To celebrate the launch of the first ALUS program Quebec, guests were treated to an excellent picnic and a guided tour of the first ALUS project in Quebec.
A beautiful day to launch ALUS in Quebec!
The ALUS Montérégie program organized a guided tour of the first ALUS project in Quebec, in Saint-Jean-Baptiste, south of Montreal, during a local media briefing following a press conference at the UPA (Union des producteurs agricoles), headquarters in Longueuil, August 10, 2016.
Following the press conference, ALUS hosted a reception and a guided visit of the first ALUS project in Quebec, located in Saint-Jean-Baptiste, south of Montreal.
Jules Malouin and his wife Danielle Halle are grain producers with a strong stewardship ethic. Malouin has been a member of the ALUS Montérégie PAC since its formation in 2016. He was the first to sign up as a participant, and the first participant to establish an ALUS project on the ground in Quebec.
Accompanied by the entire ALUS Monteregie PAC—including Catherine Machado, Marie-Laure Marcotte, Annie Tremblay, Yvon Boucher, Marcel Comiré, Daniel Sansoucy, Hervé Blanchette, Florent Raymond, Bruno Guillet, Jaclin Bisaillon, Charles Boulerice, Normand Teasdale and André Mousseau—guests saw first-hand how the Malouin ALUS project helps produce cleaner water, sustain pollinators and boost biodiversity in the region.
“The strength of ALUS is in our partners, and it is a privilege to work with such a far-reaching and progressive organization as the UPA,” said Gilvesy. “Our Quebec program coordinators, Chantale Soumahoro and Catherine Plante, have taken the bull by the horns and made amazing progress in a short amount of time. I look forward to what the future will bring for our collaboration.”
A partnership between ALUS Canada and the Fédération de l’UPA de la Montérégie, the new ALUS Montérégie program aims to help Quebec’s farmers produce clean air, clean water, more biodiversity and other ecological services to benefit all of society.
“Thanks to generous funding by The W. Garfield Weston Foundation, ALUS is enjoying rapid expansion across the country, with 20 ALUS communities in six provinces. And today, as we launch the first-ever ALUS program in Quebec, we are delighted to become a truly national, bilingual organization,” said Gilvesy.
“The UPA is working closely with ALUS Canada to make this new program a success in our region,” said Christian Saint Jacques, President of the Fédération de l’UPA de la Montérégie, and Chair of the Partnership Advisory Committee (PAC) that oversees the local ALUS program.
“The UPA has always recognized the importance of ecological services, and this partnership with ALUS Canada will allow us to act on it,” said Saint Jacques. “ALUS provides the support to put projects on the ground, and the funding to make annual payments to our participants.”
For its Quebec debut, ALUS developed nearly 15 acres (6 hectares) of pollinator and wildlife habitat located in the Huron River watershed and in the Hazen-Bleury and Barbotte watershed, both located in the Montérégie area, south of Montreal.
By improving water quality, ALUS projects will help to address one of the most serious environmental issues in the region, home to such endangered species as the Copper Redhorse (Moxostoma hubbsi), a fish found exclusively in Quebec.
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- ALUS announces the launch of ALUS in Quebec at a press conference. From L to R: ALUS Montérégie program coordinator Chantale Soumahoro, ALUS Montérégie program coordinator Catherine Plante, ALUS Montérégie participant and PAC member Jules Malouin, ALUS Canada CEO Bryan Gilvesy, ALUS Ontario east participant and PAC member Marc Bercier, ALUS Montérégie PAC Chair Christian Saint Jacques.
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- One of the journalists asks a question about the launch of ALUS in Quebec, at a press conference at the provincial UPA headquarters in Longueuil, near Montreal.
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- Jules Malouin answers a question from a journalist at a press conference at the UPA Headquarters in Longueuil, Quebec. Malouin is a grain producer from Saint-Jean-Baptiste, a member of the ALUS Montérégie PAC, the first to sign up as a participant in the program, and the first to establish an ALUS project on the ground in Quebec.
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- A partnership between ALUS Canada and the Fédération de l’UPA de la Montérégie, the ALUS Montérégie program launched August 10, 2016.
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- This way to the ALUS launch! Following the press conference, guests were invited to Jules Malouin’s farm in Saint Jean Baptiste, Quebec, to see first-hand how ALUS projects can produce cleaner water, sustain pollinators and boost biodiversity in the region.
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- The Quebec launch host Jules Malouin with ALUS Canada CEO Bryan Gilvesy
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- One of the two ALUS Montérégie program coordinators, Catherine Plante, served as emcee at both press conferences.
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- A beautiful day to launch ALUS in Quebec!
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- ALUS CEO Bryan Gilvesy speaks at a local press conference, held on the site of the province’s first ALUS projects.
