Whereas the spread and proliferation of invasive species through many regions of the province comes from the re-distribution of invasive species laden soils and lends to increasingly costly mitigation and control strategies born by regional governments and municipalities; And whereas there is no certification or regulation program in place to allow industries to participate and denote their soils as invasive-free otherwise referred to as a Safe Soil, via a set protocol and processing criteria, and thus no opportunity for purchasers to differentiate between invasive free and invasive laden materials: Therefore be it resolved that the provincial Ministry of Agriculture develop a Safe Soil certification program, that incorporates a processing standard and labeling regime, that soil sellers wholesaleretail can choose to participate, offering the purchasers seeking to manage risk clear choice of purchasing soils that are free of invasive pests.
Ministry of Agriculture Government is interested in supporting regional districts and municipalities in finding cross-jurisdictional cooperative solutions for the improved management of invasive species that are currently being dispersed through soil movement. The Ministry of Agriculture recognizes that there are a number of potential policy and programs that could be implemented that would aid in reducing the spread of invasive species. Ministry of Agriculture staff is currently engaged in the provincial Inter-Ministry Invasive Species Working Group. In 2016, a Soils and Invasive Species Sub-Working Group was developed to explore province-wide solutions regarding the movement of soil and related materials that may contain invasive species. This Sub-Working Group involves local government representation. Moving forward, the Ministry of Agriculture will engage with and participate on this sub-working group to collaborate and further explore potential solutions.