News

April 15, 2019 – Yes, you read that right. The Soil Conservation Council of Canada (SCCC) is at it again with its annual Soil Your Undies challenge to kick off National Soil Conservation Week April 21-27, but this year, we’re taking it up a notch and we need your help. 

“National Soil Conservation Week is the best way to create awareness around soil health and conservation in Canada,” says SCCC chair and Saskatchewan farmer, Tim Nerbas. “It may not cross your mind often, but soil is a big deal. Soil is where we make our living. It sustains our communities. It grows our food. It even cleans our air and water and supports biodiversity.”

Soil definitely packs a punch, and this year during National Soil Conservation Week, the SCCC wants you to jump into the ring for soil conservation. Here is the one-two-three punch you can use on behalf of Canada’s soils:

1. Tell someone why soil is important to you.This is an easy one. Support our soil by sharing with your family, friends, neighbours, social networks, and heck, anyone who will listen, why you rely on healthy soil every day – not just during the third week of April. 
2. Soil Your Undies.This is the third, and what we hope will be the best, national Soil Your Undies challenge yet. Get yourself a pair of white, 100 per cent cotton undies and something to mark the spot and get digging. After a few months, unearth them and share your soil experiment experience with us online using #SoilYourUndies. More details are available on soilcc.ca. 
3. Join us as we strive to reach 1,000 new members. If you are not a SCCC member already,become one at soilcc.ca. The good news for you is the first 50 new members receive a Soil Your Undies starter kit. What better way to be introduced to the organization than by burying a pair of undergarments in the very soil we advocate for. 

It’s that simple. National Soil Conservation Week is a great opportunity to show people why they should care about soil, but it doesn’t need to stop there. 

“The SCCC cares about soil and is active year-round, but our strength only comes from our membership,” says Nerbas. “Together, we can improve soil health, we can bring the benefits of soil to all Canadians and we can strengthen our role as a world leader in soil conservation.”

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About SCCC

The SCCC is the only national organization to concentrate on the issues of soil health and soil conservation within a broadly-based landscape context. It works to build a greater understanding of the importance of soil as an essential resource to society by facilitating the exchange of information with all stakeholders. Healthy soils are the foundation of sustainable food production, enhanced biodiversity and cleaner air and water for present and future generations. For more information, please visit, www.soilcc.ca. 

Contact 

Jim Tokarchuk, Executive Director, 204-792-2424 or jimtokarchuk@soilcc.ca

March 28, 2019 – The Soil Conservation Council of Canada (SCCC) announces that Derek and Tannis Axten are the 2018 L.B. Thomson Conservation Award winners. The Axtens were presented this honour at the annual meeting of the Saskatchewan Soil Conservation Association held in Regina, Sask. last month.

“The L.B. Thomson Conservation Award is presented annually to recognize individuals, organizations, and others who have made outstanding contributions to improving soil health and water conservation at the regional level in Canada,” says Tim Nerbas, chair of the SCCC. “The Axtens are highly deserving of this award based on their actions and commitments to sustaining the health of their soil and sharing their experience and knowledge with others.”

Derek and Tannis operate a no-till farm in the Minton area and have improved their soil health by seeding intercrops, companion crops and cover crops. Improving soil health has allowed them to reduce synthetic inputs, increase water retention and build organic matter. In 2017, they were recognized as Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmers.

The Axten’s motto has become: soil is our most valuable resource, so how can we improve its health? The Axtens are loyal to the soil in every decision made on their farm and they promote the link between healthy soil and healthy food.

“Our farm strives to care for the soil and the biology that it contains,” says Derek. “The bacteria, protozoa, fungi, nematodes, earthworms, etc. create our soil structure and supply our plants with the nutrients that they require. We want to take care of our soil biology so that they take care of our plants. We believe that healthy soil creates healthy plants, which makes healthy food.”

Their ongoing commitment to soil health, their community and the environment make them exemplary recipients of the L.B. Thomson award.

