Permit granted for experimental farm in Moncton neighbourhood

A5

By Brent Mazerolle
Times & Transcript Staff

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It's always risky to count your chickens before they're hatched, but it looks like a go for a plan to raise egg-producing hens in a suburban Moncton neighbourhood.

The Greater Moncton District Planning Commission has granted a local group a one-year temporary permit to run an urban experimental farm. The project, sponsored by Post Carbon Greater Moncton, will involve the keeping of up to four hens within the city boundaries. The group hatched the plan as a response to concerns that rising oil prices will one day force people to return to being more involved in their food production.

Is having your own hens laying eggs all it's cracked up to be? Will the quiet hamlet (or is that omelette?) of Sunny Acres West (or is that Sunny Side Up Acres?) ever be the same? What's the best way to run a hen-house without running off half-cocked?

That's what the folks of the local post carbon group hope to find out through a careful study. This is not simply a "let the chicks fall where they may" approach to the issue of farm animals and humans co-existing in an urban setting, but rather something that will be carefully monitored.

And bad puns aside -- the "eggspectations" of the headline is Post Carbon spokesman Michel Desjardins' own contribution to this article, lest anyone think we're making fun -- the purpose is serious. Desjardins said yesterday the pilot project is a step towards more self-sufficiency and food security in the region. "We think food security and self-sufficiency will be a huge issue in the future."

Desjardins and his fellow concerned citizens are not putting all their eggs in one basket, either. "This pilot project is one of a broad range of public policy initiatives that need to happen to enhance our food sovereignty," he said.

The group sees the project as just one way to mitigate the impacts of the energy crisis that is expected to hit the world economy in the future.

It comes just as the City of Moncton passed a resolution last week acknowledging the challenge of oil depletion and the need for Moncton to prepare a plan of response and preparation.

The urban farm will be run by Anne-Marie Laroche and Isabelle Pineault at their home on Cabot Drive. They say they are delighted by the commission's green light and expect to get started immediately.

"We have been waiting for this for several months so we are ready to go," said Laroche.

"We are treating this as a research project. We will measure and document the process. We will consult with local stakeholders and look into other communities' best practices" she said.

The urban farmers and Post Carbon Greater Moncton have promised to deliver a full report to the City of Moncton before Dec. 31. The report will examine the optimal conditions for small-scale farming in an urban setting and may lay the groundwork for an effective municipal regulatory framework.

There will also be an educational component to the project. Post Carbon Greater Moncton expects to organize tours of the urban farm and hold public sessions on food security and self-sufficiency.