Greetings SSCA members. Since this is my first address as president of the association, I'd like to tell you a little about myself. My wife and I farm with my brother and his wife in the R.M. of Chesterfield, about 60 miles south west of Kindersley. We have been direct seeding for five years now, all the while trying to improve and fine tune our system. We produce a diverse mix of crops, some of which are non-traditional for the middle of Palliser's Triangle. However with the inherent benefits of direct seeding, we have had pretty good success with these crops. My interest in soil conservation started like a lot of others with concerns about soil degradation which were in our face (literally) in the 1980's. Our move to zero till, direct seeding and extended rotations was an evolutionary one, we went through all of the other soil conservation exercises first until we realized that it was the tillage that had to go.
I got involved in soil conservation initially by being appointed to the District 17 A.D.D. Board SOS Committee. It was a good learning experience and this is where I became familiar with SSCA. Garth Patterson, with his energy and enthusiasm got us really thinking about moving our farm to the next level of soil conservation namely direct seeding. Three years on the SOS committee seemed like just an initiation, and by now I had attended several SSCA events including field days and workshops. In the fall of 1994 I joined the SSCA board as the West Central Regional Director. After a short apprenticeship as a director for just over a year, some president's past began to encourage me to take a position on the executive. I'm not sure if I was more flattered or terrified, however, I agreed to have a go at it.
This organization has been led by exceptional men since its inception, many of whom I have gotten to know and who have been a lot of help to me. For this I thank them very much.
The SSCA will continue to grow as the recognized leader in the area of soil conservation and sustainable production systems not only in Saskatchewan, but in all of Canada. The credibility our association has gained has, in my opinion, been the result of three things. First, our strong membership which continues to grow and now exceeds 1000. Secondly, the quality of people we have been able to attract to serve on our board of directors. The combination of producer majority together with our directors at large representing research, government departments of agriculture, and the crop production input and manufacturing industry have given us a good cross section of views and opinions that has proven very successful. The third and most important reason for our success is our staff. When you look at the statistics indicating the uptake and adoption of soil conservation practices across Canada, you find Saskatchewan leading the nation in all areas. The SSCA can't take all of the credit for this but we can take a lot of it. I attribute this to the fact that the SSCA has the people in the field "walking the talk". I am referring to our six regional soil conservationists, CLC manager and our head office staff. They have designed extension programs, services and events that have gotten the message out, and then they have been there to follow up and assist with problem solving and technical assistance.
As our Association continues to grow, we have been able to forge stronger alliances with other organizations, these include departments of agriculture, the research centers, implement manufacturers, the crop input industry, and other conservation organizations. These people are always willing to work with us at our various events to help us achieve our goals.
I see bright skies ahead for our association and our industry, so let's all have a good and prosperous year.