BC Agriculture Minister says sector recovering well on Flood Day – BC

Many British Columbia farmers have had an “emotional year” as they worked to recover from last November’s devastating floods, according to British Columbia’s agriculture minister.

Lana Popham said most dairy and poultry farmers are now “back to normal” and the majority of annual field crops are planting as normal, but hopes the weather will be better this year, “put your fingers on it.” I keep crossing them,” he said.

The state will continue to stay in touch with farmers to find solutions to reduce flood risk in the hard-hit Smus Prairie and Fraser Valley regions so they can respond quickly during future climate-related disasters, the minister said Tuesday. Stated.

“We know these climate-related extreme weather events will continue, so we are considering new programs to help fund climate adaptation and mitigation projects,” Rivers said a year ago. hit the southwestern part of BC.

About 630,000 chickens, 420 cattle and 12,000 pigs were killed as rains and floods inundated homes, barns and farmlands, washed away highways, and caused landslides that killed five people. Died on the Prairie.

At the peak of the floods, more than 1,100 farms were under evacuation orders or on alert, submerging 150 square kilometers of farmland. More than 6,000 dairy cows have been temporarily relocated to other farms to protect them from flooding.

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Cattle farmer Richard Bosma said last November was an emotional time for farmers, but the community banded together to save as many animals as possible.

“This is what we do. We care for animals and[we]are happy to do it for all British Columbia people,” he said at a press conference. Told.

But Bosma, who works at Abbotsford’s Vedderlea Farms, said she’s still nervous about winter.

“I can say that I’ve already had two atmospheric rivers in the last week and a half and the feeling of[post-traumatic stress disorder]is back,” he said.

Ms Popham said her ministry is working to ensure farmers have access to mental health support.

“People in this valley need to know that they have their backs as they transition into the next tranche of harsh weather, especially during winter,” Popham said. . “The pain is pretty deep, so we want to make sure we have mental health resources, and we are doing that now.”

Flooding across the Fraser Valley and into the southern interior is estimated to have cost BC’s agricultural sector about $285 million.

The floods also “showed that our agricultural and food production sectors can overcome heartbreaking losses,” Popham said. It’s up to all of us to continue to purchase BC.”

© 2022 The Canadian Press