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Fall
2017
Grains
West
28
regulations will need to be finalized and
negotiations between the railroads and
shippers must start.
To support the implementation of the
Transportation Modernization Act, the
minister announced the continuation
of the Grain Monitoring Program
(GMP) and a new mandate for the Crop
Logistics Working Group (CLWG).
A forum of industry representatives
from across the supply chain, it works to
improve the efficiency of grain movement
from farm to customer, in Canada and
around the globe. This is the fourth time
since the group was established in 2011
that it has received a mandate to address
specific issues in the sector.
“Ongoing dialogue and engagement
with the industry is important,” said
Tom Rosser, assistant deputy minister
of strategic policy for Agriculture and
Agri-Food Canada, who co-chairs the
working group. “As we move toward
implementation of the new legislation—
identifying any issues, uncertainties
or problems—having that feedback
mechanism is really important.”
“One of the goals of C-49 is to make
the system more transparent. We
anticipate there will be two sources
of data available, and by bringing
some of the players around the CLWG
together to pool existing data sources
with new ones, it might help bring new
perspectives to the broader functioning
of the system,” added Rosser.
The first meeting of the new CLWG
mandate was held in Winnipeg
on June 20, 2017. At this meeting,
the membership established
subcommittees to look at the
implementation of Bill C-49, data and
performance measurement, industry
growth and infrastructure needs, and
system resiliency and contingency
planning.
Hursh represents the ITAC on the
CLWG and said that having a group like
this in place strengthens the ability of the
industry to provide input and respond
to issues. “The government is more
likely to pay attention to a structured
group like this than to a loose industry
coalition,” he said. “It’s important to
have government representatives
as part of the process to hear
discussions first-hand. Having a more
formal organization gives us greater
investigative powers and adds greater
weight to our recommendations.”
Having the data to properly evaluate
performance under the new regulations
will be critical to evaluation and to the
work of the CLWG. “It is important
that system performance continues
to be monitored and measured by
independent third parties,” said Lenz.
“We hope this data will be used to
identify potential concerns earlier and
prevent problems from becoming
extreme. Penalties on railroads and
grain companies
don’t make up
for losses to
Canadian farmers,
and to the whole
industry, that
result from our
customers’ loss of
confidence in our
ability to deliver.”
“The industry
told us loud
and clear that
information is
crucial to ensuring
top performance.
We need a clear and timely picture of
how well the system is performing at
any given time. That is why we recently
announced the Grain Monitoring
Program (GMP) will be renewed until
2020,” said Minister MacAulay. “This
will ensure independent and timely
monitoring and reporting on the
performance of the western grain
handling and transportation system
continues. The grain sector views the
GMP as an important tool for planning
and accountability in the supply chain.”
The program was established in
2001 to provide stakeholders with
assessments of western Canadian
grain handling and transportation in
an independent, neutral and timely
manner. Quorum Corporation has
delivered the GMP since its inception,
and will continue for the next three
years. President Mark Hemmes said
the next year will see the information
become more accessible to producers
and other stakeholders interested in the
reports the GMP produces.
“In 2014, we fixed in on a weekly
reporting package and shifted to
monthly reporting as well. We’ve added
movements to the U.S. and Eastern
Canada. What we’re really doing right
now is trying to fine-tune a lot of that,”
said Hemmes. “There are also going
to be some changes in improving the
accessibility of the data through the
internet, but that’s going to take some
time.”
In addition
to the GMP, Bill
C-49 will expand
the reporting
requirements
for major railway
companies related
to rates, service
and performance.
“If you look at
the Surface Rights
Transportation
Board in the U.S.,
every week,
Class 1 railroads
have to provide
detailed reports of their performance—
how many cars were in the system,
how many cars are hitting their targets
and meeting the needs of whoever
requested the cars. Then there’s action
items to follow up on if they aren’t hitting
their targets,” explained Nielsen. “Bill
C-49 is mimicking the Surface Rights
Transportation Board in the U.S, and
CN and CP are already providing that
information to them.”
While there is optimism about Bill
C-49, many in the industry admit that the
real test will begin when the legislation
is passed and the details roll out. Some
would like to have seen more in the
new act, but there’s a sense that there is
movement toward better solutions.
“A lot of groups said we have to get
“We’ve heard loud and clear
from our farmer members
that this is an important
piece of legislation. It could
be disruptive to the steady
flow of product and could
strain the entire system.”
–Ward Toma