On Tuesday, June 22, Managing Director Perry McCormick led a group of six PF Calgary Directors on a tour of the northern pastures and the irrigation infrastructure of the Eastern Irrigation District; known by the locals as the Rosemary Grazing Pasture, and Finnegan Field.
Increasing perennial cover on the landscape benefits upland game birds such as grey partridge, pheasants and sharp-tailed grouse. Perennial cover also benefits biodiversity, beneficial insects, waterfowl and other wildlife species. Environmental benefits also include carbon sequestration and improving soil and water quality.
Canals are beacons for wildlife, and essential in areas where habitat is scarce. All sorts of plants, insects and wildlife rely on the water running through these areas. The ‘improvements’ slated for 278 kilometres of canals amount to lining the open canals with concrete or replacing them with pipelines, eliminating pheasant, other wildlife, and pollinator habitat.
