The Watershed Evaluation of Beneficial Management Practices (WEBs) is a federally funded initiative with the purpose of measuring the economic and water quality impacts of selected agricultural beneficial management practices (BMPs) at seven watershed sites across Canada. Prince Edward Island was a desired location for a WEB's project because of its history of intensive agriculture. Potato crop acreage in Prince Edward Island grew rapidly in the late 1980's and early 1990's, as a result of this intensive crop rotation a dramatic increase in soil erosion was observed. In addition the province also observed an increase in groundwater nitrate levels in these intensive agricultural areas, creating public concern as more than half of the population rely on private wells for their drinking water.

Lily Pond Farms and Rollo Bay Holdings Ltd. are the two producers that host the four sites being used as a Project WEB's test fields. All four of the WEB's sites are located within the Souris River Watershed which was the preferred location for the WEB's project on PEI because it is highly influenced by intensive agriculture production, there was a willingness from local agricultural producers to participate, as well as an existing good rapport between the Souris and Area Branch of the PEI Wildlife Federation and the local agriculture producers.

The WEB's project collaborators on the Souris River Watershed are: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada; Souris and Area Branch of the PEI Wildlife Federation; The University of PEI Biology Department; The Nova Scotia Agricultural College; PEI Department of Agriculture; PEI Department of Environment Energy and Forestry.

The Scope of the Souris River WEB's Project

Rigorous crop production has been associated with contamination of surface and groundwater from nutrient overload in excess of crop requirements and sedimentation run off. It is believed that these environmental risks can be greatly diminished by discouraging fall ploughing in favor of spring ploughing. The theory is that by reducing the over-winter nitrogen leaching losses from agricultural soils there is more nitrogen available for the next cropping season; therefore, requiring less fertilizer input. The scope of the three year WEB's study within the Souris River Watershed is to evaluate the watershed scale effects of utilizing spring ploughing versus fall ploughing following the hay crop in a potato-grain-hay rotation. The study will also include an evaluation of managed versus un-managed riparian zones in terms of the reduction of sedimentation run off and the associated impacts on aquatic habitat, as well as phosphorus loading of watercourses adjacent to agricultural lands.

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Souris Branch of the P.E.I. Wildlife Federation

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