City of Pitt Meadows

CITY OF PITT MEADOWS AGRICULTURAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE

MINUTES OF THE AGRICULTURAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING Held at the Pitt Meadows City Hall, Meadows Room, Pitt Meadows, BC Thursday, June 8th, 2017

COMMITTEE MEMBERS: STAFF: Joe Bachmann, Co-chair Kate Zanon, Director of Community Services, Leo Captein, Co-chair Meeting Chair Macky Banns Forrest Smith, Director of Engineering and Bruce Bell, Council Liaison Operations Dieter Geesing, Ministry of Agriculture Randy Evans, Operations Superintendent Dan Kosicki Lisa Grant, Manager of Community Development Mike Manion Dana Parr, Planner Bill Park Elaine Harrison, Recorder Scott Pelton Mike Stark, Acting Council Liaison GUESTS: Wayne Wisselink Erin Agro, Sylvis Environmental Services Karen Pyne, Metro Vancouver REGRETS: Hank Bitter Janis Elkerton, Alternate Council Liaison Bob Hopcott

The meeting was called to order at 10:00 am.

Agenda items Kate Zanon, Director of Community Services asked if there were any late agenda items. The following items were put forward:-  Golden Ears Business Park Public Hearing on June 13th, 2017 by Dan Kosicki  Damage to farm land by geese, ducks and swans by Joe Bachmann  Katzie Slough newspaper article by Bill Park

Moved by Joe Bachmann and seconded by Mike Manion that the additional items suggested by Committee members be discussed at the meeting. CARRIED

Adoption of Minutes April 13 th , 2017 The Committee asked that the following amendments be made to the Minutes:-  Housing in the ALR – Council in Committee Presentations – the sentence “Questions if a farmer moves away, who will purchase the large houses” be changed to “Questions if a farmer moves away, what will happen to the large structures”  Roundtable – Dan Kosicki – the sentence “had recently attended the Chamber of Commerce Business Excellence Awards and two Pitt Meadows farmers had been recognised in the Agricultural Industry category. These were Leo Captein’s farm and Kevin Severinski’s farm who had received the award” be changed to “had recently attended the Chamber of Commerce Business Excellence Award and two Pitt Meadows farmers had been acknowledged by the

#142221v1 Chamber in the Agricultural Industry category. These were Leo Captein’s farm and Kevin Severinski’s Farm and the Severinski Farm had won the award”

Moved by Dan Kosicki and seconded by Leo Captein that the minutes of April 13th, 2017 as amended be adopted. CARRIED

AAC Appointments Kate Zanon, Director of Community Services reported that all current members whose term of office had recently expired had been re-appointed by Council on a two-year term. Following an advertising campaign several applicants had expressed an interest in joining the Committee and Council had appointed Wayne Wisselink, a Pitt Meadows dairy farmer. The Committee members introduced themselves to Mr. Wisselink and Ms. Zanon welcomed him to the Committee.

Ms. Zanon also explained that the standard letters sent to all newly appointed members on Council appointed committees had been modified and was now being administered by the Corporate Clerk’s Office. The letters advised members to adhere to professional standards of conduct and that discussions should occur in a respectful manner.

Presentation – Phosphorus Management in Pitt Meadows Karen Pyne from Metro Vancouver and Erin Agro from SYLVIS Environmental made a presentation to the Committee which forms part of these minutes as attachment A. They advised that following their initial presentation to the Committee in January 2016 a farmer in Abbotsford had undertaken field trials. The trial had initially shown positive results but as it had continued the results did not follow suit. It was thought this was due to the conservative application rate of the residual and in the trials planned for the fall 2017 and spring 2018 season the application of the residual would be more aggressive. It was also mentioned that rather than going to landfill the residuals were now being taken to Lafarge who in turn were mixing them with sand to make a beneficial re-use.

The Committee commented that the soil composition in Abbotsford is different to Pitt Meadows and a few farmers in Pitt Meadows had already had their fields tested but the results had shown that their soil was not suitable for inclusion in the trial. They also mentioned that golf courses and the turf industry may be potential collaborates to be considered.

Proposed Amendments to the Zoning Bylaw – electric fences Dana Parr, Planner explained to the Committee that she had received a request from a farmer for permission to install an electric fence around beehives to keep bears away from the hives. The current zoning bylaw allowed for the installation of electric fences but only to contain domestic farm animals.

The Committee felt that the Bylaw should be amended to accommodate current farm practices and electric fences to deter wild animals was a legitimate problem. The Committee asked that voltage restrictions be incorporated into the Bylaw along with the requirement for farmers to install warning signage and include best management practices for the removal of copper batteries when they are dead.

