Strathcona County says heavy rainfall over the summer has reduced annual crop yields, leading officials to declare an agricultural state of disaster. The municipality says wheat, barley and canola crops were especially impacted after “historic” rainfall and compounded financial stresses for all producers. “We have a very sophisticated agricultural department, probably the most sophisticated in all of Alberta,” Mayor Rod Frank said on Tuesday. “We’re in constant contact with the agricultural community. They’re very independent. They don’t look for handouts, but they do need our support.” The county’s agricultural service board collected data throughout the summer, including crop and field condition assessments, in order to make a recommendation to council at the end of the growing season. Local farmers, the board said, reported between 20 and 30 per cent of annual crops were fully submerged in water and would not yield anything. The losses add up to tens of millions of dollars in wheat and canola production alone, the board found. Many fields were also still wet and inaccessible as of last week, and farmers estimated “significant costs” for recovery and future mitigation. An agricultural state of disaster doesn’t automatically trigger financial help; Strathcona County says it will be sending a letter to Alberta’s agriculture ministry requesting the government recognize the severity of the situation. “Communication is the main thing here ... This is a tool we use to advance our case with the provincial government, with the federal government,” Frank explained. The county previously approved a budget amendment that allocated $16.2 million from reserve funds for flooding-related damages. It has also already applied for the Alberta government’s Hazard Assistance and Resilience Program. Other counties, including Thorhild and Westlock, have also declared states of agricultural disaster.
