The Saskatchewan-based Ranchers Stewardship Alliance has been awarded a $48,000 grant to explore ways to encourage ranchers to protect natural grasslands.
The grant was a portion of the $1.3 million in funding awarded to various groups by the Commission for Environmental Co-operation. Funding was announced in mid-February.
Sue Michalsky, a director with the RSA, said the money will be used to evaluate two types of programs to see if they would fit Canadian needs:
- a payment system based on ecological services that ranchers provide, such as hosting endangered species on their land or maintaining a certain type of habitat that fosters biodiversity
- a certification scheme that would allow livestock producers to designate their product as being raised under conservation principles
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Michalsky said the University of Calgary’s Mistaakis Institute will research the two types of programs. Results will then be evaluated.
The next step is to develop recommendations for a Canadian program.
The RSA comprises a group of southern Saskatchewan ranchers who formed the group to explore ways to encourage ranchers to protect natural grassland.
It is partially modeled after a similar group in Montana and it consults with other groups on grassland protection, including the Western Stockgrowers Association.
