The Lesser Slave Watershed Council is offering about $65,000 in funding for stewardship projects this fall, giving local agricultural operators an opportunity to make changes that can benefit both their operations and the health of the Lesser Slave watershed.

The funding is available through the Watershed Restoration and Resiliency Grant Program, which provides cost-sharing of 50 to 75 percent of eligible project expenses.

Eligible expenses can include fencing materials, watering systems, stream-crossing installations, native plants and other costs associated with projects that improve watershed health, according to Lesser Slave Watershed Council executive director Meghan Hunt.

The amount of support available for an individual project varies depending on its size and nature.
The council is particularly interested in projects that demonstrate what it calls a “beneficial management change” — a change from an existing practice that will result in improved ecological health.

For agricultural producers, that can mean changing the way livestock interact with streams and wetlands.
One example is fencing livestock away from streams.

Keeping cattle out of the water can protect riparian areas — the vegetated areas along the edges of streams and other waterways — from being trampled, while also preventing manure from entering the water.

Livestock can also create bare areas along stream banks, leaving soil more vulnerable to erosion. When that soil is washed into waterways, it can contribute to sediment being carried downstream.

Off-stream watering systems can be used alongside fencing to provide livestock with an alternative source of water while reducing their direct impact on streams.

Other examples of stewardship work include revegetating creek banks with native trees or shrubs. Hunt said the deep roots of native vegetation can help protect creek banks from erosion during periods of high water.

The council also identifies beaver pond levelers and improvements to watercourse crossings as potential stewardship measures.
Improved crossings can help prevent animals and farm machinery from damaging stream banks and streambeds, reducing erosion and sediment transport and helping protect water quality.

The benefits of the work can extend well beyond the individual farm or project site, Hunt said.
Stewardship projects can improve wetland and riparian health, water quality, water storage, habitat, bank stability and habitat connectivity, while reducing sediment transport.

That is particularly relevant in the Lesser Slave watershed because many of its streams eventually flow into Lesser Slave Lake.
In that sense, a project carried out on an agricultural property can have effects farther downstream, with improvements to smaller streams and their surrounding habitat contributing to the long-term health of the larger watershed and lake.

“Agricultural stewardship provides benefits to operations on the farm, as well as the long term health of our Lake,” Hunt said.
For producers, the cost-sharing can also make improvements more accessible.

The council can cover 50 to 75 percent of eligible expenses, while the remaining portion is paid by the project applicant.
The current funding round carries additional significance because it is the last opportunity for projects through the council under the program.

The provincial government has ended the Watershed Restoration and Resiliency Grant Program, Hunt said.
That means agricultural operators considering eligible stewardship work have a final opportunity to access funding through the program before it comes to an end.

The council is accepting applications for fall 2026 stewardship projects, with the amount of funding available to each project dependent on the size and nature of the proposed work.

William Hetherington
Lakeside Leader