Good morning, committee chair, members, and fellow presenters. Thank you for the opportunity to present to you this morning.
I am here to represent the East Prince Agri-Environment Association. We are a young organization, but in our few years of existence we have greatly influenced the research community by fostering collaborative, hands-on research relationships that have led to accelerated development and adoption of beneficial management practices aimed at decreasing environmental impact.
Our focus is on reducing our environmental footprint so we may protect our farming industry for future generations. We have 18 members, representing 13 farms in the Bedeque area of Prince Edward Island. We are fourth- and fifth-generation farmers, who are raising our young families to appreciate and be proud of the work we do as farmers, and to teach them how important it is to protect our environment.
We have established strong working relations with AAFC researchers and staff from across Canada; researchers and master's students from both UPEI and Dalhousie; research and industry relations staff from the provincial government, both the department of the environment and the department of agriculture; the P.E.I. Potato Board; and watershed groups that boast strong agri-environmental interests. We are greatly benefiting from this interdisciplinary approach used to assess our practices. We are better educated and are more likely to adopt these recommended changes.
We are very pleased with Minister MacAulay's announcement on September 21, 2018 to invest $70 million in agricultural science. The announced funding is targeted at recruiting more scientific professionals and for collaborative research.
We ask that our government consider a policy change that directs scientific staff to work directly with the end-users and find ways to make sure this money can be used at a local industry level. We need direct access to expertise, and in turn they need access to the latest sampling technologies and diagnostic equipment so they can deliver the information to us in adequate time for decision-making.
As an example, we have an industry-owned lab, the P.E.I. Potato Quality Institute, which is in need of a verticillium tester, a piece of equipment that is crucial for making timely decisions during our growing season.
When investing in expertise, we need more technical staff who are hands-on with experiments and with the field work, not just research scientists. From our personal experience, we have a more direct response and a faster response rate from experienced technical staff, which is crucial when trouble-shooting immediate problems with our crops.
On a long-term basis, we need funding to continue research on suitable crop varieties and pest management, in response to fast-changing weather patterns. We need research on variable rate applications for fertilizer, lime and seed.
To protect our water sources, we need more research and trials on irrigation. This research will provide better user information if carried out directly in our local environment, under local climatic and agronomic conditions.
Our association offers the coordination for interdisciplinary research systems to take direction from the end-users and to foster collaborative working relationships built on reciprocal information sharing. Our coordinator can bridge the gap between scientific professionals and farmers.
We thank you for the investments that have been made in agricultural science, and we ask you to ensure those funds are channelled to best address the real problems we as farmers are facing in both the short term and the long term.
Thank you for the opportunity to present to you. We look forward to the results of this consultation process. We welcome any questions you may have.
Thank you very much.