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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-02-11 MinutesCLARINGTON AGRICULTURAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2010 MEMBERS PRESENT: Mary Ann Found Brenda Metcalf Ross McMaster Marlene Werry-Durham Region Gary Jeffery REGRETS: Jennifer Knox Mark Bragg STAFF: Faye Langmaid GUESTS: Greg Bales, MNR Mayor Abernethy I - 2 Eric Bowman Henk Mulders Donald Rickard Orwin Bandstra Councillor Gord Robinson Tom Barrie Ted Watson Dean Jacobs Patti Barrie, Clerk Brian Souch, Livestock valuator ADOPTION OF AGENDA 10-05 Moved by Eric Bowman, seconded by Brenda Metcalf "That the Agenda for February 11, 2010 be adopted" "CARRIED" APPROVAL OF MINUTES 10-06 Moved by Donald Rickard, seconded by Eric Bowman "That the minutes of the January 14, 2010 meeting be approved, as amended." "CARRIED" GUEST: Greg Bales, MNR Greg provided a presentation on Wildlife Predation, including deer, coyotes, turkeys and other birds, raccoons and how to report, control predation. The following reading material was also made available to members of the Committee: Fact Sheet -Coyotes in the Community, Strategy for Preventing and Managing Human- Wildlife Conflicts in Ontario, .How td Differentiate Between Coyote and Dog Predation on Sheep, and Fencing Options in Predator Control. Questions/Answer session: Complaints along the lake front about geese becoming a nuisance Canada Geese are protected under the Migratory Bird Act. The problem can however be addressed by keeping grass long and/or by planting shrubs/hedges along certain sections of the beach front which should discourage geese to easily maneuver between the water's edge and the grazing areas. Dogs are used in some municipalities to control geese on waterfronts, golf courses, etc. The numbers and statistics collected by MNR are based on information provided by hunters, number of licenses issued and extra tags. Many of the committee members question the statistics as they do not relate to their experience on the land. Bounties were discussed as they have been introduced in some other counties. Greg indicates that initially they are successful but then the populations rebound and over the long term there is no noticeable improvement, plus it is a costly system of control. It is better to encourage landowners to allow hunters onto their land. The Municipal Clerk is going to provide the by-laws applicable to the discharge of firearms, etc. In addition, land owners need to be aware of hunting seasons, unless they are protecting their own property. It appears that since Clarington is broken up into 3 areas by MNR, namely 72A, 72B and 73 that there is confusion. In 72A only bow hunting is allowed and since it is more difficult, there are few hunters in this area, which means that the deer have moved into the area. Hunting is a tool to control wildlife and committee members were encouraged to allow hunting on their lands. As land owners they need to encourage hunting, lack of hunting means the populations go up and then biodiversity drops. Deadstock is a problem since there are so few that wish to pick it up. There needs to be a better plan and support (financial) in place for the removal of dead livestock from farms.. Greg indicated that this matter will be taken up with MNR Management. According to the livestock valuator, when calving is near the barns or in barns it is easier for the farmers to prove that they have deadstock. For calving that happens in the fields, the coyotes get lots of young but there is nothing left so the farmers cannot claim. The behaviour of coyotes is not particularly changing, but they do adapt and are no longer fearful of people and appear to be bolder. Problems with non-farm land owners that do not want hunters on their property. Part of the solution lies in education on deforestation and how to improve the biodiversity in forests. Gary thanked Greg for attending and providing the presentation. Gary also thanked the Mayor, Clerk and Livestock valuator for taking the time to attend the meeting to hear Greg and the discussion by committee members. AACC Feb 11, 2010 BUSINESS ARISING FROM MINUTES Side loading on Regional Roads was highlighted in the minutes and an email to this effect was sent to Cliff Curtis. Cliff had indicated that he would have staff respond on this issue. Gord Robinson will follow-up with Regional Works. Climatic Assessment -Marlene provided an update that the application appeared to be too "Regional", .the granting agency was looking for province-wide applications. Marlene believes there may be other avenues to fund this study. 2009 Accomplishments -Gary provided an update at the January 25th GPA meeting. GRCA/CLOCA stewardship #unding -Additional work on understanding the disparities between the two CA's is required. Corporations -Gary has had a conversation with John O'Toole about the lack of understanding by OMAFRA and other Ministries that most farmers are corporations and the penalties that could apply in the different Acts do not acknowledge this issue. Rather the penalties for corporations were designed for large multi-nationals. Gary will follow-up with John O'Toole and through his other provincial contacts. CORRESPONDENCE Notice from John O'Toole about research on the Greenbelt and its impacts on farm incomes ".....the real impact of the Greenbelt legislation on farming since its, introduction will be revealed only after the publication of the next agricultural