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About the L.B. Thomson Award

The L.B. Thomson Conservation Award was established in 1987 by the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (PFRA) Alumni in honour of Leonard Baden Thomson, Director General of PFRA from 1948 to 1956. Under his leadership, PFRA developed and promoted soil conservation practices that minimized the severe wind erosion that plagued the Prairies in the 1930s. Since 1987, this award has been bestowed on 24 individuals and conservation organizations who continue to make significant contributions to soil conservation in Canada.

In 2016, responsibility for this award was entrusted to the SCCC and the Council is proud to continue this tradition.

About SCCC

The SCCC is the only national organization to concentrate on the issues of soil health and soil conservation within a broadly-based landscape context. It works to build a greater understanding of the importance of soil as an essential resource to society by facilitating the exchange of information with all stakeholders. Healthy soils are the foundation of sustainable food production, enhanced biodiversity and cleaner air and water for present and future generations. For more information, please visit, www.soilcc.ca.

Contact

Jim Tokarchuk, Executive Director, 204-792-2424 or jimtokarchuk@soilcc.ca

March 22, 2018 – Canada, you really got down and dirty in the name of soil conservation last year. Who knew soiling your undies could be so much fun? Now it’s time to do it all over again. April 15 kicks off National Soil Conservation Week and the second annual Soil Your Undies campaign. For those of you who didn’t take part last year, here’s an undies update: the Soil Conservation Council of Canada (SCCC) wants you to bury a pair of cotton undergarments to check the health of the soil under your care.

“We were blown away by the response to the national launch of Soil Your Undies last year,” says SCCC chair and Ontario farmer, Alan Kruszel. “We take the task of advocating for Canada’s soils seriously, but it was a lot of fun to show Canadians just how alive healthy soils are through this entertaining citizen science experiment, and we are eager to do it again.”
Last year, many farmers, schools, media, and organizations from various industries planted a pair of underwear in agricultural fields, flower beds, lawns and even at research facilities across the country to test for soil health. National Soil Conservation Week, which has been held during the third week of April for the past 30 years, extended far beyond its seven days last spring as folks buried undies well into the fall.

The Soil Your Undies test shows just how biologically active your soil is. After a couple months buried, there shouldn’t be much left of your knickers if there is abundant life in your soil. To get started, all you need is a pair of new, 100 per cent cotton white briefs, a shovel, and a flag to mark the site. A helpful step-by-step guide on how to properly Soil Your Undies is available at www.soilcc.ca.

“Once again, Stanfield’s is partnering with us on the Soil Your Undies initiative,” says Kruszel. “We soiled many pairs of tighty whities from coast-to-coast last year and we are excited to bring the Canadian clothing company on board in 2018 as the official underwear sponsor yet again.”
National Soil Conservation Week is an annual event that gives groups like the SCCC, and others who promote soil conservation and health, a platform to remind the public of the importance of soil and the issues around its degradation and loss. To underscore its significance in food production and the role it plays in clean air and water, SCCC encourages all Canadians to take part in the fun, easy, do-it-yourself soil science experiment. Don’t forget to take a video or snap a photo and share your experience with us on social media using the hashtag #SoilYourUndies. Show us your soiled underwear!

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The SCCC is the only national organization to concentrate on the issues of soil health and soil conservation within a broadly-based landscape context. It works to build a greater understanding of the importance of soil as an essential resource to society by facilitating the exchange of information with all stakeholders. Healthy soils are the foundation of sustainable food production, enhanced biodiversity and cleaner air and water for present and future generations.
To learn more about other SCCC initiatives, please visit www.soilcc.ca.

CONTACT: Jim Tokarchuk, Executive Director, 204-792-2424 or jimtokarchuk@soilcc.ca

Being a Kindergartener is exciting. Every day brings something new to learn and discover. Playing in the dirt doesn’t seem like an extraordinary childhood activity, but when the opportunity to bury a pair of undies in your school garden arises, it elevates that youthful enthusiasm and exploration of the inner workings of the world all around us – or in this case, under our feet – to new heights.

Participating in the Soil Conservation Council of Canada’s (SCCC) light-hearted Soil Your Undies campaign gave the Kindergarten class at Arklan Community Public School in Lanark County, Ontario an appreciation for everything that dark material beneath us does. During the third week of April, which is National Soil Conservation Week, Canadians coast-to-coast were encouraged to bury a pair of white, cotton briefs to see how healthy their soil is. Eager to participate, it sounds like the Kindergarten class at Arklan School had a lot of fun with it, too, according to their teachers, Tammy Reid and Karen Coleman.

