There’s no shortage of water in southeastern Saskatchewan this year, but livestock producer Mark Johanson will be sitting pretty when the weather normalizes and drought conditions return.
Johanson, who raises beef and sheep on his farm near Stockholm, Sask., has taken steps to ensure his animals will always have access to clean, drinking water.
He has installed 21 kilometres of underground water line since 2002.
The high-density plastic pipe forms a network that delivers water to 22 quarter sections of pasture.
Most of it is two inches in diameter and buried at a depth of 15 centimetres.
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Delivery points are placed at strategic locations to accommodate rotational grazing and improved pasture management.
All the lines are serviced from a single well on Johanson’s home quarter.
“By putting in the pipe and putting the delivery points exactly where we wanted them, it allowed us to use a different type of grazing system so we can manage our grass a lot better,” he said.
Proximity to water is an important factor when animals are being grazed over a large area.
A lactating cow can easily drink 50 to 80 litres of fresh water per day during the spring and summer, depending on the temperature and a variety of other factors.
It is difficult to fully use the grass and forage on a quarter section of land if water delivery points are scarce.
Areas closest to water are often overgrazed while areas furthest away are underused.
Drought conditions persisted across much of the West when Johanson began studying watering systems in 2002, and many dugouts were running dry.
The prospect of hauling water during dry periods convinced him to look for a more reliable solution.
“At that time, we decided that we would go with pipe because we wanted to drought proof our land,” Johanson said.
“Back then, we didn’t know of anybody that did that kind of work … so we bought a semi-load of pipe out of Manitoba. Then I couldn’t find a plow (to install the pipe), so we decided to build one ourselves.”
The project was so successful that Johanson eventually turned it into a business venture, which he runs from his farm.
M &D Cattle Enterprises sells high density pipe to other producers who are interested in drought proofing their land or improving their water infrastructure.
Customers can also rent Johanson’s home-built pasture plow, which has installed 600 to 700 kilometres of water line, much of it through stony land. Johanson said most producers install the line at a depth of 15 to 30 cm.
The high density line is similar to the black water line available at Peavey Mart or Co-op stores, but it is a bit more rigid and has a higher p.s.i. rating.
Johanson blows out his shallow lines every winter to protect against freezing, but he knows some producers who never do.
Deeper lines, which extend about 1 1/2 kilometres each way from Johanson’s yard, can be used year-round to complement winter bale or swath grazing operations.
Johanson recently installed 65 km of pipeline for a neighbour who runs livestock on 75 quarter sections.
The cost of the line, including installation and fittings, usually comes in at less than a dollar a foot.
“We’ve done quite a bit over the last 10 years,” he said.
“It’s not that it’s a must, but it does make it a lot easier to set up an efficient grazing system, if that’s what you’re interested in doing.”
