As Sask. grasslands decline, here are the Liberal government’s conservation promises

The Liberal government made several promises to protect Canadian land and water in its 2021 platform. Advocates say such protection is badly needed in Saskatchewan.

The new Liberal government is promising to protect 25 per cent of Canadian lands and waters by 2025, and 30 per cent by 2030, while restoring and enhancing wetlands and grasslands.

Those are promises one environmental advocate says are especially significant for the prairies.

Saskatchewan Environmental Society Board Member Peter Prebble says that, while exact estimates vary, it’s likely that less than 20 per cent of Saskatchewan’s native grasslands remain intact with the rest lost to agricultural, natural resource and transportation network development.

Based on a 2001 study, the prairie ecoregion in Saskatchewan is estimated at 59,551,535 acres. But a 2010 study estimated that 19.4 per cent of native prairie grassland remains within Saskatchewan’s prairie ecozone.

“In my view, there has been some further decline since 2010. However, the estimate of 19-20 per cent for remaining grasslands in Saskatchewan continues to be very widely used.” Prebble noted.

Prebble said the grasslands, along with Saskatchewan wetlands, are historically some of the most biodiverse regions in the province but that right now an estimated 60 species calling prairie grasslands home are deemed at-risk.

“The majority of those are in Saskatchewan,” Prebble said.

“First and foremost, establishing official protected areas and ecological reserves is absolutely key, but measures like minimizing the number of well pads in an area is also important in protecting the grasslands landscape.”