“Participating in the Soil Your Undies campaign was definitely a highlight this year. The students loved making predictions as to what would happen when we dug up the underwear. Some of the students predicted that they’d grow ‘underwear flowers.’ Some students thought the underwear would still be white, while some students thought they’d be really, really dirty. Other students correctly predicted that there would be holes in the underwear. We were all very surprised to discover that all that was left of the underwear were tiny bits and pieces,” Reid says, adding her and her students now know that the soil in their school’s front garden is healthy and teeming with life.

Soil feeds us, cleans our air and water, and supports our vibrant and diverse economy. National Soil Conservation Week is an annual opportunity to help us recognize the importance of soil to our nation and shed light on the vast and complicated business of keeping it healthy. But it doesn’t stop there. Encouraging Canadians to stop treating soil like dirt is something the SCCC advocates for year round.

This year’s Soil Your Undies campaign, in partnership with Stanfield’s Canada, will be hard to top. The response to Soil Your Undies was beyond SCCC’s expectations. It was picked up by a great deal of media outlets across the country and around the world. Multiple groups and individuals buried their own undies and took to social media to share their experiences. SCCC believes Canadians, and Kindergarten classes alike, are more informed than ever about the importance of our soil and understand the need to conserve it and keep it healthy for the next generation to explore.

The Soil Conservation Council of Canada (SCCC) has announced that Harold Rudy is the 2017 inductee to the Canadian Conservation Hall of Fame. He will be officially inducted at a ceremony on August 22, 2017, at the SCCC Summit on Canadian Soil Health in Guelph, Ontario.

Harold Rudy grew up and continues to live on the family farm with his partner Sandra, near New Hamburg, Ontario. Here he established a thorough understanding of grassroots agriculture. He earned a Bachelor of Science (Agriculture) – Economics and Business Major and a Master of Science, School of Rural Planning, both from the University of Guelph. Following positions in farm management and research, he joined the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food (OMAF) as a “Soil Conservation Advisor.” Here he assisted farmers in all aspects of soil conservation.

In 1987, when Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association (OSCIA) began program delivery, he began his 30-year career in senior management. As their Executive Director, Harold lent his expertise in the design and administration of programs where producers, researchers, extension experts and policy-makers worked collaboratively to affect scientifically based change with the goal of improving soil management and soil health. Harold’s work also focused on a formula for influencing decision-making on the farm that combined education, proven best management practices and cost-share incentives. He is particularly associated with delivery of the Environmental Farm Plan; however, he provided leadership in development and delivery of many subsequent programs and projects.

OSCIA’s history of success has empowered countless agricultural producers to learn more about how their land management decisions impact on-site sustainability and profitability, and off-site quality of life. Harold has shared his insight and experience in program delivery across Canada and around the world. In his current role as OSCIA Executive Officer, Research and Business Development, his unbridled drive is to see heightened interaction between researchers and producers in targeting resources to better understand soil health and the role of soil life for optimal farm production and stewardship practices.

He has earned the respect of peers in government, university research and other organization circles, and unquestionably enjoys his long-standing relationship with OSCIA membership and colleagues.

“Harold has been a great soil conservation advocate throughout his entire career,” says SCCC Chair, Alan Kruszel. “I’ve had the pleasure of knowing Harold for nearly 15 years. He always brings a common sense, conservation approach to his work and is a really deserving recipient.”

Harold is currently working on a book, “The Soil Fixers,” which documents the many contributions to Ontario agriculture by members of the OSCIA and partners from the mid-1980s to the present day.

Harold Rudy’s insight, hard work and leadership make him a worthy inductee into the Canadian Conservation Hall of Fame.

In 1990, SCCC established the Canadian Conservation Hall of Fame, which to date, has recognized 30 Canadians who have made a significant contribution through their dedication to promoting soil conservation in Canada.

