January 16, 2024 Country Booster

The paper created EXCLUSIVELY for farm families and rural residents of east central Alberta 8 PAGES | JANUARY 16, 2024

Beautiful Bovines

Photo by Lori Larsen

take centre stage

The Pen of Three is always a highlight of the Bull Congress.

37th ANNUAL

Canadian Bull Congress

Friday and Saturday, January 19 and 20 The Camrose Regional Exhibition (CRE) is once again proud to partner with the Canadian Bull Congress for the 37th annual show.

As one of the longest running signature events of the CRE, the Bull Congress features different cattle breeds showcasing their bloodlines in and out of the Show Ring. The event brings the community together for friendly competition and an opportunity to promote agricultural commerce.

This year, the CRE has introduced a new addition to the CBC show – the Junior Marketing Class program.

For full details, see inside story on page 2.

Inside...

A variety of merchandise, services and more!

Win a colour photo of your farm!

See page 8

News Features New Norway management group concerned about Ducks Unlimited project . . 4 Rural areas need to promote economic development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Bittern Lake deciding on village or hamlet status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

The Bull Congress offers young people an opportunity to receive valuable feedback on the hard work they put into raising their livestock.

The COUNTRY BOOSTER, January 16, 2024 – Page 2

Winter

Beautiful bovines take centre ring

KITCHEN & BATH E

V

E

N

T

By Lori Larsen

January in Camrose is renowned for the return of the bulls, when the Canadian Bull Congress brings back the action to the Camrose Regional Exhibition (CRE) scheduled for January 19 and 20.

The 37th annual Canadian Bull Congress features a two day event in partnership with the Camrose Regional Exhibition. Purebred breeders, cattlemen, exhibitors and guests from all over gather for this friendly competition and celebration of the important role the agricultural industry plays, not only in Alberta, but worldwide.

Attendance for this incredible event regularly sees more than 7,500 visitors from across Canada as well as internationally, with approximately 12 different cattle breeds represented and more than 250 livestock and product/service related exhibitors.

This year’s schedule is as follows: Friday, January 19, beginning at 11 a.m. in the Show Ring: Junior Bull Show, Showmanship Class, 4-H Heifer Project Show, Junior Heifer Show and Single Purebred Heifer Show. The show closes at 5 p.m.

An evening networking event will take place from 6:30 p.m. until 8 p.m. and will feature a presentation

by Zoetis Technical Services veterinarian, Dr. Melanie Wowk, on maintaining healthy lungs in newborn calves: the impact of reaching your herd’s genetic potential.

Saturday, January 20 the show opens at 9 a.m. Beginning at 11 a.m. the Show Ring will feature: Mature Bull Show, Pen of Three Bull Show, Ranchers’ Choice, Single Bull Show.

The CRE will once again be having the 50/50 Raffle Draw with tickets available on site both Friday and Saturday. Last year’s lucky winner walked away with $1,700.

This year, to recognize the hard work of the younger livestock exhibitors, the CRE, in partnership with the Canadian Bull Congress, is launching the new Junior Marketing Program.

At 11 a.m. the Junior Marketing Competition will take place in the Show Barn.

The show closes at 5 p.m.

“Members will compete to be the best at ‘selling’ their animal. However, no animals will actually be sold,” explained CRE executive director Dianne Kohler. “Competitors will have a time frame as to when to expect the ‘buyer’

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(judge) to arrive at their stall.

The ‘buyer’ will be evaluating the members ability to display, promote, and convince the ‘buyer’ that they should ‘buy’ the competitor’s animal.

The member from each age division that does the best job will be awarded a prize.”

Age divisions are as follows: Junior Class, 11 years old and younger as of January 1; Intermediate Class, 12 to 14 years old as of January 1 and Senior Class, 15 to 20 years old as of January 1.

Each division Champion will receive a $1,000 cash prize.

Once a competitor has won an age division they will not be able to compete in that age division in future years.

“The program will be renamed in 2025 to the Bob Prestage Junior Marketing Class Awards,” commented Kohler.

