Alberta man donates land for conservation to honour late brother

An Alberta family north of Edmonton is paying tribute to their brother by preserving the land he loved.

Norm Parrent has donated 279 acres of his range to the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC), ensuring the land and the diverse ecosystem it hosts remain unchanged – just the way his late brother would have wanted.

"He didn't like change," Norm said.

The Parrents were homesteaders and the family have owned land on the south shores of Wakomao lake, near Clyde, Alta., since 1906. Four generations later, Paul and Norm Parrent continued to work the land.

When Paul died in 2020, his younger brother Norm wanted to do something special to honour his life as a steward of the land.

"He was a very kind and gentle fellow that enjoyed nature. And we just thought it would be fitting to have this piece of property left natural in his memory," Norm said.

The land is made up of wetlands, accented by patches of forest. It's a rich ecosystem that supports a variety of wildlife, the NCC said, and the project is part of conservation efforts in the Beaver Hills and surrounding areas, with four other conservation projects within 33 kilometres of the Parrent property.

The Parrents have been keeping cattle on the land for 50 years, and that won't change either. The land will be protected from development, but Norm will still be able to graze his herds in the pastures that Paul loved and cared for.

"You never check livestock in this pasture without thinking about him. It's what he did," Norm said.

"It's a way to hang on to his memory a little bit." 

With files from CTV News Edmonton's David Ewasuk