About Us
About Salish Seas Regenerative Farm Project Our mission is to inform and inspire citizens, businesses, local communities, governments and other organizations to become more actively
June 13, 2023
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Healthy Soil. Healthy Food. Healthy Planet.
Welcome to the Salish Sea Regenerative Farm Society, based in Sechelt, BC
The Vision of the Salish Sea Regenerative Farm Society is to use the power of compost to regenerate healthy soils; restore biodiversity; drawdown carbon emissions and enhance habitats to build a healthy food system.
Healthy Soil – Healthy Food – Healthy People – Healthy Planet
Welcome to Salish Seas Regenerative Farm Project
Regenerative agriculture is a system of farming principles and practices that seeks to rehabilitate and enhance the entire ecosystem of the farm by placing a heavy premium on soil health with attention also paid to water management, fertilizer use, and more. It is a method of farming that “improves the resources it uses, rather than destroying or depleting them.
GET INVOLVED
We are always looking for volunteers to support this project. Please check out our volunteer page for more information.
Latest news
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December 6, 2022
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In the News
Article Name
Article Name
2-3
Days
Of food supply on hand for Sunshine Coast Residents.
Only
8%
Of 580 Privately Owned ALR properties are currently being used for farming.
50+
Cubic Meters
Of organic compost waste diverted for food production.
6
Acres
Of local land will be used for the demonstration farm.
Welcome to Salish Seas
Regenerative Farm Society
Regenerative agriculture is a system of farming principles and practices that seeks to rehabilitate and enhance the entire ecosystem of the farm by placing a heavy premium on soil health with attention also paid to water management, fertilizer use, and more. It is a method of farming that “improves the resources it uses, rather than destroying or depleting them.
Concept image of future site
OUR PLAN
FOOD SECURITY
Ensuring the available supply of safe, nutritious and culturally-appropriate dietary requirements for individuals and/or communities.
SOIL REMEDIATION
pH balanced, mineralized soil self-regulates and optimizes plant health.
WATER MANAGEMENT
Beneficial use and re-use of freshwater resources; rainwater capture and water-efficient technologies to minimize use; building soil organic matter for water retention.
HABITAT ENHANCEMENT
Recognizing values of beneficial plants and animals on site; restoring native vegetation and structure to support biodiversity.
SOCIAL PURPOSE & CONNECTION
Maximizing opportunities for human empowerment, social justice and education; fostering relationships “beyond the garden wall”
REPLICABILITY & SCALABILITY
Developing transferable skills within the community; creating a model of regeneration to be applied elsewhere; demonstrating the opportunity to rise to the challenge of food security.
What is a demonstration farm?
The farm is to serve as a highly visible example of how agriculture can rejuvenate land, and become a new source of food.
Most of the food eaten on the Sunshine Coast comes from somewhere else. A 2019 agricultural land use survey found only eight per cent of the 580 privately-owned Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) parcels on the Sunshine Coast are farmed, and 29 per cent of land with crops lies outside the ALR. A food security action initiative report from 2006 revealed “in an emergency, the community only has enough food on hand for two or three days.”
HIGHLIGHTS of the Project Startup include:
- Basic access control and edge improvements (including designated service access, visitor and disabled parking); vehicle turnaround and materials storage/access; nose-in parking along road edges; and screening and/or buffer treatments.
- Extensive (e.g. site scale) soil management including removal of invasive species and cover cropping to prevent erosion while improving drainage and enhancing habitat.
- Intensive amendment and preparation of Phase 1 field areas for test cropping during the 2022 growing season.
- Phase 2 areas will be more passively managed to mitigate invasive species and promote soil health (e.g. cover cropping) while ensuring continued access for BCHydro operations.
Key programmatic elements include
- WATER MANAGEMENT | taking advantage of the sites natural drainage features, the pond feature will be enhanced for irrigation storage and on-farm habitat.
- FARM HUB IMPROVEMENTS | taking advantage of the most accessible (e.g. flat) lands and deepest native soils, the farm hub includes the largest extents of soil-based production plots, totalling ~ 1.75 acres of arable land. Adjacent program includes: a propagation and hoop house; garden pavilion (for garden caretaker and/or special events); raised/ accessible garden beds and bee hives.
DID YOU KNOW?
Using the community’s existing recycled organic waste, we process it, turn it in the soil, and it goes back into a food system right within the community. The community is actually a part of a closed loop system, all we are is the facilitator of that system.
Stay Tuned for Updates
Subscribe for email updates about our project and future research we publish.