Manitoba farmers want the province’s electrical utility to do a better job identifying electrical dangers and making line improvements in farmyards.
Delegates at the Keystone Agricultural Producers annual convention passed a resolution calling on Manitoba Hydro to work more closely with farmers when assessing dangers, making improvements and paying for improvements.
“There are a lot of problems in farmyards,” said farmer Stuart Zander of Durban, near Swan River, about why he put forward the resolution.
“Hydro put in the lines 40 years ago and the farmyards are now shaped quite differently and maybe cross under the hydro line and with higher equipment it gets to be a real hazard. If you’re two inches too close you can have a real major catastrophe on your hands.”
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Many farmers took part in the debate on the issue.
Some wanted Manitoba Hydro to pay all costs associated with burying or moving power lines that go into farmyards. Others wondered whether KAP should ask the utility to set out a concrete cost sharing agreement.
Others complained they are uncertain what Hydro’s policy is, because Hydro employees give different answers to the same question. Zander said he had the same problem.
“I don’t know if they have a policy or do it on a case by case basis.”
One of the best things Hydro could do for farmers, Zander said, would be to take a more proactive role in identifying farmyard risks. Farmers may be accustomed to dangerous situations, so Hydro may need to more aggressively identify potential dangers.
“The Manitoba Hydro guy that drives in from the road may see something that the farmer can’t because he’s used to it,” Zander said. “It’s something a farmer doesn’t always see.”
Farmers’ lives may be saved if Manitoba Hydro makes farmyard power safety a bigger concern, he added.
“It’s consultation we’re looking for, and awareness.”