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- ALUS Canada CEO Bryan Gilvesy thanks our very strong partners in Quebec, the Fédération de l’UPA de la Montérégie, with a simultaneous translation by ALUS Canada’s Director of Communications Bridget Wayland.
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- “I’ve wanted to bring ALUS to Quebec ever since I toured an ALUS project during a trip to P.E.I.,” said Christian Saint Jacques, President of the Fédération de l’UPA de la Montérégie, who has now partnered with ALUS Canada to start up the first ALUS program in Quebec, officially launched August 10, 2016.
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- Our host, Jules Malouin, the first ALUS producer in Quebec.
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- Franco-Ontarian ALUS participant Marc Bercier gave a wonderful testimonial to his experiences with the ALUS program at the Quebec launch.
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- Franco-Ontarian ALUS participant Marc Bercier gave a wonderful testimonial to his experiences with the ALUS program at the Quebec launch.
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- One of the two ALUS Montérégie program coordinators, Catherine Plante, served as emcee at both press conferences held for the launch.
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- One of the two ALUS Montérégie program coordinators, Chantale Soumahoro, is an agrologist with the Federation de l’UPA de la Montérégie.
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- Lara Ellis, ALUS Canada’s Director of Strategic Initiatives and Dave Reid, ALUS Canada’s Eastern Hub Manager, found some shade at the Quebec launch.
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- To celebrate the launch of the first ALUS program Quebec, guests were treated to an amazing picnic buffet, with many dishes provided by local farmers. There were pulled pork sandwiches and sausages from Les Eleveurs de Porcs de la Montérégie, cheeses from le Syndicat des Producteurs de Lait de Montérégie-Est, apple juice from Tradition, and a trifle-like dessert featuring berries from Aux Saveurs de la Terre and la Ferme Paul Benoit.
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- To celebrate the launch of the first ALUS program Quebec, guests were treated to an amazing picnic buffet, with many dishes provided by local farmers. There were pulled pork sandwiches and sausages from Les Eleveurs de Porcs de la Montérégie, cheeses from le Syndicat des Producteurs de Lait de Montérégie-Est, apple juice from Tradition, and a trifle-like dessert featuring berries from Aux Saveurs de la Terre and la Ferme Paul Benoit.
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- To celebrate the launch of the first ALUS program Quebec, guests were treated to an amazing picnic buffet, with many dishes provided by local farmers. There were pulled pork sandwiches and sausages from Les Eleveurs de Porcs de la Montérégie, cheeses from le Syndicat des Producteurs de Lait de Montérégie-Est, apple juice from Tradition, and a trifle-like dessert featuring berries from Aux Saveurs de la Terre and la Ferme Paul Benoit.
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- To celebrate the launch of the first ALUS program Quebec, guests were treated to an amazing picnic buffet, with many dishes provided by local farmers. There were pulled pork sandwiches and sausages from Les Eleveurs de Porcs de la Montérégie, cheeses from le Syndicat des Producteurs de Lait de Montérégie-Est, apple juice from Tradition, and a trifle-like dessert featuring berries from Aux Saveurs de la Terre and la Ferme Paul Benoit.
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- To celebrate the launch of the first ALUS program Quebec, guests were treated to an amazing picnic buffet, with many dishes provided by local farmers. There were pulled pork sandwiches and sausages from Les Eleveurs de Porcs de la Montérégie, cheeses from le Syndicat des Producteurs de Lait de Montérégie-Est, apple juice from Tradition, and a trifle-like dessert featuring berries from Aux Saveurs de la Terre and la Ferme Paul Benoit.
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- Guests checking out an inspiring ALUS project at the Malouin farm at our Quebec launch. ALUS widened an existing buffer zone along the stream, and sowed it with native grasses and wildflowers to create pollinator habitat along a stretch nearly half a mile (730 metres) long.
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- Guests checking out an inspiring ALUS project at the Malouin farm at our Quebec launch. ALUS widened an existing buffer zone along the stream, and sowed it with native grasses and wildflowers to create pollinator habitat along a stretch nearly half a mile (730 metres) long.
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- To protect a stream crossing the Malouin farm, ALUS established a woven willow fence along a 164-foot (50 metre) stretch inside the bank. This willow fence will help solidify the bank and prevent soil from eroding into the stream.
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- Berry shrubs and shade trees have been established between the stream and the Malouins’ corn field. The berries provide food for wildlife and the canopy will provide cooling shade over the water to provide better fish habitat.
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- Guests snacked on ripe elderberries during the tour of the Malouins’ ALUS projects.
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- Guests snacked on ripe elderberries during the tour of the Malouins’ ALUS projects.
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- A great time was had by all at the ALUS Canada launch in la belle province on August 10, 2016. ALUS Canada CEO Bryan Gilvesy (on left), Director of Strategic Initiatives Lara Ellis, and our affable host, Jules Malouin (right), the first Quebec farmer to join the ALUS program.
