Hello Farm Awarded Second-Annual Peterborough Agricultural Innovation Award Implementing Japanese Farming Techniques

The ingenuity of Ava Richardson and Kiyotami ‘Zenryu’ Owatari of Hello Farm from Havelock has paid off as they were awarded the Peterborough Agricultural Innovation Award which included $500 and a plaque presented at Sunderland Co-operative on Thursday afternoon.

(From left to right) Bonnie Clark, Peterborough Country Warden; Jim Martin, Havelock-Belmont-Methuen Township Mayor, Kiyotami ‘Zenryu’ Owatari, Hello Farms; Ava Richardson, Hello Farms; Gath Stoner, Sunderland Co-op retail division manager and Elmer Buchanan, of Farmers Market Havelock. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

The award is in its second year and was created by the Peterborough Agricultural Roundtable. Hello Farms is based out of Havelock growing organic herloom vegetables from their market garden.

“We're new still to the Peterborough area and have been here for three years now and farming for two,” explained Richardson. “We just came from just Japan, we were farming there for a decade so to be chosen for such an award is quite an honour.”

Richardson and Owatari adapted a Japanese farming technique of growing crops using a biochar chimney to improve their soil fertility, moisture retention and tilth to grow their garden.

The mix traditionally uses rice husks and bran but the farm substituted it with a unique blend of spelt husks and wheat bran. The result was a doubling in their overall crop yields and income.

Richardson is originally from the Oshawa area and moved to Japan for elementary school teaching and spent 14 years there (with 10 of them farming). She met Owatari as his native land, where the latter was a Buddhist monk and chef for over 20 years.

They lived close to Fukushima, known for the nuclear accident due to the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. It created less-than-ideal farming conditions that made the pair health-conscious when growing their own produce.

“We're quite motivated to have access to healthy and safe food because there was nuclear fallout,” explained Richardson. ‘‘We weren't sure what was safe to eat so that's a big motivator to always be growing healthy, safe and delicious food.”

The duo wanted to implement the same Japanese quality techniques in Canada with that same mindset.

“Knowing we were coming back to Canada, let's continue that philosophy,” said Richardson. “There's not a ton of Asian vegetables available locally but we happen to know uniquely Japanese heirloom varieties.”

“There's limited vegetables available here so I'm happy to introduce these tasty vegetables here,” said Kiyotami. “The people know that we grow Japanese cucumbers and they can get only from us so that's a good start. I like to develop that kind of stuff.”

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Property Tax Relief For Low Income Seniors And Low Income Persons With Disabilities In County Of Peterborough

Peterborough County Council passed a by-law to allow for relief of a residential tax increase in 2022, 2023 or 2024 for Low Income Seniors and Low Income Persons with Disabilities.

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A Low Income Person with a Disability must submit an application with evidence of the receipt of benefits being paid under the Ontario Disability Support Program Act, 1997, or a disability amount paid under the Family Benefits Act (Ontario) or a person receiving a Canada Pension Plan Disabilities Pension, and be eligible to claim a disability amount as defined under the Income Tax Act (Canada).

A Low Income Senior who is 65 years of age or older as of December 31st of the previous year and is in receipt of benefits paid under the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS), as established under the Old Age Security Act (Canada).

Applications may be filed by an eligible person to the Treasurer of one of the Lower-Tier municipalities for the purpose of receiving relief of a tax increase in 2022, 2023, and 2024. The owner or spouse of the owner or both must occupy the property as their principal residence for which the application for tax relief is made.

Applications may be filed by eligible individuals with the Treasurer of the applicants local municipality by Nov. 15, 2022 for tax relief in 2022.

Eligible property owners are entitled to tax relief provided that the said tax increase for any single year exceeds $50.00 to a maximum relief of up to $200.00 in any given year, which the Municipal Treasurer may approve or deny.

Application forms are available on the County website at http://ptbocounty.ca or by contacting your Municipal Treasurer at the local municipal office below:

• Township of Asphodel-Norwood 705-639-5343

• Township of Cavan Monaghan 705-932-2929

• Township of Douro-Dummer 705-652-8392

• Township of Havelock-Belmont-Methuen 705-778-2308

• Township of North Kawartha 705-656-4445

• Township of Otonabee-South Monaghan 705-295-6852

• Township of Selwyn 705-292-9507

• Municipality of Trent Lakes 705-738-3800

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Peterborough County Calls For Nominations For 2022 Recognition Awards

The County of Peterborough is inviting residents to nominations for the County of Peterborough 2022 Recognition Awards, which may also include nominations for 2021.

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Nominations will be accepted for any resident or group residing in the County of Peterborough who has raised the profile or made an extraordinary contribution to our community. The nominee shall not have received a County of Peterborough Recognition Award for a similar category within the last fifteen years.

At the 2022 Recognition Awards Ceremony, the County will also be presenting awards from the 2020 nominations which were cancelled due to COVID-19.

Unless otherwise indicated, there shall be one award for each Township in each category

noted below for each year, 2020 and 2022.

