Restrictions for Term Conservation Easements
Restrictions for Term Conservation Easements
With the Saskatchewan Stock Growers (SSGF) introducing Term Conservation Easements, it has raised many questions when it comes to limitations historically associated with easements. More often than not, ranchers associate easements with losing control and access to their own land. The SSGF wants to work with ranchers to protect ecologically sensitive grasslands while making it sustainable for ranchers to continue their way of life because we understand that ranching isn’t just a job. It’s a complicated mixture of lifestyle and work. Many outcomes of ranching are already out of the hands of producers, whether it’s the late April snowstorms cutting into your calf crop, lack of rain to grow forages and other feed resources or the volatile cattle markets, there are very few aspects of this job that we can control. One thing we can control is what we do with our land. Our Term Conservation Easements only come with the following three restrictions, no break, no drain and no development but what do those really mean?
No break means that the land cannot be cultivated or broken for annual cropping or forage production. This is to protect the native prairie from fragmentation of habitat and destruction of native plant species. Fragmentation increases the amount of inappropriate habitat between tracts of native prairie and negatively impacts the populations of species at risk that call these grasslands home. Much of the land that the SSGF has interest in conserving is on marginal soils and the landowners had no interest in breaking up the prairie to begin with. Native grasslands are incredibly expensive and difficult to reestablish once broken and often not fit for annual cropping. Once broken, the risk of invasive plant species taking over increases exponentially and creates further problems. Most ranchers are familiar with the eye twitch that develops the second they notice leafy spurge or burdock on the horizon.
No drainage means there cannot be any alteration to existing waterways on the land under easement. Native prairie isn’t exactly known for having large tracts of wetlands but the plant species that call these landscapes home are able to filter and store incredible amounts of water using their deep roots systems. Altering natural waterways has a large ripple effect on wildlife, bird populations, insects, and plant species. We understand that water is always a factor with ranching. The development of water sources for livestock would be considered as an accepted use under a SSGF Conservation Easement. In the last few years, ranchers in southern Saskatchewan have been plagued by drought conditions and even on good years it seems grasslands are only three days away from a drought. Native grasslands are supported by springs, creeks, rivers and potholes that rely on groundwater levels, spring rains and snow runoff. They are incredibly sensitive to any environmental changes but even more so by permanent changes to these waterways.
No development is important to understand because ranchers have to constantly evolve but we need to consider the impact of expanding onto native grasslands versus using previously developed sites. New development of yard sites, structures and roads disrupt the native plant species, allowing for invasive plants to move in and potential issues with soil erosion. Even more so with sandier soils or land with steep slopes that blow away with the first wind that comes through, something Saskatchewan is known for. The removal of gravel, soil or sand falls under this category as well. Not only does it disturb the plant life itself but the trucks that haul the product to be processed elsewhere compact the soil. Compacting soil can impede the flow of water through soil and cause a negative ripple effect to plant life in the area. Any changes to pre-existing structures on that land can be included in the negotiations of term conservation easements because we all know that fences and corrals aren’t maintenance free. Otherwise, cattle would have to be a lot more cooperative on a daily basis. We support the improvement of existing structures to keep your operation adaptable and viable moving forward.
Restrictions are in place to help protect these grasslands that ranchers rely on for their cattle. We utilize them to create a baseline of standards to help conserve and protect them from future changes. Our restrictions are minimal and still allow the land to be used by the landowners. Any changes to access of land is still determined by the landowner. Under easements we still need to monitor the land at least once a year to ensure we are reaching environmental and project outcomes. We are dedicated to keeping open communication with ranchers and any monitoring will be done at the convenience and permission of the landowners. Of course, all information regarding easements is 100% confidential.
Understanding the true restrictions of our term conservation easements helps to reduce any misinformation spread. The remaining native grasslands are important to conserve for a variety of reasons, including the benefit of carbon storage and sequestration and protecting habitat for species at risk. These grasslands also need a large grazing animal to maintain the environmental architecture that plants species, insects and birds need. Without grazing, there are species such as the Thick Billed Longspur that will completely leave the area and some species also need shorter grasses for nesting habitat and to watch for predators. The importance of a variety of grass heights and species impacts the entire biodiversity of the grasslands and cattle are natural moderators by grazing these areas to create a home for these species. We can equip you with resources that you can use to better manage the land but we are never going to tell you how to ranch. The SSGF are wanting ranchers to remain in control and still manage their own land. The flexibility of term easements enable ranchers to commit to preserving native grasslands for a set period with the option to re-negotiate once the term is done. Bringing into consideration the next generation of ranchers and keeping ranches on the landscape for years to come.
Author: Mindy Hockley