Environmental farm plans and environmentally friendly practices on farmland are becoming a standard on farms across Canada and in other developed countries. It is important to preserve and protect natural features on land, and to protect vital environmental system components such as watersheds. This is my area of interest as I look to pursue graduate studies, and it is important to me to see farmers taking it into their own hands to better the land they own for generations to come.
The British government has put a time limit on British farmers to adopt practices that benefit wildlife and help to combat climate change. (Ontario Farmer) The goal is to have the current amount of arable land covered with environmental schemes doubled in three years. Farmers are expected to complete the implementation of these schemes with no financial assistance, and are also expected to keep fallow periods to sustain populations of field mammals and birds such as voles and field mice. In the event that the goal is not achieved and farmers fail to implement any strategies, subsidy funding will be cut.
This is a very strict policy that, in my opinion, could do a lot of good for the environment. There are catches of course, such as farmers doing small things just to get by, which would not have any lasting affect on the protection of environmental systems. On the other hand, farmers who see the value in preserving their own land for future generations may go to great lengths to improve their farming practices and ultimately the environment. Too many people in society today think that climate change cannot be impacted by small actions, but that is not true. If everyone makes changes, such as all the farmers in Britain, that could result in a much lower greenhouse gas emission, and/or less waste, and/or less runoff into important systems like watersheds.