AGRICULTURE AND AGRIFOOD CANADA

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AGRICULTURE AND AGRI-FOOD CANADA

• PRESENTATION TO
• The Standing Senate Committee on Agriculture and
  Forestry
• February 24, 2003 - Regina

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THERE IS A HISTORY OF ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE
VARIABILITY ON THE PRAIRIES..

• Since the late 1800s climate variability has
  necessitated government action to help
  agriculture adapt to the semi-arid climate
  Dominion Experimental Farms established, and
  evolved into AAFC Research Stations.
• Drought has been a reoccurring problem, and in
  1935, AAFC established the PFRA to assist in the
  rehabilitation of the drought and soil drifting
  areas and to develop and promote systems of
  farm practice, tree culture, water supply, land
  utilization and land settlement that will afford
  greater economic security

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(No Transcript)
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EXTENT OF 2002 DROUGHT IN THE PRAIRIE REGION OF
CANADA
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SIMULATIONS INDICATE THAT CLIMATE CHANGE WOULD
SIGNIFICANTLY IMPACT THE PRAIRIES

• Temperatures higher / Growing season longer
• Precipitation would increase and be more variable
• Evaporation would increase (offsetting
  precipitation)
• Weather/Climate would be increasingly uncertain
• Droughts would be more frequent and longer
• Opportunities to grow new crops / develop new
  areas for agriculture

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CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES PRESENTED BY CLIMATE
CHANGE ARE A SHARED RESPONSIBILITY

• All levels of Government
• AAFC recognizes an important role here
• Private sector industry

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NEW APF PROGRAMMING BUILDS ON AAFC EXPERIENCE ON
THE PRAIRIES TO STRENGTHEN SUPPORT FOR ADAPTATION
NATIONALLY THROUGH

• New initiatives and transitions aimed at specific
  outcomes
• On-Farm Action
• Knowledge and Information

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AAFC INITIATIVES WILL STRENGTHEN SUPPORT FOR
ADAPTATION NATIONALLY THROUGH

• Water Programming
• Shelterbelt Center Programs
• Rangeland Development and Management
• Greencover Program
• Environmental Farm Planning and BMPs
• National Land and Water Information System
  (NLWIS) and Agroclimate Information

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AAFC WATER PROGRAMS SUPPORT ADAPTATION IN MANY
WAYS

• Strategic studies to determine secure water
  supplies for agricultural areas
• Proposals for individual and large scale projects
• Irrigation efficiency research and demonstrations
• Rural Water Development Program (5.5M/yr.)
• eg. Rural Water Pipelines
• Transition to a national program underway within
  APF

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AAFC NATIONAL WATER SUPPLY EXPANSION PROGRAM
(NWSEP) SUPPORTS ADAPTATION

• Main Components of New APF Program
• Infrastructure Development
• Strategic Water Planning to support the growth of
  the agriculture sector
• Climate Variability/Change a Key Consideration
• Eg. Climate change scenario development for
  Prairie water supplies with support from the
  Climate Change Action Fund

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AAFC SHELTERBELT CENTRE SUPPORTS ADAPTATION

• Multiple objective programming that includes
  climate change adaptation
• Shelterbelt planting attempts to modify local
  climate
• 5.5 million tree seedlings, adapted to Prairie
  climate, are distributed annually
• New APF initiatives for shelterbelts across Canada

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AAFC RANGE DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT SUPPORTS
ADAPTATION

• 1930s - Prairie cropland and rangeland which was
  unable to cope with drought was converted
  (adapted) into managed community pastures
• 1980s - Permanent Cover Program and Green Plan
  programs helped with adaptation and enhanced
  environmental management
• 1990s - ongoing applied research, field
  demonstrations, and awareness activities
• 2000s - APF Greencover Programming

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AAFC GREENCOVER PROGRAM SUPPORTS ADAPTATION

• Conversion of environmentally sensitive land to
  perennial cover
• National focus for shelterbelt planting
• Technical assistance for enhanced rangeland
  management and riparian areas

Greencover will contribute to the Environment
Priority of APF with up to 1.6 million ha of land
in Canada benefiting from improved management
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AAFCS ENVIRONMENTAL WORK LINKED THRU NEW
INITIATIVES UNDER THE APF

• Building on past work to formalize and implement
  Beneficial Management Practices
• Development and implementation of Environmental
  Farm Plans (EFPs)
• These initiatives will consider the need to adapt
  to climate change

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AAFCS ENVIRONMENTAL WORK LINKED THRU NEW
INITIATIVES UNDER THE APF (cont)..

• National Agriculture Water Strategy to provide a
  strategic context for programming
• address quantity / quality issues in a changing
  climate
• in preliminary stages of development
• Operationalizing NLWIS, including agroclimate
  activities, as an important aspect of AAFCs role
  in support of adaptation

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AAFC PRAIRIE AGROCLIMATE UNITEXPANDS UNDER APF
TO SUPPORT ADAPTATION NATIONALLY

• Enhanced (interpreted) climate information is an
  essential element of adaptation
• Climate monitoring / reporting
• (eg. drought or excess moisture)
• Practical climate change scenario development
  related to agricultural activities
• Early warning of seasonal climate risks and
  opportunities, specific to agriculture

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AAFC AGROCLIMATE ACTIVTIESSUPPORT ADAPTATION
(cont)

• Desertification is a climate change concern -
  under the authority of the United Nations
  Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD),
  Canada plays a key role globally as both a donor
  country and an affected country

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Climate change crosses political boundaries
need to integrate efforts of Canada/U.S./Mexico
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• With the APF, AAFC will be well positioned to
  help the agriculture sector adapt to increasing
  uncertainty in our weather and climate.
• Thank you for this opportunity to offer a
  presentation to your Committee