• Accessibility Recognition: A group, individual or business who has contributed to accessibility improvements within the County of Peterborough. (One Countywide award.)

• Acts of Heroism: An individual who has displayed bravery in the face of personal risk, injury or death at an incident that took place either in the County of Peterborough or was to the benefit of a Peterborough County resident and which action did not occur while the individual was acting in his/her professional capacity while on duty. (Unlimited nominations.)

• Agricultural Leadership: Any individual or farm enterprise is eligible to be nominated in this category. Factors that will be used to assess the nomination will include such items as innovations, agricultural promotion and the recognition brought to the County through its operation. It may include involvement in agricultural organizations. Leadership in the agricultural community will also be considered

• Business Leadership: Any new and successful initiatives of both new and established businesses that have made outstanding contributions to the County, including tourism promotion. (One County-wide award.)

• Community Volunteer of the Year: Any group or individual who has demonstrated community involvement or volunteerism within the County.

• Environmental/Sustainability Recognition: Nominees will have demonstrated innovation and/or leadership in environmental conservation, stewardship and sustainability by having:

- Developed innovative green technologies or

- Started businesses to support and encourage sustainable living, or

- Donated conservation lands or easements or

- Undertaken ecosystem restoration or research or

- Educated others about the importance of protecting the environment or

- Achieved the overall vision for sustainability through one of the identified theme areas set out in the Sustainable Peterborough Plan: Agriculture and Local Food; Climate Change; Cultural Assets; Economic Development and Employment; Healthy Communities; Land Use Planning; Natural Assets; Energy; Transportation; Waste; and Water. (One County-wide award.)

• Heritage Preservation: An individual or group who has promoted heritage and preserves the history of Peterborough County. This could include, but is not limited to, Fair boards, Women’s Institutes, historical societies, etc. A community, public or private organization which has reached a significant milestone such as the 100th anniversary of the organization is also eligible for this award. (Please note: Birthdays and anniversaries are recognized on an on-going basis as requested.) (One County-wide award.)

• Leadership in Arts and Culture: A group or individual who has demonstrated excellence in the arts, bringing recognition to the County.

• Sporting Excellence: Any team or individual who has won a provincial, national or international sporting event. (One County-wide award.)

• Youth: A person aged 25 years or younger who has contributed to the betterment of the community and/or school environment.

Nomination forms are available throughout the County at the County of Peterborough offices located at 470 Water Street, Peterborough, from any Local Municipal Office, Township Fire Chiefs, local Police Service Boards, schools, libraries throughout the County, area Chambers of Commerce and Community Care organizations.

This year, Nomination Forms can be completed online at www.ptbocounty.ca/2022RecAwards.

Completed and signed nomination forms with supporting documents provided to the County Clerk up to and including March 15 are requested.

The Peterborough County Awards and Bursaries Committee will review the Nominations and make recommendations to County Council. County Council will select and announce the recipients in May.

The Recognition Awards Ceremony will take place on May 27 at 7:00 p.m. and will be hosted by the Township of Cavan Monaghan at the Cavan Monaghan Community Centre. If the in-person ceremony needs to be cancelled, a virtual ceremony will be held and may be a different date.

Questions can be directed to the County Clerk at 705-743-0380 or 1-800- 710-9586 or by email: clerksoffice@ptbocounty.ca.

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Draft Of New Peterborough County Official Plan Released

Peterborough County Council received the release of the new draft of the Official Plan for Peterborough County, at the Jan. 19 Council Meeting, that draft is now available to the public.

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A requirement of the County Planning Department was to undertake a Municipal Comprehensive Review of the existing Official Plan and to complete a Growth Plan conformity exercise.

“The Official Plan was largely developed by creating consistencies between local Municipalities”, said Bryan Weir, Director, Planning and Public Works. “Through land use designations and mapping, and then refining the policies to reflect provincial legislation and local context, this new draft plan will serve the County and most of the Townships and is now available for public review and comment.”

The County Official Plan provides direction and guidance on how land in the County of Peterborough will be used and provides policy to ensure that future development will meet the needs of the community. Currently it also functions as the lower tier Official Plan for four local municipalities.

In 2017, the County initiated the development of a new Official Plan; one that is more user-friendly and meets both Provincial and local directives. Is being developed with input from County and Township Councils, public agencies, and members of the public.

The full Draft County Official Plan, detailed Land Use Schedules, and Report to Council in digital or printable format can be found on the Peterborough County website.

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You Could Be A Gold Star Recycler & Win Prizes

This summer, the County and City of Peterborough have joined together and will be performing random inspections of blue boxes looking for Gold Star Recyclers. A Gold Star Recycler is someone who uses two blue boxes to sort their containers from their paper products, and their boxes are sorted correctly with no garbage, hazardous waste or electronics.

If you are a gold star recycler—a rock star of recycling—you will be left a gold star sticker, and will be eligible for some great prizes (see poster below for details on the prizes!).

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