Province, Ottawa vow to provide aid to farmers
Province, Ottawa vow to provide help to farmers as hot, dry weather continues
Weeks of scorching temperatures and little rain are wreaking havoc on crops in Alberta as the provincial and federal governments say aid for farmers is on the way.
As much of the province saw heat warnings and daytime temperatures nearing 40 C in some regions, the latest crop report from late June rates 68 per cent of crops like wheat, barley, oats, canola and lentils in “good to excellent” condition, compared to the five-year average of 76 per cent.
Jason Hale, rancher and Alberta Beef Producers vice-chairman, said the extreme weather has created a “provincewide disaster” for farmers and cattle producers.
“They're just devastated with the drought — there's nothing to cut,” he said of hard-hit crops. Hale said he's heard from some ranchers who are facing the prospect of selling cattle they can't feed because there's no grass and feed is too expensive.
“As a producer, it's very worrisome. How do we make a living?” he said.
As farmers and ranchers face the fallout, provincial Agriculture Minister Devin Dreeshen said he has asked crop adjusters to do early assessments of affected crop and hay land, which could include offering alternative use of crops to address forecasted livestock feed shortages.
“I want to assure producers across Alberta that we understand the severity of this prolonged period of extreme dry weather and we are doing everything we can to ensure you receive the support you need,” said Dreeshen in a release.
Dreeshen also said he pressed for Agrirecovery initiative funding at a virtual federal-provincial-territorial meeting, and got a verbal commitment from Ottawa that the joint program will be initiated prior to a federal election.
Dreeshen said details are still being worked out for the emergency support program, the cost of which will be split, with the federal government paying 60 per cent.
Even with Agrirecovery funding, however, NDP opposition agriculture critic Heather Sweet said Friday the province needs to rehire laid-off staff to get support out the door faster.
There are 69 fewer full-time equivalents at Agriculture Financial Services Corporation (AFSC) than there were in 2019, according to budget documents, and five one-person rural offices were closed in March.
Sweet said that means some farmers are stuck waiting for nearly a year for staff to assess crop damage for insurance claims and offer compensation.
“Farmers and ranchers have told me this all week: they're worried they are not going to be able to get people into the field to be able to make those assessments,” said Sweet, who added while they're praying for rain, the damage to many crops has already been done.
Sweet also called on the province to create an emergency crop assessment task force to ensure that every claim for this year's drought is settled and paid out by the end of the year.
Hale said he's confident the government is doing everything it can to address insurance claims.
“I'm sure (AFSC) could recruit other individuals to get this looked after ... I'm sure they'll do what they have to do,” he said, adding insurance assessments need to be done quickly because the value of the crops decreases as they dry out.
“If you wait until the fall, there's going to be nothing left of them,” he said.