PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Mont-Saint-Grégoire, December 12, 2017 – Quebec ALUS farmers receive nearly $11,000 in ALUS payments
Christmas came early for 14 Quebec farmers today. As participants in the ALUS Montérégie program, they were presented with this year’s round of ALUS payments, part of a total pledge of $54,700 over the next five years.
Congratulations to 14 ALUS Monteregie participants who received their annual ALUS payments in Quebec December 12, 2017, at a press conference hosted by the Fédération de l’UPA de la Montérégie.
Established in 2016, the ALUS Montérégie program is a partnership between the Fédération de l’UPA de la Montérégie and ALUS Canada, A Weston Family Initiative, a national charity that oversees 22 ALUS communities in six provinces.
“ALUS Canada has invested nearly $140,000 over the last two years to help the UPA establish the first ALUS program in Quebec,” said ALUS Canada’s Director of Operations, Lynn Bishop, speaking at a press conference held in the Mont-Saint-Grégoire Community Centre.
“I want to thank our ALUS participants for being so committed to protecting the environment,” said Christian St-Jacques, President of the Fédération de l’UPA de la Montérégie and of the ALUS Montérégie PAC.
Currently active in the MRCs of Vaudreuil-Soulanges, Haut-Richelieu, Maskoutains, Brome-Missisquoi and Rouville, the ALUS Montérégie program helps local farmers establish ALUS projects, such as windbreaks, reforestation projects, pollinator habitat strips and expanded riparian buffer zones around streams and wetlands.
In Montérégie, these ALUS projects have significantly improved the quality of life in local communities by producing cleaner air, cleaner water, wildlife habitat and other ecosystem services in this predominantly agricultural area.
ALUS Montérégie has also been very successful in securing local sponsors for the program, particularly Soleno, a leading stormwater management firm that has pledged $150,000 over five years.
“We are very proud of ALUS’ presence in Quebec, and we plan to deepen our strong partnership with the Fédération de l’UPA de la Montérégie by supporting further expansion of the ALUS program over the coming years,” said Bishop.
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