CN has awarded the 2009 CN Safer Alberta Community Award to The Young Farm Workers Safety Training Workshop, developed by Safe Communities Central Alberta (SCCA), for its work promoting agriculture safety and injury prevention.
The workshop, held each May at Olds College, is geared especially for young people aged 14 to 18 who plan to one day take over the family farm or otherwise have a career in farming.
SCCA co-ordinator Karen Spruyt said more than 200 people have taken part in the one-day workshops since 2006. She said the collaboration of Olds College and other community partners, including Alberta Health Services, Alberta Agriculture and local businesses, provides invaluable expertise and interactive training for the workshops.
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A Farm to Table Tour featured Molnar Farms, which grows a large variety of market fruits and vegetables including corn, with Taber being known as the Corn Capital of Canada.
Paul Miller, CN’s chief safety and transportation officer and a judge of the annual awards program, noted that 23 people were killed in accidents on Alberta farms last year.
“That’s a tragic number. These incidents can be prevented, so it’s critically important to build safety awareness in the next generation of Alberta’s farmers, ” Miller said in a release.
The CN Safer Alberta Awards began in 2008 to recognize outstanding safety-focused initiatives by youth and community organizations from across the province. The $10,000 award program presents the winners and runners-up in each category with $4,000 and $1,000 respectively to support their programs.
