Reading Time: 3 minutes After years of planning and fundraising, the Nature Conservancy of Canada has completed a successful campaign to conserve the McIntyre Ranch. Located near the Milk River Ridge 40 miles south of Lethbridge, the 22,500-hectare ranch is the largest conservation easement in Alberta. “It’s the largest piece of fescue grasslands remaining on the planet. It’s a […] Read more
Largest fescue ranch on Earth preserved
Record-setting conservation easement protects McIntyre Ranch in perpetuity
Recent precipitation welcome, but more needed
Northern Alberta is particularly dry this spring, but even areas that are receiving rain have low soil moisture reserves
Reading Time: 3 minutes Even though all three Prairie provinces had snow or rain last winter and this spring, moving out of drought conditions is not necessarily a given. “We’ve seen near normal precipitation throughout most of Saskatchewan and well as southern Alberta and much of Manitoba,” said Trevor Hadwen, agroclimate specialist with Agriculture Canada. This precipitation occurred Sept. […] Read more
Cutworms already causing problems in some parts of province
The best way to control cutworms is to scout
Reading Time: < 1 minute Even though the weather is cold, cutworms have already been active in the province, said Shelley Barkley, a field scout with Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation. There have been reports of cutworms in winter wheat in the southeast corner of Alberta, as well as in a field of 2023 seeded forage in the Calgary area. Cutworms […] Read more
Former crop centre reboots as Western Crop Innovation
New organization aims to expand focus to new crops, ag innovation
Reading Time: 4 minutes [UPDATED: May 1, 2024] The Field Crop Development Centre at Lacombe, Alta., has a new name and identity that reflects a broadening focus. Now called Western Crop Innovation as of April 1, it will build on a long history of barley breeding and agronomy research and expand to include a wider array of crop research. […] Read more
College research should be better supported by federal funding, says CEO of Olds College
Better funding for college research will increase innovation, drive economic and improve job creation, says CEO of Olds College
Reading Time: < 1 minute College research activities should be better supported by the federal government, said Dr. Ben Cecil, President and Chief Executive Officer of Olds College of Agriculture and Technology. On April 16, Cecil spoke before the Federal Government’s Standing Committee on Scientific Research, asking for a re-evaluation of the distribution of federal government funding to better support […] Read more
Plasma shows promise in grain decontamination
The fourth state of matter (in its cold form) could be coming to a malt house or feedlot near you
Reading Time: 3 minutes [UPDATED: June 4, 2024] Alberta researchers are harnessing a high-tech concept to decontaminate grain. The researchers are using cold plasma, which in this case was created by electrical discharge at atmospheric pressure. One of the most common uses is in florescent lighting, which creates light with little heat. Cold plasma is the fourth state of matter, […] Read more
Beef stakeholders invited to weigh in on code of practice
Canada’s Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Beef Cattle to be updated
The Canadian Cattle Association has initiated an update to the Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Beef Cattle.
Group launches wildlife monitoring project in Milk River watershed
Acoustic monitoring project aims to determine population levels and valuable habitat for bats and amphibians
Reading Time: 4 minutes Some people find bats and frogs creepy, but the Milk River Watershed Council Canada wants to examine them through its “Wild Nights” monitoring project. The aim is to understand how many bats and amphibians live in the watershed, in southeastern Alberta, and how they’re distributed. The group is particularly interested in the little brown myotis […] Read more
Study finds renewable energy footprint light on agricultural lands
Alberta Utilities Commission says wind and solar would have less impact than petroleum sector
Reading Time: 4 minutes Alberta’s booming renewable energy sector poses little threat to agriculture or the environment, stated the Alberta Utilities Commission in a report released in mid-March. “After doing a comprehensive review on the agricultural impact, the AUC found there were no significant concerns for agriculture or the environment from renewables. In fact, they found that existing protections […] Read more
Alberta government develops plan to train and retrain rural physicians
New Rural Medicine Education Program aims to relieve pressure on rural health care systems and rural emergency departments
Reading Time: < 1 minute The provincial government announced yesterday that it will invest $224.8 million through Budget 2024 to train more physicians in rural areas.