Flooded farmers blame upstream counterparts

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Published: May 11, 1995

WINNIPEG – Tension between northwestern Manitoba farmers and their eastern Saskatchewan counterparts is running as high as the Assiniboine River that connects them.

Manitoba farmers in the river valley are frustrated and angry at the extent of agricultural flooding and many are pointing fingers upstream at unauthorized drainage projects.

“I would be afraid it could get violent,” said Cliff Trinder. “There’s so much ill-feeling here already on some of these drainage things, historically.”

Trinder has lived in the valley near Millwood, Man., for 40 years and his land has never flooded before. Now, much of it is under almost five metres of water.

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He said that farmers upstream who have dug their own ditches to drain potholes and sloughs are partly to blame and area farmers want a complete study of the drainage area.

In the last 20 years, he said there were instances where heavy precipitation and a quick melt would have dictated flooding of his lowlands. “So I guess everybody up here is looking upstream and saying, ‘What’s different? What happened? Something has changed.'”

But David Zerr of Langenburg, Sask., who also has land under water, said ditching is relatively common on both sides of the valley, and the accusations are unfair.

“I could point the finger upstream and say it’s farmers to the northeast of me whose water has done this, but there’s flooding everywhere.”

No difference

Wayne Dybvig, vice-president of water management for Sask Water Corporation, agrees. “It’s our view that whether there were drainage projects there or not would not have made any difference in a year like this.”

Dybvig said Sask Water knows that unauthorized drainage exists and investigates complaints about subsequent downstream damage.

Checking into interprovincial complaints is more complicated, however.

Farmers could appeal to their own province, which in turn could take concerns to the Prairie Provinces Water Board. Or, farmers could try to sue the landowners who they believe are causing problems.

About the author

Roberta Rampton

Western Producer

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