Agriculture committee  The Delta Waterfowl Foundation is very small. Our budget is about $6 million a year, and we do not buy land. We simply do not buy land. It's our strong view that the kind of land on the agricultural landscape should remain in private ownership and that incentive-type programs should be utilized to reward producers for delivering environmental services to Canadians at large.

Agriculture committee  It's our strong view, Mr. Anderson, that you will get more and better conservation if you develop conservation programs that are in tune with the culture of agriculture and the culture of rural communities. That is why I as a representative of a conservation group am sitting beside the vice-president of Keystone Agricultural Producers.

Agriculture committee  Thank you, Mr. Easter. I firmly believe that the easy way is the best way, at least as a way to start. I certainly agree wholeheartedly with your point that those public goods that are produced on private land that currently have no market and there is no potential for a market in them and the benefits wholly accrue to the public at large, the public at large, through taxes, should support.

Agriculture committee  The cost-effectiveness of ALUS was recently explored by leading agricultural economists Edward and Allen Tyrchniewicz. The authors concluded that ALUS would cost in the order of $740 million per year to fully implement across Canada and would deliver approximately $820 million per annum of potential benefits to society, plus generate additional benefits of at least $61 million per year in avoided costs.

Agriculture committee  Okay.

Agriculture committee  I'm conscious of the time constraints, Mr. Chair.

Agriculture committee  Okay. Having done this in a previous life, I am very conscious of time. Our farm group partners and the Delta Water Fowl Foundation recommend that all parties in the House of Commons support the ALUS concept; second, that ALUS pilot projects be funded by the Government of Canada; third, that the Government of Canada direct key staff in the relevant departments to work with farm and producer groups to develop and implement ALUS; and fourth, that the Government of Canada work towards the implementation of a national landscape conservation program for Canada as part of the next generation of Canadian agricultural policy.

Agriculture committee  Thank you. Our presentation will be joint with Ian Wishart from Keystone Agricultural Producers. On behalf the Delta Waterfowl Foundation and Keystone Agricultural Producers, I would like to thank the standing committee for this opportunity to present the concept of ALUS. It may seem a bit unusual for a conservation group to be asked to present what is essentially an agricultural policy proposal, but there are some very important environmental challenges on the agricultural landscape, not the least of which is how to design a program that both provides solutions to difficult environmental problems while at the same time respecting the rights of landowners and recognizing the requirement to foster an economically sustainable agriculture.