The Manitoba government is exploring ways to alleviate flooding on farmland downstream from a dam it controls in the western part of the province.
Affected producers say flooding downstream from the Shellmouth Dam has become more frequent during the past decade. Their main concerns are delays in seeding and damage the flooding causes to their land in the Assiniboine Valley.
Farmers presented their concerns to premier Gary Doer this summer and recommended potential remedies for the problem.
A government spokesperson said Doer has asked provincial staff to identify options to address the producers’ concerns.
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“It hasn’t come to a resolution yet, but there is definitely work in progress,” said Jonathan Hildebrand, director of cabinet communications.
Farmer Stan Cochrane got the impression from the meeting with Doer that the producers’ concerns were taken seriously and that the premier did want to look for ways to alleviate flooding problems.
“It seemed like a really good meeting,” said Cochrane, chair of the Assiniboine Valley Producers Committee. “We’re just hoping that what he said at the meeting is what’s going to happen, that they’re going to look at it and they’re going to do something about it.”
Earlier this year Cochrane had estimated that about 19,000 acres of farmland were flooded downstream from the dam this spring in an area from the Shellmouth Valley to Brandon.
However, when interviewed Aug. 30, he said it is difficult to get an exact number of acres affected.
Producers want the province to do a better job of forecasting how much runoff will flow into the dam in the spring so it can better regulate release of water.
The producers also want the government to study the effect of drainage in the watershed that feeds the dam. They also raised the issue of flood damage compensation when they met with the premier in July.
“We’re saying that they don’t really know how much water is coming out of Saskatchewan,” Cochrane said. “I think that they’re going to start talking to Saskatchewan about the drainage that they’re doing.”
The Shellmouth Dam was built more than three decades ago to serve as a reservoir and to help regulate flows on the Assiniboine River. The river begins in Saskatchewan and meanders through Manitoba en route to Winnipeg. Increasingly, the lake created by the dam has captured the interest of boaters, fishers and cottagers.
Doug Chorney, an executive member of Keystone Agricultural Producers, attended a meeting in April where the issue of flooding downstream from the dam was discussed with provincial officials.
He said in a recent interview that officials with Manitoba Agriculture seemed committed to helping farmers. However, he found an assistant deputy minister with Manitoba Water Stewardship to be less receptive.
“Water Stewardship needs to talk more to the people affected and maybe get an understanding of the situation,” Chorney said.
He hopes other interests won’t overshadow farmers’ needs.
“Those other interests, including recreation, sometimes take precedent and priority over the farmers. Personally, I think that’s wrong. If they’re holding water for that reason only, that would be a concern.”
Cochrane said his group will follow up with the province this fall in the hope that something can be done before next spring.
