100 million will offset the carbon tax, since it's being distributed between farmers in four different provinces.

The federal government has also committed $10 million over the next two years to help farms transition from diesel to renewable energy. Lewis said it isn't much money considering it's being spread out across Canada, so he would like to see it go toward researching equipment that can decrease a farm's carbon footprint.

He said he would also like to see more funding for plants that produce biodiesel — a diesel substitute made from renewable materials.