The BCO has been advised by Belfountain Estates, that the bird cannons will start tomorrow morning Sunday August 22.
The farm will use bird cannons only in the upper vineyard, pointed in the least impactful direction (Northeast away from the community) and set to operate from half an hour after sunrise until half an hour before sunset, with a mid-day break. Belfountain Estates have advised they will turn the cannons off for specific events, if you advise them ahead of time at belfountainestates@gmail.com. They will also continue monitoring the effectiveness of bird squawkers in the lower vineyard, which is closest to the community.
Belfountain Estates emphasized that the farm’s goal is to avoid using cannons altogether if alternative methods prove effective, but their priority is protecting the grapes from consumption by birds. The BCO re-emphasized that many community members, particularly those with horses, pets, work-from-home and PTSD, are very upset by the bird cannons, suggesting the farm business would benefit from the community if alternative solutions are found to replace the disruptive cannons.
The locations of the testing stations and results of the bird cannon testing are below. This shows the Northeast direction as the least impactful to community residents.
The The reason the bird cannons in previous years have a greater impact to residents in the West Credit River Valley than neighbours to the farm, is due to the topography as shown below.
The BCO will canvas the community with an on-line survey to determine whether these changes are helping reduce the disruption to our village.
Should you have any direct questions or statements to make about this issue, please send your email to belfountainestates@gmail.com and copy the BCO at secretary@belfountain.ca.
Thank you