For more information on the 37th Annual Canadian Bull Congress visit the website at bullcongress.com.

Phone 780.672.8818 Fax 780.672.1002 6809-48 Avenue, Camrose

Lori Larsen, Camrose Booster The Canadian Bull Congress offers young people an opportunity to demonstrate the hard work they put into raising their livestock. Judges offer positive and vital feedback on showmanship and marketing.

The COUNTRY BOOSTER, January 16, 2024 – Page 3

Friday and Saturday, January 19 and 20, 2024 Presented by

Find out more www.bullcongress.com Contact us info@bullcongress.com

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The COUNTRY BOOSTER, January 16, 2024 – Page 4

New Norway water management group concerned about Ducks Unlimited projects

By Murray Green

About 25 members of the East New Norway Water Management Area have concerns about two proposed Ducks Unlimited Projects.

The East New Norway Water Management group met with Camrose County to air its concerns at the regular meeting of council on January 9.

Landowners Scott Keller and Doug Olstad spoke on behalf of the East New Norway Water Management Area.

“There are 49 parcels of land in the water management system. We have 28 unique landowners within the 49 parcels– unique meaning a couple or a farming operation. Doug and I have spoken to every single landowner in the area except for one who has some health issues. Between signatures and letters that have been written, we represent 90 per cent of the landowners,” said Keller, chairman of the New Norway Water Management Area.

“We all pay into an improvement plan that maintains the water system. Those collected taxes we draw from to cover our maintenance costs. This drainage ditch was built in the 1970s and ’80s with a partnership between the local farmers and the provincial government. It is our role to do the maintenance and when this project came about, we were alerted just through rumours,” explained Keller.

“We knew that Ducks Unlimited would require permission to cross the ditch, and we had an agreement since 2017 that the board be notified by the Camrose County that if any crossing or construction be proposed, we wanted to be a part of the decision making. We had no clue. It was March 29, 2023, that Ducks Unlimited put a request in to Camrose County. The County did not notify us November 10th.

In fact, it was our understanding that the construction company that was going to build the wetland projects and were going to start moving equipment the following week. We had almost zero notice,” shared Keller.

“I called Ducks Unlimited about concerns from landowners. At the time, we didn’t understand the process or anything about the projects. I don’t think Ducks Unlimited knew about the neighbouring landowner’s concerns. In the summer, Ducks Unlimited surveyors told the neighbours that they would be notified to speak about your concerns. Ducks Unlimited realized they made that mistake, not talking to nearby concerned landowners, and put a pause on the project. The County was supposed to tell us, but they didn’t.

When I advised the County that they don’t know their own policy and it requires a development permit, I was quite shocked that County administration didn’t require a permit and they said they had 11 such (Ducks Unlimited) projects without a permit last year. This project is not fol-

File Photo

Ducks Unlimited proposes two projects in the East New Norway Water Management Area.

lowing the law or the County bylaw,” said Keller.

Permits would require neighbouring residents to be notified of the projects.

“As part of the governments Red Tape Reduction, they (Alberta Environment) developed a Code of Practice, which was not followed. Issuing a permit would have brought all of this to the attention of all those involved.

As soon as one thing under the Code of Practice doesn’t follow the code, it needs Alberta Environment approval,” Keller said.

The East New Norway Drainage Ditch is a water management project with a licence held by Camrose County (not an official drainage ditch, but a municipal responsibility). The landowners who benefit from the ditch pay a levy each year on their taxes that goes to a reserve for ditch maintenance.

“In 2023, Ducks Unlimited began a wetland restoration project for a landowner whose land is within the East New Norway Water Management Area. The survey work was being done when Ducks Unlimited realized that there was a drainage easement on the property. Ducks Unlimited contacted Camrose County for approval as Camrose County holds the water management license and has an easement on title,” wrote County administrator Teresa Gratrix in her report. “As a result of both of these issues coming to light in the fall, administration and agricultural services called a meeting of the landowners to discuss the drainage ditch, the drainage

reserve fund and levy amount collected, as well as the Ducks Unlimited project. Of the 49 parcels included in the drainage ditch, 11 attendees representing 20 parcels of land were present at the meeting on December 14.”

