Sarah Rennie – LJI reporter
As the annual spring flood waters receded from agricultural fields this past week, the subject of waterway management and the significance of well-maintained ditches and waterways was once again top of mind for some area producers.
Waterway management became a hot topic between the local syndicate of the Union des Producteurs Agricoles (UPA) and the MRC du Haut-Saint-Laurent last September, when the local union passed a resolution calling for better management of the region’s waterways.
The resolution demanded better collaboration with the MRC, the municipalities, and the provincial government to ensure requests to clear waterways are addressed and the corresponding work is done according to a reasonable schedule. The union also asked that the MRC provide a complete overview of pending watercourse maintenance files.
The MRC, which is responsible for managing all assessments, as well as any work to maintain, clean, and develop the waterways flowing through its territory, has acknowledged there can be long delays, but suggests the process is bogged down by the administrative and technical complexity of government procedures.
An initial meeting took place between the MRC and representatives from the Haut-Saint-Laurent syndicate in early November. Unsatisfied with the information that was shared, the UPA resorted to submitting a formal access to information request to the MRC.
Following a decision by local union directors, a complaint was also filed with the Ministère des Affaires Municipales et de l’Habitation; however, this was later withdrawn.
The situation led to some friction between the two bodies, but the Haut-Saint-Laurent UPA’s president, Éric Leboeuf, noted at the February meeting that the union is working to rebuild the relationship. MRC director general Pierre Caza said the MRC is also “keen to maintain good relations with all its partners and collaborators.”
Catherine Turgeon, the UPA advisor for the local syndicate, confirms that the MRC has since produced a portrait of its ongoing waterway management files. “Now, it is a question of seeing how the MRC works with the engineering firms and the environment ministry so that the requests are unblocked and carried out within a reasonable timeframe,” she explained.
Turgeon noted that the MRC’s list of open maintenance requests contained around twenty files, some dating back to as early as 2018.
Caza has confirmed that the list of ongoing files will be made public, and that the regional government is currently developing a tool that will allow producers to follow the progress of their maintenance requests.
Caza said that in the meantime, questions regarding existing files should be addressed to the MRC’s waterways manager, David Rousseau. The MRC is also now suggesting that producers address new requests directly to Rousseau, who will then collaborate with the municipalities involved.