Outfitting the tractor with a Global Positioning System (GPS) has helped Tony Pliva reduce herbicide and other inputs used on his Southern Alberta farm. By reducing the amount of overlap on each equipment pass, he estimates he's saving about 6.5 acres worth of inputs on each quarter section.

Although it varies with the crop, the Drumheller-area farmer says that translates into an overall input savings of between $5,000 and $10,000 per year.

"It's surprising when you make the comparison," says Pliva, who crops about 2,800 acres of grains and oilseeds. "Without the GPS, during field spraying, I was overlapping about 100 feet over a quarter section. And over the whole farm that adds up."

A quick calculation shows that a 100-foot spray overlap on a quarter section?a half mile-long field?equals about 6.5 acres and over 17 or 18 quarters, which totals about 112 acres of overlap. Although crop inputs will vary, if seed, fertilizer and chemical range between $50 and $100 per acre, that adds up to $5,000 to $10,000 per year.

The Outback GPS system costs about $6,600. Considering the value it brings to his operation, Pliva estimates that the system will be paid off within a couple of years. "And reducing the inputs is also good for the environment," he says.

Funding assistance

To further improve the returns, Pliva recovered 30 percent of the cost of the GPS unit through the federal/provincial Canada Alberta Farm Stewardship Program (CAFSP). The program, introduced in 2005, is designed to help producers implement environmental improvements on their farms. Funds, however, are only available to farmers and ranchers who complete an Environmental Farm Plan (EFP).

"I had heard about these new Environmental Farm Plans in early 2004," says Pliva. "To be honest, my main reason for getting involved was financial. I liked the idea of getting some assistance with the cost of this equipment. But at the same time, as producers, we need to be more aware of the environmental issues."

Pliva is one of more than 3,600 Alberta farmers who have completed Environmental Farm Plans since they were introduced in 2003. The free planning service is delivered by the non-profit Alberta Environmental Farm Plan Company (AEFP). The plans are intended as an environmental risk management tool, says Mike Slomp, executive director of AEFP.

"It's free, it's voluntary and it's a totally confidential process," says Slomp. "The goal is to make producers aware of all the things they are doing right and also point out any practices that should be changed or improved. Farmers aren't obligated to make changes, but at least they know where improvements are needed."

CAFSP is a companion initiative delivered by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada-PFRA. The CAFSP was introduced to provide financial assistance for many of the improvements identified in individual Environmental Farm Plans. The program provides up to 50 percent in cost shared funding for projects in 26 different categories. GPS and autosteer systems, for example, are included under Improved Cropping Systems. The category also covers other equipment upgrades such as low-drift nozzles and shrouds for field sprayers as well as chaff spreaders for combines.

Other categories cover a wide range of improvements in crop, livestock, water, land and air quality management practices.

The key to accessing CAFSP funds is having a completed and reviewed Environmental Farm Plan. Producers must receive approval from CAFSP for planned improvements before any purchases are made and the project started. The funding is not retroactive.

Pliva is a third generation farmer who continues the farm business that his parents, Randy and Sandra Pliva, retired. He produces hard red spring wheat, feed barley and canola in an 80/20 percent crop/chemfallow system.

EFP process

Tony Pliva mounted the Outback GPS system (background) in the Case Quad-Trac tractor.

"Completing an Environmental Farm Plan was a simple process," he says. "We're a straight cropping operation. We don't have a huge land base and the farm doesn't include multiple abandoned farmsteads. So it was pretty straightforward.

"But the process was an eye opener," Pliva adds. "It makes you think about how you manage all aspects of your operation."

To prepare the plan, he participated in an initial half-day introductory workshop, completed the plan details at home, and later attended a second half-day workshop that enables participants to discuss or ask questions about the whole process.

Each completed plan, identified only by a private code number, is checked by a three-member peer review committee of producers who provide comments and suggestions before the document is returned to the producer.

When the plan is deemed appropriate by this committee, the farmer gets a Statement of EFP Completion and can then plan his improvement projects and apply to CAFSP for funding.

"Aside from the two workshops, completing the plan involved about four to six hours of homework," says Pliva. "It was a simple process for our grain farm."

Along with the GPS that helps improve crop input efficiency, Pliva is also considering equipping the tractor with an autosteer system. With GPS he estimates he still overlaps about one foot on each pass. With autosteer, which precisely steers a tractor, self-propelled sprayer or combine according to GPS settings, that overlap could be reduced even further.

As a result of completing an EFP, Pliva is considering two other environment-related improvements: installation of an improved fuel storage and handling system, and properly sealing two abandoned water wells.

From an environmental standpoint, safety is improved and risk reduced if fuel is stored in a doubled-walled tank that rests on the ground as opposed to the conventional overhead tank stands. The fuel tanks should also be surrounded by a berm or other containment system that reduces the risk of fuel spills or leaks contaminating soil or surface and ground water.

"It makes sense and it would be much more convenient to consolidate the five tanks we have now into a couple of tanks," says Pliva. "When the time comes to make the change I'll use the new specifications."

He also plans to properly seal two abandoned wells on the farm. With the farm households and shop connected to the Drumheller municipal water system for nearly 20 years, Pliva says the wells should be properly closed.

"Completing the plan emphasizes the importance of properly sealing an unused well to reduce the risk of ground water contamination," says Pliva. Local well drillers or Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development water specialists can provide advice on properly decommissioning unused wells.

"Having a completed Environmental Farm Plan is good for your farm and for the agriculture industry," says Pliva. "If we don't do it on a voluntary basis, someday it may become mandatory. We don't know what's ahead when it comes to regulations, so it's better to be one step ahead."

For more information on the Environmental Farm Plan process contact the Alberta Environmental Farm Plan Company in Edmonton toll free at 1-866-844-2337 or visit the Web site at: www.albertaefp.com

This article is reprintable with credit to AEFP as follows "Reprinted courtesy of the Alberta Environmental Farm Plan Company; www.albertaEFP.com".