Who doesn’t like playing in the dirt? The Soil Conservation Council of Canada (SCCC) sure does and is encouraging the Canadian public to do so as well in honour of National Soil Conservation Week coming up April 16. Launching the entertaining Soil Your Undies campaign, the SCCC wants everyone who cares about soil health to bury a pair of cotton undergarments to witness firsthand the amazing activity that happens right under our feet. In Ontario, the Soil Your Undies project was initiated by the Innovative Farmers Association of Ontario. Now SCCC, in partnership with Stanfield’s, is giving this project a national perspective.

“What better way to understand the inner workings of our soil than with your own easy-to-do soil science experiment,” says SCCC chair and Ontario farmer, Alan Kruszel. “Healthy soil is full of amazing, living organisms. It is what sustains us and is the foundation of a thriving civilization. In order to show just how important healthy soils are to Canadians, the Council wants to pique the public’s interest with our Soil Your Undies initiative. We hope those who take part will share their experiences and their love for soil with us and their social networks.”

The Soil Your Undies experiment provides an indication of how healthy your soil is. After a couple months buried, there shouldn’t be much left of your undies if there is good biological activity in your soil. To get started, all you need is a pair of new, 100 per cent white cotton briefs, a shovel, and a flag to mark the site. A helpful step-by-step guide on how to properly Soil Your Undies is available at www.soilcc.ca.

National Soil Conservation Week is an annual event that gives groups like the SCCC, and others who advocate for soil conservation and health, a platform to remind the public of the importance of soil and the issues around its degradation and loss. To underscore its importance in food production and the role it plays in clean air and water, SCCC will be burying some undies at the Canada Agriculture and Food Museum in Ottawa that will be unearthed at a later date to reveal the degree of biological activity in the soil.

Now it’s time to start thinking about your soil health experiment and bury a pair of undies of your own. Take video or photos and share your experience with us on Twitter @SoilCouncil and use the hashtags #SoilYourUndies or #CdnSoilWeek17 to let us know what’s happening. The SCCC will present some of the highlights from Soil Your Undies at the next Summit on Canadian Soil Health in Guelph, Ont. on August 22 and 23.

The Soil Conservation Council of Canada (SCCC) has announced that Mr. Adam Hayes is the 2016 winner of the L. B. Thomson Conservation Award. Mr. Hayes was presented with this honour by Alan Kruszel, Chair of the SCCC on January 4th at the SouthWest Agricultural Conference in Ridgetown, Ont.

“The L. B. Thomson Conservation Award is presented annually to recognize individuals, organizations, and others who have made outstanding contributions to improving soil and water conservation at the regional level in Canada,” says Kruszel. “Adam is particularly deserving of this award as he has committed more than 30 years of his career to understanding soil health and conservation practices in Ontario.”

Adam grew up in Peterborough, Ont. and completed his B.Sc. (Agr.) at the University of Guelph in 1984. After a brief period of private consulting Adam began his career in soil conservation with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food (OMAF) in 1985. Since then, Adam has spent his entire career better understanding soil health and conservation, and working with Ontario farmers to put superior management systems into practice to optimize production and sustainability. Adam has been called the epitome of a fine extension specialist. Now working for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, he is equally effective whether setting up a cover crop trial with production-oriented farmers, presenting tailgate talks on aggregate stability, or exploring soil secrets alongside university research scientists.

The L. B. Thomson Conservation Award is one of many honours bestowed upon Adam that reflect the vision, leadership and depth of knowledge that have made him a leader in soil conservation and health in Ontario.

Adam and his wife Stephanie have three children and live in Ridgetown, Ontario.

About the L. B. Thomson Award

The L. B. Thomson Conservation Award was established in 1987 by the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (PFRA) Alumni in honour of Leonard Baden Thomson, Director General of PFRA from 1948 to 1956. Under his leadership PFRA developed and promoted soil conservation practices that minimized the severe wind erosion that plagued the Prairies in the 1930s. Since 1987, this award has been bestowed on 23 individuals and conservation organizations that have continued to make significant contributions to soil conservation in Canada.

In 2016, responsibility for this award was entrusted to the SCCC. The “Council” is proud to continue this tradition.