Southern Alberta cattle ranchers team with Nature Conservancy of Canada to conserve Prairie grasslands

The Adams Ranch in southern Alberta. (Photo: NCC)

Another significant block of Prairie grasslands in the southern-most part of Alberta is being conserved.

Boundary Creek residents Colleen and Dale Adams recently signed an agreement with the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC), guaranteeing their 128-hectare (315 acre) cattle ranch will remain a working landscape and not be subdivided, drained or cultivated.

Adams Ranch is located about six kilometres north of the United States border. The Adams family wanted to ensure the cattle grazing site and wildlife haven remains intact for decades to come, and they hope their choice will encourage other landowners to partner with the NCC to do something similar.

In December 2023, the Bectell family, which has a cow-calf ranching operation and uses sustainable rotational grazing practices, partnered with the NCC to preserve 323 hectares of property near Police Outpost Provincial Park, close to the U.S. border.

The Canadian Cattle Association is calling on the federal government to fund a program that would pay ranchers for maintaining grasslands, which they maintain helps reduce emissions and preserves one of the planet’s most threatened ecosystems.

Ecologists say around 18 to 25 per cent of Canada’s natural grasslands remain, with much of it owned or managed by livestock producers, who use it to graze cattle.

Dale and Colleen Adams are collaborating with the Nature Conservancy of Canada to preserve prairie grasslands at their cattle ranch near the U.S. border. (Photo: NCC)

 

Grasslands are home to hundreds of species of birds, wildlife and insects. They also reduce erosion and flooding and promote pollination by providing habitats for bees.

Carbon sinks

They also function as massive carbon sinks. Mark Boyce, a University of Alberta ecology professor, said grasslands have proven to be surprisingly effective at carbon sequestration — a naturally occurring process whereby the soils in grasslands store carbon dioxide in the form of broken-down plant matter and prevent it from getting into the atmosphere.

Estimates suggest worldwide, grasslands hold around 30 per cent of global terrestrial carbon stocks — making them a critical piece of the arsenal in the fight against climate change.

"In Alberta, grasslands are better than forests for sequestering carbon,"  Boyce said in a 2023 interview with The Canadian Press.

Cattle ranch for close to a century

The latest collaboration with the Adams family is the second one the NCC has undertaken. Another 64 hectares (158 acres) are being protected on Shanks Lake, south of Magrath.

Adams Ranch has been operated as a cattle ranch for close to a century. Dale Adams worked on it for more than 40 years and manages it with his wife Colleen. They have 70 cattle on the ranch, and it’s also home to elk, moose, deer and grizzly bears – 11 this year – as well as black bears and coyotes.

Boundary Creek and a couple others run through the ranch, providing a habitat for waterfowl and aquatic species.

“Working on the lands is the only thing I know!,” Dale said, in a media release. “There are a lot of recreational pressures on lands in this area. At this rate, there won’t be many of the wild grasslands left, so it makes us feel real good knowing that it will stay a ranch forever.

"Having it preserved and never cut up into acreage or subdivision was our goal," he added. "This is a place where you can relax. The view is incredible and makes this area very special. This whole project with NCC has been great."

“The Nature Conservancy of Canada applauds Dale and Colleen Adams for their vision and collaboration, along with our funding partners who helped make this project happen,” said Tom Lynch-Staunton, the Alberta vice-president of the NCC.  “It reinforces how cattle ranching and conservation can and does co-exist.

“By working together,” he added, “we can support working landscapes and local livelihoods for today and future generations of ranchers while protecting endangered, temperate Prairie grasslands and the species at risk that rely on them.”

With files from The Canadian Press