As a result of the request from Ducks Unlimited for the County’s approval for the wetland restoration project in November, administrator Gratrix and agricultural services manager Kevin MacDonald met with Tracy Scott of Ducks Unlimited to get an understanding of the project.

“The project is a restoration of two former wetlands at the headwaters of the drainage ditch. They discussed the structure of the berm and the likelihood of failure, the issues of salinity from this wetland affecting downstream farmers and the notice or lack of notice to adjacent landowners. These concerns were addressed by Scott,” continued Gratrix.

Camrose County administration informed Ducks Unlimited at this meeting that they would not sign off on the project until after presenting the information to the landowners at the East New Norway Water Management meeting held in December.

Administration conveyed the information from the meeting with Scott of Ducks Unlimited to the landowners at the East New Norway Water Management meeting, however they requested an information meeting with Ducks Unlimited and Alberta Environment on January 18. At

that time, landowners will have the opportunity to have their questions regarding the protocols of Alberta Environment related to approving wetland restoration projects.

“As the purpose of the drainage ditch is to reduce flooding for neighbouring landowners and keep water away from the farmers fields downstream, a wetland project at the headwaters will assist with this. The Ducks Unlimited project has been engineered and will use a spillway/berm designed to keep the water in the wetland. Given the engineered construction of the spillway, the pre-existing nature of this wetland, and the fact that Alberta Environment has no concerns with this project, administration feels the County’s concerns have been alleviated. We are not required to issue a permit,” added Gratrix.

Camrose County does not infringe on a landowners’ right to use their property. Water issues are the jurisdiction of Alberta Environment. As a license holder on the title, Camrose County was consulted by Ducks Unlimited. The project is a benefit to the drainage ditch, in that it slows the drainage of water from a rain event. Also, this particular wetland was identified in original planning documents for this water management project as one that should be supported and not removed. The mandate of Alberta Environment related to water supports the restoration of these wetlands, reported Gratrix.

“As the East New Norway Water Management Area is not an official drainage ditch, but is instead a municipally held license, there is no voting power for the landowners involved.

Camrose County needs to make the decision on the project based on the information provided.

Camrose County’s role in this situation is only as a result of the County holding an easement on the title,” she said.

The concerns of the landowners are threefold: lack of consultation, seepage and catastrophic failure of the dam.

“The projects are under Ducks Unlimited for 10 years and then turned over to the County. The County would be liable if any failures occur and you need to understand that,” Keller said.

Landowners will have the opportunity to address these concerns with Ducks Unlimited and Alberta Environment at the January 18 information meeting.

“I move that council accept the presentation from the landowners within the East New Norway Water Management Area regarding the Ducks Unlimited Project as information and that it comes back to the February 13th meeting with more information,” said councillor Tina Sroka.

The COUNTRY BOOSTER, January 16, 2024 – Page 5

is published for Controlled Distribution

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FARMLAND FOR SALE BY TENDER

Rural areas need to promote economic development

By Murray Green

University of Alberta Augustana Campus professor Clark Banack shared his presentation on Alberta Centre for Sustainable Rural Communities and Economic Development to Camrose County at a regular meeting.

He provided an update on the work of his focus on economic development.

“We do several studies on rural development, not just economic development.

The Centre has existed for about 12 years and I want to talk about some of the projects. Everyone would like that big win of attracting a big factory or plant, but those are hard to get.

I have always been interested in looking into areas where we can make small differences in areas where we have room to grow,” explained Banack.

“We want places that can create six to 10 jobs to bring in a few more families into our communities to keep the schools open.

We also do reports on other things like the Men’s Shed program and on family social services in the rural areas. Service delivery is so important to rural areas as well,” shared Banack.

“Projects we are working on now include innovative uses on the co-operative model that can spur on economic development in certain ways. Community groups can get together (like the Battle River Railway) and have success. Coops tend to be grassroots, citizen driven projects.

There are things that municipalities can do, especially with start up fees.

