Annual drought compensation paid to farms by the Financière agricole du Québec (FADQ) has quintupled in five years, found The duty. Moreover, more and more Quebec farmers are forced to turn to irrigation to combat these arid periods and guarantee their harvests.
“When you think about it, I’m selling water,” jokes Francis Desrochers as he surveys his land in Lanaudière, where he’s been growing potatoes since the family farm gave up tobacco, in the 1990s. Indeed, the popular tuber is made up of almost 80% of the precious liquid.
“No matter how much fertilizer you put in, without irrigation, production drops by half. First, the potatoes are smaller. Secondly, there are fewer of them because the plants “abandon” the little potatoes at the start of the year that they cannot feed”, indicates the man who is also president of the Quebec Potato Producers.
The stakes are high, since the periods of drought are increasing and his potatoes are grown in sandy soils, where water retention is difficult: “If tomorrow morning, I no longer have the right to irrigate, it’s not just me who would be in difficulty or who should seriously think about stopping production, it’s the whole region, so hundreds of farmers. »
In addition to climate change, increased water consumption due to urban sprawl also puts pressure on the resource. “We want to be able to make sure we have access to the minimum amount of water we need,” says Francis Desrochers. The man takes a deep breath: “People say that the farmers make burnouts ; it’s not false. We are increasingly juggling risks and uncertainties, and water supply risks are part of the lot. »
Irrigate for more security
As proof, the amount of indemnities paid to the Crop Insurance Program because of droughts has quintupled in five years, according to data that the FADQ transmitted to the To have to. They went from nearly $3 million in 2016 to $14.5 million in 2021. In 2020, droughts hit the province particularly hard; the FADQ paid damages totaling 35 million to more than 2,100 companies.
The FADQ has also paid $3.3 million over two years so that hundreds of farms can do the urgent work needed to deploy additional irrigation systems. The goal: to reduce or avoid crop losses, which are increasingly common.
People say farmers burnout; it’s not false. We are increasingly juggling risks and uncertainties, and water supply risks are part of the lot.
“The demand for water management projects is strong and growing. Whether it’s for the improvement of cropland or water management, especially during periods of drought, ”said the Financière agricole by email.
For market gardeners, water stress is real, concedes Charles-Félix Ross, general manager of the Union des producteurs agricole du Québec: “The Ministry of Agriculture told us in the spring that several regions were dry. Just because it rains a lot in Nord-du-Québec doesn’t mean there isn’t a lack of water in other regions, such as Brome-Missisquoi. In the area of Bromont, there was a complete lack of water; it was quite critical. »
And irrigation has grown in popularity over the years and with the vagaries of the weather, which have increased due to climate change. “Now there are field crop growers who are starting to think about irrigation,” he says.
Similar story from Frédéric Lasserre, expert in water geopolitics and director of the Quebec Council for Geopolitical Studies at Laval University: “The demand for water in the agricultural sector has increased substantially over the past 40 years. , certainly because of the increase in demand for agricultural products in drier regions, but also because many farmers saw it as a way of reducing the weather hazard. »
Irrigation allows farmers, often in debt, to reduce their financial risks, notes Mr. Lasserre: “Over time, the financial risk of losing as little as 10% of their crops became too heavy. Many farmers have chosen to reduce this risk by using irrigation, even if the crops were previously rain-fed and there was no real biological need. »
He adds: “With the possible—probable—advent of hotter, drier summers, with a higher frequency of very dry spells, this tendency to resort to irrigation will undoubtedly increase, even in Quebec. »
A significant challenge
Water stress is felt among strawberry growers. “Along with the workforce, water supply is one of our biggest challenges,” says David Lemire, president of the Association of Strawberry and Raspberry Producers of Quebec.
And he knows something about it. To water its 40 hectares of strawberries, the Gagnon horticultural farm – which Mr. Lemire owns – must inject “about 200,000 dollars” to drill a new artesian well. This will provide access to the resource and feed the drip systems, which nourish the roots by “depositing the desired quantity of water in the desired place”; plastic covers them to reduce evaporation.
Along with labour, water supply is one of our biggest challenges.
When asked about the water supply, Mr. Lemire argues that the agricultural community would benefit from reviewing its ways of doing things in order to preserve this resource. An example ? Quebec regulations prohibit the withdrawal of more than 15% of the quantity equivalent to the low water level of a watercourse, ie the lowest annual level of the latter.
Several ditches bordering the fields are considered watercourses and overflow with water in the spring. “For strawberry growers, spring is the time of year when the need for water is greatest. We often water the plants at night to prevent frost,” he explains.
Unable to pump water from these ditches, Mr. Lemire opted for the well: “What was my other option? It was to feed me directly with water from the municipality. But something seemed illogical to me about taking treated water just to prevent freezing. »