MOUNTAIN VIEW COUNTY - The county’s agricultural service board (ASB) has been updated on the provincial Green Acreage Program designed to promote stewardship and environmental protection.
The review came during the board’s recent regularly scheduled meeting, held in person and on Zoom. The ASB is made up of county councillors and public members, advising the county and province on agriculture issues.
The Green Acreage Program runs through the Land Stewardship Centre, a not-for-profit, charitable organization established in 1996.
“The program offers publications, workshops and incentives developed especially for acreages, hobby farms and recreational property owners to help them implement stewardship practices that conserve and protect the valuable natural assets, such as air, land, water and wildlife associated with their properties,” said Jane Fulton, assistant director of legislative, community and agricultural services.
Milena McWatt, with the Green Acreages Program, Land Stewardship Centre, appeared as a delegation before the board on March 21.
The program helps property owners “understand the value of ecosystem services, recognize important stewardship priorities, apply key stewardship principles in land and resource-use decisions, and learn from those who provide good stewardship examples,” said McWatt.
“As the number of rural residential landowners increases they will have a greater impact on the state of Alberta’s soil, water, air and wildlife resources through the cumulative effects of their land management practices,” said McWatt.
Funding is available through Alberta’s Water Resiliency and Restoration Program (WRRP), she said.
“We are able to support landowners 50/50 up to $2,500 per project,” she said. “Because funding comes through WRRP, all the projects have to have some demonstrable impact on flooding and drought on their property and enhance the natural watershed function of the landscape.”
Projects eligible under the program include wetland and riparian zone enhancements, stormwater management, shoreline remediation and/or re-naturalization, erosion reduction measures, off-site water systems and stream crossings (excluding fencing), and the use of native species in planting initiatives, she said.
“There are a lot of different types of projects that we have been able to fund,” she said.
Organizers have developed the Green Acreages Guide, a comprehensive, self-directed stewardship planning tool.
The workbook contains information for new and existing rural acreage landowners, with each of the 22 chapters dealing with such things as riparian management, landscaping, water use and more. A shorter Green Acreage Primer has also been developed.
More information on the Green Acreage Program can be found at www.landstewardship.org.
The ASB received the delegation report as information.
