Rehabilitation work on Saskatchewan’s M1 main irrigation canal is about a year away, but the province has now hired a consulting engineer to get the project moving.
The provincial cabinet recently passed an order-in-council authorizing a $1.58-million expenditure over three years to AECOM Canada Ltd. of Lethbridge, Alta., for engineering services.
The M1 canal began operating in 1967 and is the primary water conveyance to the Broderick reservoir from the east side pump station on Lake Diefenbaker. That reservoir supplies the water for the South Saskatchewan River Irrigation District’s 36,000 acres and the Saskatoon Southeast water supply system, which moves water to Lake Blackstrap, potash mines and Ducks Unlimited projects.
John Babcock, director of Saskatchewan Agriculture’s irrigation branch, said an asset management plan undertaken last year examined what had to be done to rehabilitate the 22.5-kilometre canal.
“Now we need someone to oversee and provide us with direction.”
The canal’s lining will be replaced and that involves pre-design work, regulatory approvals and other red tape before contractors can be hired, Babcock said.
