Provincial cost-share program helps farmers save at-risk species

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

by MATT MCINTOSH

The Ministry of Natural Resources reintroduced a three-tier cost-share program that will help farmers protect Ontario's struggling plant and animal species, says the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association.

The species at risk farm incentive program provides farmers with funding to help create a set of best management practices that are designed to improve on farm operations while protecting species at risk, and the local environment more generally.

The program works hand-in-hand with Growing Forward 2, a federal/provincial agricultural framework of programs that invests $3 billion dollars into agricultural innovation, market development, and competitiveness.

Because of the funding partnership, farmers interested in the species at risk program must have an existing Environmental Farm Plan – and be registered as part of Growing Forward 2 with the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association – before they can receive funding for further conservation projects.

"There is money available for on-farm conservation programs, but the program operates on a first-come first-serve basis," says Katie Burt, the association's communications specialist. "When the funding is gone, the program is over."

There are three different levels to the species at-risk program, each with increasing cost-share funding.

The first level has the lowest amount of funding, and focuses on general habitat conservation. It is available for all Ontario farmers, provided they meet the qualifying criteria.

The second level involves more financial backing, but requires farmers to identify and develop a plan to protect a species at risk specific to their area.

The program's third level is limited to farmers who have identified a specific species at risk on their property, and who have acquired a letter of verification from a qualified third party. Individual farms that qualify for this level can access cost-share funding of 80 per cent, up to a maximum of $15, 000.

The application process opened on April 1 of this year, and the last day to submit expenses is January 15, 2014. BF