Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada are asking farmers to take 5 minutes each month to report on weather and climate impacts. Although, AAFC uses a variety of tools, including data from weather stations, satellites, and computer modeling to understand conditions, such as drought or flooding, these methods alone cannot adequately describe the effects of weather events on farming operations such as field access, seeding or harvest delays, crop stage or plant or livestock health.
To fully understand the impact of weather and climate on agriculture, AAFC needs to hear directly from farmers. AAFC’s Agroclimate Impact Reporter (AIR) is a survey-based tool that lets producers provide information on how weather and climate have impacted their farm or their region each month during the growing season. The five-minute survey helps inform the department’s understanding of local issues producers are facing. Without input from producers, it is difficult to assess impacts including excess moisture, flooding, frost, livestock health and crop quality issues.
No one needs to tell farmers about the impact of extreme weather of some sort during the growing season. Throughout the growing season weather challenges can include intense heat, high-intensity rainfall, flooding, saturated fields, hail, frost, and extreme wind events. These extreme events have significant impact on individual producers and the agricultural industry.
It is because of this high-risk, highly variable environment, that the National Agroclimate Information Service is mandated to monitor climate risks and to provide information to the agriculture sector. This information helps the agricultural industry to adapt and the government to focus their programs and policies in a way that mitigates the risks to producers.
The questionnaire takes about five minutes to complete and requires information like:
- Farm location
- Type of farm
- If the area is experiencing weather or climate-related impacts
- Soil moisture condition, and
- Steps farmers have taken to adapt to challenging weather this year.
The survey responses are also used to create maps help identify trends and visualize how climate is affecting agriculture. The findings are published on the Drought Watch website.
The survey is open for the last week of each month until October and is available here.
Producers can complete the survey by email or by phone as well. Instructions are available here.