Farmscape for December 4, 2006  (Episode 2324)

The Manitoba Liberal party says there are better, faster and more effective alternatives for reducing the amount of phosphorus entering Lake Winnipeg.

A provincially imposed pause in the approval of new or expanded swine operations

is to remain in effect while the Manitoba Clean Environment Commission reviews pending water protection legislation and examines the environmental sustainability of the hog industry.

Manitoba Liberal leader Dr. Jon Gerrard says a moratorium is the wrong way to go and suggests other alternatives would be immediately effective in reducing phosphorus loading into Lake Winnipeg.

Clip-Dr. Jon GerrardManitoba Liberal Leader

For example in the Rural Municipality of Morris they have been requiring the injection of hog wastes into the ground and they've been moving away dramatically from spreading in the winter.

If we moved away from spreading in the winter and we injected the hog manure all over Manitoba, even if the government had to help out in making this transition, that this would be a better measure than trying to put a moratorium on new hog barn construction.

Our view is that there's several measures that should be taken.

First of all that we should ban the phosphorus in dishwasher detergent.

This measure alone would reduce phosphorus going into Lake Winnipeg by two percent.

It's a substantial contributor and one of the easiest things that we can implement quickly.

Contrast that to the whole hog industry which, by itself, may only produce one percent of the phosphorus going into Lake Winnipeg.

Secondly the city of Winnipeg puts 60 to 70 tonnes a year of phosphorus in to prevent leaching of lead from the pipes but there are alternatives which are better and which should be used and which don't cause the problems with algae in Lake Winnipeg.

Dr. Gerrard notes the hog industry has been doing a better job managing hog manure.

He believes an open ended moratorium will create uncertainty and that people interested in investing in the industry will go to another province instead of waiting around.

For Farmscape.Ca, I'm Bruce Cochrane.

       *Farmscape is a presentation of Sask Pork and Manitoba Pork Council