Moved by Bill Park and seconded by Dan Kosicki that the committee supports staff drafting an amendment to the Zoning Bylaw to update the terminology to accommodate current farming practices regarding electric fences for Council consideration. CARRIED

Events in the ALR – update

#142221v1 Dana Parr, Planner provided the Committee with a draft application form and information sheet for applicants wishing to hold events in the Agricultural Land Reserve such as weddings. The guidelines would be enforced for fee for service events and not personal events but contained overall useful information for events in general. Staff will review the guidelines in early 2018 and will propose changes as identified based on the 2017 events experience.

The Committee asked how any problems would be dealt with such as inconsiderate parking. Staff advised that a new Bylaw Officer had recently been recruited and they would be working in the evenings and on weekends and would monitor such events.

Moved by Leo Captein and seconded Mike Manion that the application form and guidelines for gatherings in the Agricultural Land Reserve be endorsed. CARRIED

Golden Ears Business Park – Public Hearing on June 13 th , 2017 Dan Kosicki asked for clarification as to whether the hearing on June 13th, 2017 was to consider the change of use of the land from agricultural to industrial classification. Ms. Zanon confirmed that only one parcel was being considered to change from agricultural to industrial as the remainder of the land was already designated in the Official Community Plan. Mr. Kosicki said that the public hearing was a chance for the community to have its input, he also reminded the Committee of the decision that had been made previously by the AAC that the Committee recognises the value of farm land but if land is lost the AAC prefers that it be for industrial use rather than residential use.

Damage to farm land by birds Joe Bachmann provided photographs of his fields where geese and ducks had eaten the seeds. In these locations he had had to re-seed at considerable expense. He said that birds were also eating corn directly from his bunker. He acknowledged that the winter and spring had been particularly hard for birds who had difficulty finding food and that he had seen a large increase in the number of birds in the area.

Dieter Geesing mentioned that compensation could be available from the Provincial Government to cover unexpected costs and farmers need to make their concerns known to the Ministry of Agriculture. Wayne Wisselink said that a similar problem had occurred in Delta and the Delta Farmers Institute had been instrumental in bringing a resolution to the problem. Mike Manion said that he would also raise the issue at the Metro Vancouver AAC.

Moved by Joe Bachmann and seconded by Bill Park that the Delta Farmers Institute be invited to attend a meeting of the AAC to give guidance on the control of birds on farmland. CARRIED

Katzie Slough newspaper article Bill Park raised concern about an article that had appeared in the Maple Ridge News regarding the clean- up of the Katzie Slough to promote flow of the water moving along it. He said that farmers are one of the user groups for the Katzie Slough using it for diking and drainage and he felt that farmers’ voices were not being heard.

Mr. Evans said that a substantial amount of water is moved in the slough each year including that which is pumped out. He said the slough does not have a constant feed of water like a stream so it tends to stay stagnant in the summer months. He also said that removing vegetation growth was costing the City a huge amount of money and that this practice was not sustainable.

#142221v1 Mr. Smith said that the City was currently putting together an environmental inventory plan to determine what habitats and species in the City, where the sensitive areas are and where to concentrate environmental efforts. Once this information was collated more educated decisions could then be made including the Katzie Slough. He advised that the AAC would be kept apprised of the results.

Roundtable Dieter Geesing – told the Committee that the Ministry of Agriculture would be hosting a soil management workshop in Surrey in September and he understood it would focus on 2 or 3 relevant topics.

Dan Kosicki – said he understood that Metro Vancouver Parks had purchased more land near the CP rail bridge and the Pitt River bridge for the Pitt River Regional Greenway and asked if the entire stretch was now owned by Metro Vancouver. Ms. Zanon said that there were still some small gaps and that she had asked Metro Vancouver for a map so that ownership along the Greenway could be identified.

Joe Bachmann – asked for an update on the application from the Aquillini Group to allow the storage of cranes on their property which the Committee had been recently asked to comment on. Ms. Zanon said that the application for non-farm use had been denied by Council on June 6, 2017 and as the cranes were still in situ the applicant was now being fined for non-compliance.

Mr. Bachmann also mentioned that beavers were active in the Cranberry Slough at Harris Road, he had noticed that it was now fully blocked and the water levels had increased by one foot.

Bill Park – asked about the river level at the Mission gauge due to the freshet. Mr. Evans said that it had been at 6 metres but had now fallen back. He said there was still a lot of snow high up which would cause the levels to rise next week and asked if Committee members notice anything abnormal with water levels to let the Public Works Department know immediately.

Wayne Wisselink – commented that the AAC needs to be well advised and kept up to date and asked if the entire Agenda package could be made available to the Committee on the Friday prior to the meeting rather than the current practice of it being distributed at the meeting. Ms. Zanon said that this would be looked into.

Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 11:34am.

#142221v1 Attachment A

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