Provincial enforcement officials have directed six farm operations to remove potato headlands in nine fields. As a result of the investigations, Government is taking action to strengthen the Environmental Protection Act. The changes to the act will correct deficiencies in the existing legislation.
John Clements is head of the Investigation and Enforcement Section in the Department of Environment, Energy and Forestry. He said one field under investigation is on the Valleyfield River in Kings County and the others are on the Dunk River, in the area of the border between Prince and Queens Counties.
Mr. Clements said some of the fields do not have the proper buffer zone in place; and in all cases, there are problems with the headland, which is the area at the bottom of a field that is planted in a row crop such as potatoes. When the headland is within 200 metres of a watercourse, Mr. Clements said it should be planted in a perennial grass to help capture runoff. In these cases, Mr. Clements said the rows end in clay and there is then a potato headland – that is rows of potatoes planted across the bottom of the field.
The farm operations have been directed to remove the potato headlands within 48 hours and establish a grass cover. After consulting with the Crown Attorneys’ Office, Mr. Clements said the Investigation and Enforcement Section will not be proceeding with charges because of deficiencies in some sections of the Environmental Protection Act.
“In all situations where there is a risk to the environment, officers will direct farmers to take the necessary remedial action. We expect we will have co-operation from the farming community,” Mr. Clements said.
Over the last few weeks, officers have flown over most of the province from Summerside east. They have inspected about 200 fields and, overall, Mr. Clements said the vast majority are planted in compliance with legislation that is in place to protect waterways.
George Webster, Minister of Environment, Energy and Forestry, said government will act immediately to correct weaknesses and strengthen the Environmental Protection Act. A Crown attorney will be temporarily assigned to the department to work on changes to the legislation to make it easier to understand and more enforceable.
“Protecting our environment is a priority for our government. And while it is not the complete solution, strong legislation is an essential tool to help us do that,” said Minister Webster. “Our government will invest in the resources needed to make sure this important piece of legislation does what all Islanders want and expect it to do – that is, to protect our environment.”
Mr. Clements said enforcement officers are continuing to investigate several fields across the province, for either headland infractions or potential violations under the Agricultural Crop Rotation Act.
Mr. Clements said the fields on the Dunk River where farmers have been directed to remove potato headlands were identified in aerial and ground surveys following a fish kill on the river in late July, but not all the fields are in the area where dead fish were found. The provincial Department of Environment, Energy and Forestry, in co-operation with Environment Canada, is continuing to investigate the fish kill on the Dunk River and an incident on the Tryon River. Investigators are still awaiting results of laboratory analysis of dead fish, as well as water, soil and vegetation samples.