census data in 2011". CLOCA letter about disparity in stewardship funding explaining a few observations. DEAC Awards notification (circulated). Tour of Oshawa Harbour (Port) is Monday, Feb 22 as sent out to members, you must RSVP to attend (security check-in, etc). Green Energy Act -requirements for renewable energy approvals and consultation requirements. Municipality not the approval authority, but must be consulted. Memo on Green Energy Act - providing a update on the process that producers have to follow under the Green Energy Act, they must consult with the municipality, approval is not required. Approval is granted directly by the Province as outlined in the memo for the types of energy defined as "green". AACC ~ Feb 11, 2010 REPORTS FROM OTHER COMMITTEES DAAC Hubert Schilling re-elected as Chair. Majority of meeting was spent on Lake Scugog Environmental Plan, committee members noted that the messaging is misleading because of the way information is being presented. Durham Federation of Agriculture Andrew Frew elected as new chair. April 6, 7, 8 is Farm Connections. They are applying for Trillium funding. Insurance and funding are issues that they are trying to address for the long term. Councillor Robinson suggested the group apply for a municipal grant. Gord and Faye to follow-up with Mary Ann and Brenda. Other items- new Minister of Agriculture, Carol Mitchell from Huron County. Wildlife predation is an issue for many farmers, DRFA is monitoring situation. Clarington Board of Trade The Board is working on its strategic planning which Donald is participating in. Known to be some 1100 businesses in Clarington, of which only approximately 200 are members of CBOT. There are 20 farming operations/businesses in Clarington that gross aver $1 million a year, but they are not members. There was a general consensus that Agricultural businesses could benefit from CBOT membership and vice versa A couple of ideas CBOT is considering are: soliciting food processors; promoting local food production; if Oshawa Harbour is not receptive to agricultural product shipment can that happen in Clarington? There needs to be vertical integration with community to have agricultural benefits. Potential thoughts about establishing an agricultural "think tank". OTHER BUSINESS Agri-tourism -Faye had sent a primer to the committee to think about what Secondary uses fall within the category of agri-tourism. In the case of a winery, the connection between grape growing and having a winery are clear but then when the winery becomes a bistro and gift shop is that secondary? Agri-tourism is relatively new and defining what is a secondary use on the farm is one of the issues the Planning Services Department is pondering. _ Agri-tourism breaks into 3 categories, agri-entertainment (weddings, pumpkin cannons, wrn mazes), agri-education (on farm tours, classroom setting), and agri-culinary (experience regional cuisine). At the August 21, 2008 committee meeting, members were briefed on the review of the Official Plan. As part of the review the current 2 tier structure of Clarington's Official Plan being General and Prime Agricultural lands will have to be modified into one category as "prime' to match the Region's designation and definition: The Region's Official Plan allows for agri-tourism uses but leaves the criteria for them and restrictions on them to the local municipal Official Plans. AACC Feb 11, 2010 The Provincial Policy Statement defines: Agri-related uses: means those farm related commercial and farm related industrial uses that are small scale and directly related to the farm operation and are required in close proximity to the farm operation. Secondary uses: means uses secondary to the principal use of the property, including home occupations, home industries, and uses that produce value-added agricultural products from the farm operation on the farm property. In Clarington's Official Plan it would be possible to provide farmers with the option of having agri-tourism as a use "as of right". Alternatively agri-tourism could be provided as an option but would require a site specific zoning amendment. Zoning amendments are costly and many may be deterred from obtaining them. An example of this type of zoning approval already exists for golf courses. Income can not be used as a land use control mechanism and even the definition of "secondary" becomes confusing when wineries are the secondary use and grape growing the primary, since the value-added component is the more profitable business. With the trend towards "destination and/or event weddings" some wineries which cater to this business have become problems for their neighbours because of traffic, noise, etc. However, the same could be true for corn drying operations, farm machinery welding/repair or riding stables. The overall consensus from the committee was that the municipality must maintain a, level of control and be careful in what it allows. Committee members support agri- tourism but question whether it should be available "as of right°. They believe agri- education should be encouraged but with controls in place. What is to be protected is the resource, the soil and its production potential. It was emphasized that the zoning carries with the land not the operator. FUTURE AGENDA Next Meeting Dennis Yellowlees on Greenbelt Council. Marilyn Bidgood from OMAFRA for April meeting. Moved to Adjourn: Mary Ann Found Next Meeting: March 11, 2010 7:30 p.m. AACC Feb 11, 2010