Abstract
Conversion of wetlands in cultivated agricultural landscapes is one of the primary drivers of wetland loss in Alberta, Canada, despite a provincial wetland policy that prioritizes wetland avoidance. While other sectors of the agricultural industry have established initiatives to maintain wetlands, a common narrative within the conventional cropping sector is that wetland retention leads to lost acreage and overlap of crop inputs, and that there are financial benefits associated with wetland drainage. The objective of this research was to explicitly quantify crop productivity within drained wetland basins, in an effort to better understand the extent to which producers financially benefit from drainage practices. Working collaboratively with canola producers in central Alberta over the 2019 growing season, wetland basins within four quarter sections were mapped using an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, and wetland basins with clear evidence of surface drainage were identified. Agricultural input and yield data provided by producers was then used to quantify profitability within each drained basin. Average profit for drained basins for each producer ranged between − $145/acre and $76/acre, with an average of $55/acre across all operations. This is compared to an average profit of $203/acre for non-wetland areas across all operations. The results suggest that the financial benefits of drainage are highly variable, and for many drained basins, producers may experience financial losses that may be overlooked when profits are examined only at the field- or operation-level. While this study included a small number of operations, and was limited to one type of crop over a single growing season, the results still provide important insight into the extent to which producers benefit financially from the practice of wetland drainage.
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Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the agricultural producers who partnered with our team and allowed us access to their land and generously provided their time, expertise, and knowledge.
Funding
This research was financially supported by the Alberta Conservation Association and the Alberta North American Waterfowl Management Partnership (NAWMP).
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SC conceived of the project, lead the development of the research design, obtained funding, participated in data analysis, and led the writing of the manuscript. BD and SK were involved in site selection, data collection, data analysis, and contributed to the manuscript. JPW recruited study participants, conducted the economic analysis, and contributed to the manuscript.
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Clare, S., Danielson, B., Koenig, S. et al. Does drainage pay? Quantifying agricultural profitability associated with wetland drainage practices and canola production in Alberta. Wetlands Ecol Manage 29, 397–415 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11273-021-09790-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11273-021-09790-z