Born and raised in Calgary, we took many family camping trips into the Prairies. I was always awed by the massive expanses of grasslands, the endless blue skies and the diversity of birds, mammals and insects we would see. I remember having to clean our windshield at every stop along the way because the dead […] Read more
Tag Archives grasslands
U.S. to fund grassland, wetland conservation
Three Canadian groups are developing a similar initiative that would prevent the conversion of grassland to other uses
WINNIPEG — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has made a $138 million commitment to preserve grasslands and wetlands and cut greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture. U.S. agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack announced the investment March 13, explaining the funds come from the Inflation Reduction Act, which is intended to transition America toward a greener economy. “(It) […] Read more
Project to create grassland inventory
A national effort is expected to yield an inventory of Canadian grasslands by the end of 2024. Satellite imagery data of Canada’s grasslands goes back 20 years. That bird’s eye view is available every day now, according to Nasem Badreldin of the University of Manitoba, who has studied and taught soil biology and the regrowth […] Read more
Grassland payment proposal gains momentum
Canadian Cattle Association says Ottawa appears open to a program that would pay producers to maintain grasslands
BRANDON — The Canadian Cattle Association has been getting a “warm” reception from the federal government as it proposes a new strategy to preserve the country’s grasslands, says vice-president Tyler Fulton. Last fall, the CCA, Ducks Unlimited and the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC)developed an idea called the Grasslands Conservation Initiative. The basic concept is […] Read more
Ranches reach conservation agreements in Alberta
New Nature Conservancy of Canada deals will preserve more than 6,178 acres of grassland in the Porcupine Hills
Three cattle ranches in operation for generations have joined a network of conserved lands in Alberta that protects grasslands essential to everything from watersheds to wildlife. “I think ranchers are what make these projects possible,” said Sean Feagan, media and communications co-ordinator for the Nature Conservancy of Canada, Alberta Region. “They’ve stewarded the land. They’ve […] Read more
Hopes are high for protected pasture
The Nature Conservancy of Canada has developed a plan to protect 1.2 million acres of threatened prairie by 2030
MELITA, Man. — They might be known to humans as the “Poverty Plains,” but this windswept patch of southwestern Manitoba is rich with wildlife. Even on a cold, late October day, faced with a harsh northwestern breeze, and with half a foot of snow having fallen over the past day, this rolling territory hosts numerous […] Read more
Today’s economics do little to protect vulnerable land
Is the market for prairie land broken? Have the grasslands of this vast region fallen into a situation of what economists would describe as “market failure?” I wondered this after wandering across a beautiful, rolling patch of prairie known as the Jackson Pipestone Prairie and Wetlands. It’s a vulnerable patch of our native lands in […] Read more
Initiative hopes to protect grasslands
Three organizations with a history of conservation on the Prairies have launching a new initiative to protect one the most threatened agricultural and ecological landscapes in the West. The Grasslands Conservation Initiative is the product of joint discussions between the Canadian Cattle Association, Ducks Unlimited Canada and the Nature Conservancy of Canada that were held […] Read more
Grasslands seen as answer
From 1990 to 2019, greenhouse gas emissions from Canadian agriculture went from 58 million tonnes of carbon dioxide to about 69 million tonnes. That’s an increase of 19 percent. Tim McAllister, an Agriculture Canada scientist in Lethbridge, says the 19 percent jump is mostly about grassland that’s now being used to grow crops. “When you […] Read more
Grasslands called key to carbon future
A researcher says grasslands must be retained now if landowners are to take advantage of carbon markets in the future
University of Alberta researcher Ed Bork said he believed landowners will eventually be paid for carbon storage and other environmental benefits that grasslands and pastures provide.
