Before reading this piece, We have One Question for the gentle reader to ponder : How can BrookField Gardens Inc. kill so many fish, trying so hard as to leave the smallest environmental impact upon PEI as opposed to the (sharon Labchuk hated) so called conventional Pesticides Ablaze farmers like McCAIN?
FYI: Red Soil Organics and Brookfield are the same location 1067 Millboro Rd., PE
AND WHEREAS in accordance with clause 1(1)(d) of the Act, Brookfield Gardens Inc. and Red Soil Organics are deemed to be one corporation because they are controlled by the same group;
AND WHEREAS, on May 29, 2012, Executive Council approved the application for Brookfield Gardens Inc. to lease up to 900.00 acres of land (Executive Council Order No. EC2012-301 and the application for Red Soil Organics to lease up to 214.00 acres of land (Executive Council Order No. EC2012-302)
We realize how important a healthy environment is to the success of our operation, and to the well-being of our society. We also realize that, as farmers, everyday we work in close proximity to some of our most valuable environmental resources. This is a great privilege, and one of the reasons that we love to farm, but it is also a great responsibility, as we feel compelled to preserve and protect these resources for the generations to come.
Here are some of the initiatives we have taken to lessen our impact on the environment:
- We use biological pest control methods as much as possible in order to reduce pesticide use. For example, we plant collards around the perimeter of our cabbage fields. Certain pests like to eat collards more than cabbage, and this keeps them from entering the cabbage field.
- We landscape strategic sections of our fields into grassed ditches. By controlling the drainage properties of our fields, we greatly reduce erosion.
- We plant hedges in new fields and preserve existing hedges in older ones. This encourages biodiversity and protects our crops from cold winds.
- We follow nutrient management plans, and IPM (integrated pest management) plans which minimize our fertilizer and pesticide use.
About Brookfield Gardens (2009)
Brookfield Gardens is located in Brookfield, Prince Edward Island. The
community is about twenty minutes northwest of Charlottetown.Brothers Gerald and Eddie Dykerman started Brookfield Gardens in 1979,
after having worked on other farms. Brookfield Gardens now grows and
markets 280 acres of vegetables, including carrots, lettuces, broccoli,
cauliflower, parsnips, cabbages and turnips.The company is known for its innovative approaches and diversified
products. For example, Brookfield Gardens is currently introducing
organically-grown vegetables to its list of produce in order to meet
popular demand.
CBC – Oct 29/14
Brookfield Gardens Inc. has been charged with three counts under the P.E.I. Environmental Protection Act in connection with a fish kill on the North River in August.
Thousands of dead fish — brook trout, rainbow trout and Atlantic salmon — were found along a 3.5-kilomentre section of the North River in central P.E.I., on Aug. 9.
According to the province the charges arose from the investigation into the North River fish kill. "The charges are the result of the cultivation of an agricultural crop in the North Milton area." said a statement released Wednesday by the Department of Environment’s Public Safety Division.
The charges fall under the Environmental Protection Act’s, Watercourse and Wetland Protection Regulations. Two counts are related to cultivating land within 15 metres of a watercourse, and one count is related to farming on land that is too steep.
The province says the charges relate only to the company's farming practices. No link has been made to what killed the fish. Investigators are now testing some of the dead fish for pesticide residues.
Eddy Dykerman, one of the owners of the farm, told CBC the company planted carrots in the field in question and planted grass around the edge of the field this spring, to create a buffer zone, as required by law.
Brookfield Gardens Inc. is scheduled to appear in Charlottetown Provincial Court Nov. 24.
via Charges laid in connection with North River fish kill says province – – CBC News.