List of Upcoming Events and Products

• Ladies Livestock Lessons: January 20, 2023, at the Mountain View Heritage Center. Visit www.RedBowAg.com to register.
• Septic Sense Workshop: Virtual webinar January 24 from 6-8PM. Register by visiting our website, calling 403-846-4040 or email landcare@clearwatercounty.ca.
• Farm Rental Rates Survey: Ag and Community Services is collecting data on local farm rental rates. Once completed this data will be available to the public to allow for a better understanding of area rates for producers and landowners in Clearwater County. Click here tomplete the.
• Caring for My Land funding Program: The Caring for my Land program offers 25%-75% funding – up to $5000 - through Alberta Environment and Parks Watershed Resiliency and Restoration Program and EPCORE. Call Clearwater County Agriculture and Community Services at 403-846-4040 for more details.
• Join the Landcare email list: Are you interested in grant programs and new funding opportunities, virtual events, workshops, webinars, and receiving educational articles or video links relating to healthy and sustainable water and land? Contact landcare@clearwatercounty.ca with your email address to be added to the list.
• Recreation Grant Funding: Funding available for North Saskatchewan & Raven Recreation Area! Recreational organizations and groups that fall within the boundaries of the North Saskatchewan and Raven Recreation Areas are eligible for assistance with funding for small projects and programming. Examples of qualifying projects would be shale for ball diamonds, boards for ice rinks, playground equipment updates, etc. The second grant deadline is June 1, 2023. Click here to learn more and submit an application today!

Most Recent Ag News Article

February 1, 2023 - On Farm Climate Action Fund (OFCAF) 

New Federal Funding Program for Producers.

You may have heard about a new program that reimburses Albertan producers up to $75,000 for implementing beneficial management practices. This program is called the On Farm Climate Action Fund (OFCAF) and it’s putting $200 million towards helping farmers tackle climate change. 

According to Agriculture Canada “the objective of the Fund is to support farmers in adopting beneficial management practices(BMP) that store carbon and reduce greenhouse gases, specifically in the areas of: 1. Nitrogen management; 2. Cover cropping; 3. Rotational grazing practices.”

What does it mean for a producer to ‘implement a beneficial management practice’? According to the Government of Alberta a BMP is “any management practice that reduces or eliminates an environmental risk. 

BMPs cover areas ranging from pesticide handling to energy efficiency to water quality and take into consideration legislation, practicality and operational needs for a specific operation.”If you have a farm, you’ve likely already adopted BMPs whether by introducing some rotational grazing, or putting in an off-site watering system. 

The Federal Government distributed the money to a variety of organizations who will then in turn dole it out to producers. The organizations in Alberta are:

Canadian Forage and Grassland Association: Support farmers across British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Quebec in planning and implementing rotational grazing practices.

Results Driven Agriculture Research: Help farmers in Alberta to adopt nitrogen management, cover-cropping and rotational grazing BMPs.

Canola Council of Canada: Work with farmers across Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba to increase canola yields while reducing nitrous oxide emissions.

ECOCERT Canada: Help certified organic farmers across Canada to adopt ready-to-deploy BMPs that result in reduced GHG emissions through cover cropping and nitrogen management.

Let’s breakdown the process for applying to Canadian Forage and Grassland Association (CFGA) and Results Driven Agriculture Research (RDAR). The outline of both programs is to submit a plan, have it approved, implement the BMPs, submit receipts, and receive your reimbursement.

Diving deeper into CFGA, where the only focus is on rotational grazing practices, split in four areas: grazing plan, fencing, water systems, and improving pastures. CFGA requires a rotational grazing plan to be approved before funding is available for the areas of fencing, water systems, or improving pastures. 

Rotational grazing plans can be developed by the producer, you can make an application for funding to hire someone to make a plan, or join one of the Grey Wooded Forage Association’s Grazing Roundtables to learn about making one. 

If you choose to make your own grazing plan the CFGA has grazing plan templates available online, and they also offer a free online course, Advanced Grazing Systems, which is an introduction to the foundation of advanced rotational grazing practices and theory.

Once your grazing plan is finished you can submit it, along with your application for funding towards fencing, water systems, or improving pastures, to CFGAs online portal: Impact System. All eligible expenses are available on the CFGA website.

Your grazing plan and application will be reviewed by a panel of experts and you should expect to hear back in 3-4 weeks if your application has been accepted. If your application is not accepted you will receive feedback so that you can make adjustments and reapply.

Now, looking at RDAR’s application process. They are funding all three OFCAF areas, nitrogen management, cover cropping, and rotational grazing practices. 

Your first step is to create a BMP Action Plan from the templates on their website. Then have your action plan reviewed by a qualified Professional Agrologist or Certified Crop Advisor. Costs associated with the review of your action plan can be part of your reimbursement.

RDAR has five templates available: three for areas of nitrogen management, one for cover cropping, and one for rotational grazing. Once approved by a qualified professional your Action Plan needs to be submitted to RDARs online portal: ARGO. RDAR will review your application and approve it with a budget based on your estimations. 

Both CFGA and RDAR have resources to assist with applications on their website, if you have any questions about the grant or application their contact emails are listed below. 

Important things to note for all OFCAF applications. All costs must be paid for upfront by the applicant and reimbursement payments are considered taxable income. Funding is intended to increase new adoption of BMPs, farmers cannot receive funding for an existing BMP, nor can they receive funding for the same BMP twice(eg. If a producer applied for rotational grazing funding through RDAR and they reseeded a pasture and added cross fences, they could not then apply for rotational grazing funding through CFGA to add a water system for said pasture). All BMPs must be new to the farm or field. Total funds received by applicants may not exceed the $75,000 OFCAF maximum from all government sources. Current OFCAF program end date is March 31, 2024.