The Mountain View County agricultural services board has instructed administration to prepare a report on the Alternative Land Use Services (ALUS) program to see whether it could be applicable for this region.
Jim Fisher, director of conservation policy with Delta Water Fowl and spokesperson for ALUS, spoke to board members via teleconference on July 14.
He explained that the “organization is a community-developed, farmer-delivered program that provides support to farmers and ranchers to enhance and maintain nature's benefits.”
Under the program farmers are paid by participating municipalities and other partners to support environmental preservation projects on their respective lands.
Participants “retain and reconstruct natural areas such as wetlands, grasslands, riparian areas and trees. It rehabilitates life-support processes, such as water filtration, purification, nutrient cycling, and the restoration of declining biodiversity.
“Natural benefits include habitat for fish and wildlife including waterfowl, species at risk and native pollinator insects, cleaner air and water, and sustainable food production on working landscapes.”
The ALUS programs are currently running in all prairie province, as well as in Ontario and Prince Edward Island.
Agricultural services board member and Mountain View County councillor Duncan Milne said the program could possibly have good application in this region.
Jane Fulton, manager of agricultural services, says she hopes to have a report back to the agricultural services board at its August meeting.