Right now we are writing the report,” said Banack.

“Another project we have been working on is dark sky tourism. There is a growing number of urban based citizens who are super keen on driving out to rural areas to star gaze and take part in activities that relate to dark skies,” added Banack.

He pointed out that we have plenty of dark sky areas in Camrose County including the Miquelon Lake Provincial Park, which is a dark sky preserve already.

“Some areas are doing programming around this, such as Jasper where they hold an annual festival.

We can’t do what they can do, but there are meaningful lessons to be learned.

People from Edmonton are willing to drive out to the rural areas, spending a weekend learning about science-based tourism.

This takes careful thinking, but how do we create opportunities where we are luring urban people from Edmonton out to Camrose County. Not just an hour at the observatory, but a weekend of activities that connect other tourism opportunities,” suggested Banack.

“In the new year we will have some recommendations. I’ll mention two others. We just signed a letter of agreement to do a study on the state of volunteerism in rural communities. We all know it is

in decline. Are there ways we can re-engage the community? If we can’t get volunteers in small communities, what are the ramifications. I know you support the smaller areas with project money, but do they have enough volunteers to complete the projects,” said Banack.

“This one isn’t in the books yet, but we could have a large project on attracting and retaining newcomers to rural areas to address labour shortages. This could address population decline. It is all tied to economic development,” he said.

He encouraged the County to work together with Augustana on studies.

“We have rural students that are keen on rural areas. I will be teaching a class on rural development and politics. That means more students will need places to do some community work. There are different ways to work together,” said Banack.

Councillor Doug Lyseng suggested contacting the school board because they have concerns about declining enrollment in rural areas and that might tie into one of his projects.

“We have to think about bringing newcomers into the communities,” said Banack.

Councillor Tina Sroka talked about her visit to Jasper and attending the dark sky festival and said it would work here if it is less expensive.

(County of Camrose)

The following farmland located in Camrose County is offered for sale by tender, subject to the existing reservations and non-financial encumbrances on title: MERIDIAN 4 RANGE 18 TOWNSHIP 43 SECTION 27 QUARTER NORTH WEST CONTAINING 64.7 HECTARES (160 ACRES) MORE OR LESS EXCEPTING THEREOUT: HECTARES (ACRES) MORE OR LESS A) PLAN 1424764 - DESCRIPTIVE 32.241 79.67 EXCEPTING THEREOUT ALL MINES AND MINERALS AND THE RIGHT TO WORK THE SAME

This land is 80 cultivated acres, fully fenced.

Tenders are to be submitted in sealed envelopes marked “Hillaby Tender”, to Andreassen Borth, Barristers and Solicitors, #200, 4870-51 Street, Camrose, Alberta, T4V 1S1, Attention: Jessica Andreassen on or before 12:00 noon on January 26, 2024, and shall be accompanied with a cheque for $5,000.00, payable to Andreassen Borth Trust, and GST number.

Tenders will not be opened in public. No conditional Tenders will be accepted. No adjustments will be made other than 2024 taxes.

The highest, or any Tender, not necessarily accepted. The owner reserves the right to reject any and all tenders.

Unsuccessful tenderers will be notified by mail, and their cheques returned.

Successful tenderers shall be obligated to complete the purchase on or before February 13, 2024, and their cheque shall constitute a deposit towards the purchase price.

Successful tenderer will be responsible for the cost of title insurance to facilitate timely closing.

For further information, or to view the property, please contact Jim at 780-608-0369.

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The COUNTRY BOOSTER, January 16, 2024 – Page 6

Assisting Alberta’s livestock producers

By Jackie Lovely, MLA Camrose Constituency

Last month, the Honorable RJ Sigurdson, Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation and our United Conservative government made an important announcement concerning a vital piece of our province’s economy– Alberta’s livestock producers.

On October 26, we were proud to share that under the Sustainable Canadian Agriculture Partnership, Canada and Alberta have committed $165 million in AgriRecovery funding to support livestock producers impacted by drought and extreme hot weather.

