This story is part of a series exploring the wide-ranging impacts of persistent drought conditions and climate change seen across the province in recent years.
Comox Valley cattle rancher Brad Chappell is standing in a field of seeded oats in late June, the feed crop already up to his hip and the heads of grain only starting to form.
It’s a complete turnaround from last year, when winter drought extended into the spring and left his crops stunted and the hay grasses razor-thin.
“Mother Nature has a way of correcting things,” said Chappell, who has 140 red Angus cows and grows feed on about 600 acres throughout the valley.
He’s hopeful moist conditions will remain, despite the gloomy forecast of a hot summer and rain shortages, with the snow packs that feed the valley’s rivers at about 40% of normal levels.
“Last year I could dig down six or seven feet and there wasn’t a single drop of moisture … the soil was like powder,” Chappell said.
“This spring I can dig down a foot and the moisture is there.”
Chappell had to import about $200,000 worth of hay from Washington state last year to keep his cow-calf operation going during a prolonged drought.
The 550 tonnes of hay in 14 liner loads sent the farmer’s bottom line into the red, but like most people who work the land, he is used to the swing between bad years and good.
Chappell said his first cut of hay in the spring was “above average” and he expects a second cut in early July to be the same. He has also got full ponds to use for irrigation if the weather starts to dry.
“You just hope for the best, take the good years with the bad … farming is never easy and it isn’t predictable, either.”
Jan Slomp, a retired dairy farmer who has a small herd of beef cattle in the valley, said he’s cut enough hay to have sufficient feed for the year, but he worries about others who may not have enough feed and water to get through the season in a drought.
Slomp is president of the Comox Valley Farmers Institute, which has 300 farms as members, ranging from small vegetable growers to dairy and grain farmers.
He said most are concerned about access to water and the need to balance protecting fish in the salmon-bearing streams with farmers’ need to produce food.
“When the water get shut down to protect fish, well, we can respect that, but we also produce food and we need to have rights, too.”
Slomp said farmers face increased costs on the Island since they depend on the ferry system to get key parts for machinery, ship grain and hay and get access to markets for their products.
He said cutting “red tape” from senior levels of government would help.
“We have some really good young farmers here,” said Slomp. “If some of these issues, like with drought, are not addressed, there is no hope in hell for the new generation. They need all the help they can get.”
An updated Comox Valley Agricultural Plan released by the regional district in September identifies water as a key concern as the area experiences the impacts of climate change.
It notes that producers report changes in river and ground-water systems changes are compromising water availability in the summer and creating drainage issues in the winter, “threatening the viability of the farming sector.”
Farmers say there is a need for support on water licensing and developing water storage, such as dugouts, but some producers say the province has set unnecessary hurdles.
Arzeena Hamir, a vegetable farmer and agronomist who is running for the Green Party in Courtenay-Comox in this fall’s provincial election, said her party wants measures to address the drought, including streamlining the approval process for water licences and dugout ponds used to store water.
Since 2016, anyone using water from a well for non-domestic use, such as farmers and irragators, is legally required to obtain a water licence under the province’s Water Sustainability Act, which was designed to protect aquifers during the increasing effects of drought caused by climate change.
Farmers who want to dig new collection dugouts need a water licence or use approval under the act if any of the water in the dugout comes from groundwater or from a stream.
One source of contention is a requirement that many farmers would need to line the bottoms of dugouts, with either clay or some other impermeable material to prevent seepage into the ground water, which would be a costly measure.
Hamir said her dugout — which ran dry last year — cost $10,000.
She said when she asked the contractor how much it would be to line the pond, he quoted a number that was eight times that amount.
The other problem with lining a dugout is that it doesn’t allow water to seep into the aquifer, Hamir said. She and other farmers want to be able to build more dugouts on their farms, but without the regulations that add extra costs.
The Green Party wants to overhaul the Water Sustainability Act to put the emphasis on ecosystems and food security over industrial usage to ensure equitable water distribution that reflects the values and needs of communities.
“Farmers are not the oil and gas industry. We are not using water to frack. We are growing food for our community and yet farmers are being penalized and licensed similar to the oil and gas industry,” said Hamir.
Hamir said the province’s water licensing approval process has been bogged down in delays, leaving many water users in limbo and adding stress to Island farmers and communities already struggling with water scarcity.
Jaclyn Kirby, who leases a quarter acre to grow vegetables in the Comox Valley, said she found the application process for a water licence confusing.
She eventually cancelled her application.
“We were told it would take years to get approved, and then our application was cancelled because we’re on an aquifer of concern,” said Kirby. “Our farm is small, and while I understand the need to manage water use, access to water is essential for local food production.”
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