A Saskatchewan researcher hopes shelter belts can help determine the future of trees on the Prairies.
Professor Colin Laroque from the University of Saskatchewan’s soil sciences department has been part of the Agricultural Greenhouse Gas project for the past four years.
He and his team of undergraduate students have explored farms across Saskatchewan, looking at shelter belts that were planted by the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration.
“My aspect is looking at shelter belt trees planted since the early 1900s,” said Laroque.
“We look into the past and say we’ve planted all these trees in various areas in Saskatchewan. Which ones are growing well, which aren’t, and why? We can project into the future climate scenarios, which ones are going to grow better.”
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Laroque, who has set up the first on-campus tree ring lab at the U of S, has been interested in trees since his undergraduate days when his class explored melting glaciers.
“I got really interested in the glaciers and melting water that came to the trees. I wondered how the environment changed because of that.”
Ever since, Laroque has centered his career on analyzing trees. His recent work with shelter belts has raised the issue of economic benefits but also the aesthetic pleasure.
“There are lots of studies that show how shelter belts break wind, stop snow, bring and trap moisture and stop a lot of surface erosion. It’s not easy to put a dollar figure onto these things.”
Trees sequester carbon and are seen as an important way to reduce carbon emissions.
Laroque’s team comprises not only tree analysts but also researchers who count and measure every shelter belt in Saskatchewan from space.
“There are different types and kinds of trees, and each tree or shrub will sequester carbon differently,” he said.
“Some are growing better or will grow better in the future. We’re trying to gather all this information and give it back to the farm owners by next spring.”
Laroque said it’s not easy determining why farmers are getting rid of their shelter belts. He said older farmers are often the ones who see the benefits because they have lived through events in which shelter belts were useful. However, he also ac-knowledged that shelter belts can cause trouble for farmers.
“Often they get in the way of equipment when they have to turn, especially in a field, or the trees get carried away and require too much maintenance.”
Often it’s the trees near homes or in farmyards that stick around, which is because of their aesthetic value.
“They almost end up being like their children. When we ask how much they are worth, farmers say, ‘everything.’ It’s really difficult to put an economic value on them. Sometimes that aesthetic value is just worth everything.”