However, as MLA for the constituency of Camrose, I understand there are concerns regarding the geographic requirements for the 2023 Canada-Alberta Drought Livestock Assistance–AgriRecovery initiative.

Many Albertans know, especially in the constituency of Camrose, that it has been a tough growing season.

Challenges due to dry conditions have caused many of our farmers and ranchers to face extraordinary costs and increased stress as the winter-feeding months approach.

Alberta’s government has been fiercely advocating to the federal government for our producers to receive drought relief since July and will continue to fight to have Alberta producers’ needs met. Over the last few months, a tremendous amount of work has gone into negotiations with the federal government to ensure agricultural supports for the 2023 growing season are as comprehensive as possible, given the unique conditions producers are facing.

As a condition of the program, area-specific eligibility was a requirement set by the federal government.

We heard concerns about the eligibility map from our producers and have asked the federal government for adjustments. Minister Sigurdson has been fierce in negotiations, advocating to the federal government for our producers to receive drought relief. However, simply put, the federal government would not have provided its portion of this program’s funding without area-specific eligibility requirements. The urgency for the program was clear. While our government fought against these conditions after months of negotiations, Alberta also couldn’t risk its producers being shorted on critical funding as they enter the winter months.

Under these conditions, geographic limitations are based on precipitation, soil moisture and pasture conditions, as determined by the federal government. As a result, the Canada-Alberta Drought Livestock Assistance Program only addresses extreme dry conditions.

It targets municipalities identified with a severe or one in 10-year drought on the Canadian Drought Monitor map.

I want to emphasize that the 2023 Canada-Alberta Drought Livestock Assistance Program and the existing suite of Business Risk Management programs (i.e., AgriInsurance, AgriStability and AgriInvest) are intended to be complementary, working together to meet the varied experiences of Alberta’s producers during the challenging 2023 growing season.

I urge you to discuss your Business Risk Management (BRM) program and insurance options with your local AFSC branch to determine what would work best for your farm, as the BRM programs and insurance products are the first line of defense in any disaster situation.

I also want to assure the hard-working constituents of the Camrose region that our government remains focused and committed to reducing the pressure on our farmers and ranchers while they continue to put food on tables around the world. Our livestock producers are vital to our province’s economy, and we will continue to fight to have Alberta producers’ needs met.

If you have any questions or concerns, contact my office. We are always here for you!

You can contact Jackie Lovely, Camrose MLA, at Constituency Office, 104, 4870-51 Street, Camrose, AB T4V 1S1. Tel: 780-672-0000, camrose@assembly.ab.ca or at Legislature Office, 6th Floor, 9820-107 Street, Edmonton, AB T5K 1E7.

Bittern Lake deciding on village or hamlet status

By Murray Green

The Village of Bittern Lake has a decision to make. Residents will be deciding later this year if they want to stay a village or move back to being a hamlet under Camrose County.

Alberta municipal affairs staff Charlene Brown, Linda Reynolds and Ross Zimmerman attended the regular council meeting on January 9.

As part of the Village of Bittern Lake Viability Review, they presented an overview of the process to date.

“A viability review is an objective review of a municipality’s governance, administration, finances, infrastructure, community and services that provides options on how the community can become viable in the future,” said Brown, the lead municipal viability advisor.

A viability review includes public information sessions to gather information and then another public mid-review to keep track of changes and added information.

“Our role is to present a balanced presentation to residents so they can make an informed vote for the future of Bittern Lake.

A report will be mailed to residents before the vote is conducted,” she added.

The process covers every detail of the village through an infrastructure audit, information collection and analysis, viability report and pre-vote public information.

“It will have one of two ends. A vote by residents will determine the outcome. It will either stay a village and reach viability or become a hamlet under Camrose County. Those are

the two options,” she stated.

Governance administration, operations finances, infrastructure services and community will be part of the viability factors.

“We will review significant infrastructure deficit, lack of priority setting and long-term planning, lack of stable tax base, depleting accumulated surpluses, declining population and reliance on government transfers,” explained Brown.

