Reading Time: 2 minutes Only 4.4 per cent of Alberta farmland is irrigated but it accounts for more than a quarter of primary agricultural sales in the province. That’s one of the biggest numbers in an updated study done for the Alberta Irrigation Districts Association, which was released in early winter. The study uses the same methodology as an […] Read more
The numbers keep getting bigger for irrigation
Only one in 23 acres is irrigated but collectively they generate more than a quarter of farm sales
Bow River flows set to bounce back in time for irrigation season
A big snowpack comes to the rescue after water levels in the Bow fell to near-record lows last fall
Reading Time: 4 minutes After a winter of exceptionally low river flows, above-average mountain snowpacks are coming to the rescue of the Bow River and many of southern Alberta’s irrigation districts, says a leading water scientist. The water supply is now “assured” for the irrigation districts that take water off the Bow and Red Deer rivers, said John Pomeroy, […] Read more
Irrigation packs a big economic punch
Reading Time: < 1 minute Irrigation is an economic engine that keeps on getting bigger and contributing more to the provincial economy, according to a new study commissioned by the Alberta Irrigation Districts Association. The study concluded the economic contribution of irrigated crop and livestock production along with irrigation-related food processing and certain non-irrigation benefits added $5.4 billion annually to […] Read more
The province’s ‘historic’ irrigation expansion has got even bigger
Two new districts join in and now nearly a quarter of a million more acres will be irrigated
Reading Time: 2 minutes It was a low-key announcement with some very sizable numbers. A historic expansion of Alberta’s irrigation network is getting bigger — another 30,000 acres are being added at a cost of $118 million. The expansion was announced earlier this month by Premier Jason Kenney without the fanfare of the original announcement a year ago, which […] Read more
Irrigation adds stability in unstable times
The timing is right for a historic investment in Alberta’s irrigation system
Reading Time: 5 minutes By early July, Richard Stamp already knew he wouldn’t be harvesting his dryland acres this year. “Last year, we had a relatively good crop — double what we would expect on it — but this year, we will not be combining it,” said the Enchant-area pedigreed seed grower. “It’s definitely a big difference this year, […] Read more
AGI to buy into soil microbe breeding firm
Machinery maker to take minority stake in MyLand
A U.S. company ramping up a system to harvest, reproduce and restore beneficial microbes from a field’s own soils, as a way to restore peak fertility, expects to get backing soon from a Canadian farm equipment maker. Winnipeg-based Ag Growth International (AGI) said Monday it has signed a conditional letter of intent with Phoenix-based MyLand […] Read more
Specialty crop farmer leverages the power of irrigation
And others will do the same as massive irrigation expansion comes online, says Dale Thacker
Reading Time: 5 minutes If you’ve ever chewed a stick of gum or used a minty toothpaste, there’s a reasonable chance the spearmint inside is from Dale Thacker’s farm. The southeastern Alberta producer has been growing specialty crops — starting with spearmint and expanding into a host of others — for more than three decades. Most depend on irrigation […] Read more
More irrigation being contemplated
Reading Time: < 1 minute More irrigation could be coming to Alberta. A study will be undertaken to see if expanding irrigation in the Special Areas and the MD of Acadia is doable, the province says. The Special Areas board and municipality are working with the province and the Canada Infrastructure Bank (which put up most of the money for […] Read more
Major expansion of Chin Reservoir being planned
The Chin will be one of two reservoir expansions in historic 200,000-acre irrigation project
Reading Time: 4 minutes Details of an $815-million irrigation expansion agreement are slowly trickling in. The Chin Reservoir is one of two off-stream reservoirs to be expanded as part of adding more than 200,000 acres to the province’s 1.7 million acres of existing irrigation, an irrigation district official said. “We’re still in the planning stages of how much we’re […] Read more
Irrigation mega-project takes next big step
Farmers in southeast back plan for huge expansion of Snake Lake Reservoir
Reading Time: 4 minutes Farmers in southeast Alberta have given a big thumbs up to a major chunk of a historic $815-million expansion of the province’s irrigation system. Three-quarters of the 648 producers in the Eastern Irrigation District who voted in a plebiscite last month cast ballots in favour of an irrigation allotment increase that allows a $170-million expansion […] Read more
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