Alberta municipal affairs will be talking to both Bittern Lake and County administration to go over roles and responsibilities for each. The whole process will take about a year to 18 months.

“We’ve talked to the CEO and Bittern Lake council, as well as your CEO about the process. We have gathered initial information. We will answer general questions that the residents of Bittern Lake may have. We won’t provide some answers because we are early on in the process.

We will have some specific information that we can give them,” she added.

“A change from the past is that we now have a mid-review stage to update information and pass that along to voting residents.

This addition is to address concerns from the residents that there was not another area of input prior to the finalization of the viability review report and it gives us a better understanding of the concerns or process,” said Brown.

The infrastructure audit for Bittern Lake was approved for $120,000, based on population of 216 people.

Alberta municipal affairs will help with the transitional stream following a dissolution or amal-

gamation vote. However, no extra funding will come forward if they choose to stay as a village.

“If they decide to turn things over to the County, their taxes may not be going down in the near future.

Residents will still have to pay for their fair share for immediate infrastructure upgrades that need to go ahead,” Brown indicated.

Based on population, Camrose County could receive close to $1 million to help with costs, but that would be a drop in the bucket if infrastructure needs are high.

“I’ve asked this question before when New Norway and Ferintosh became hamlets, this puts a heavy burden on the County, do we have a chance to say no?” asked County councillor Doug Lyseng.

The answer is still no.

“This is very, very unfair,” he added.

“We have to follow our guidelines and those comments are political. We do our best,” shared Reynolds.

“This puts a burden on every resident within the County. It’s a lot,” stated councillor Tina Sroka. “We are a have-not County and don’t have a ton of oil and gas money coming in.”

Post restructuring is based on a population of 216 with transitional stream of a base $100,000 and $500/ capita of $108,000.

The infrastructure/debt servicing stream following a dissolution or amalgamation is a base $500,000 and $1,500/capita for $324,000.

“We are planning, if everything goes well, to complete our review by October with a vote to be held in November,” concluded Brown.

File Photo

The residents of Bittern Lake will be deciding later this year if they wish to remain a village or revert to a hamlet within Camrose County.

The COUNTRY BOOSTER, January 16, 2024 – Page 7

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The COUNTRY BOOSTER, January 16, 2024 – Page 8

Watershed projects

You could win a photograph of your farm!

By Murray Green

Susanna Bruneau of the Battle River Watershed Alliance (BRWA) updated Camrose County council on its projects at the December meeting.

Bruneau explained the projects and asked County to support them by attending the Community Engagement Summit on February 29.

The BRWA is searching for participation in a watershed-wide survey, stakeholder interviews, presentations to municipal councils, Maskwacis Cree Tribal council and Métis Nation of Alberta joint discussions.

After the summit, she requested that council participate in the planning program of aligning service delivery plans with Battle River and Sounding Creek watershed management recommendations.

These engagement sessions are slated for March and April 2024.

The BRWA is collaborating with Municipal Planning Services (MPS) to prepare discussion and implementation guides for municipalities, First Nations and the Métis Nation of Alberta within the Battle River and Sounding Creek Watersheds (the Battle River and Sounding Creek jurisdictions). The project is intended to improve awareness about how communities are currently implementing watershed management recommendations and environmental land management practices into land use planning documents and to identify opportunities for communities to take further action to achieve watershed resilience and sustainability.

BRWA is a not-forprofit, non-governmental organization dedicated to preserving and enhancing the land and water in the Battle River and Sounding Creek Watersheds. Its vision is to have a watershed that sustains all life by using sound knowledge, wisdom and wise actions to preserve our watershed for future generations.

They achieve its vision by providing relevant science, social science, policies and education for a diverse community of people to create solutions to the watershed’s challenges. The BRWA has grown into a well-respected community organization.

If this is your farm,

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TOFIELD 4-H Submitted

Josiah Johnson The Beaver County 4-H Multi-Club participated in the Vegreville Christmas Bureau toy drive in December. The club’s job this year was to sort girls’ toys from ages three to 17. After sorting everything, the toys were packed into bags and put in piles ready for delivery.

The club was happy to participate.