The Manitoba government says it's ready to start construction on the Lake St. Martin outlet channel.
Infrastructure Minister Ron Schuler gave an update on the project yesterday, which was the 10-year anniversary of the 2011 flood that forced the entire Lake St. Martin First Nation community to relocate.
Another flood occurred in 2014. Schuler says these floods highlighted the need for better infrastructure, but that they weren’t isolated events.
Schuler says Manitoba has experienced four record high-water events, and we can expect more in the future, causing more frequent and larger flood events.
“Constructing the outlet channels project will provide certainty and critical flood protection to Manitobans by addressing outstanding vulnerabilities in the provincial flood mitigation network.”
The province has tried to alleviate future flooding by cutting two new outlet channels that would divert water from Lake Manitoba through Lake St. Martin and into Lake Winnipeg, the project has been delayed because of regulatory hurdles.
Schuler says the province has completed all preliminary designs for the outlet channel, and that detailed design work is underway and will incorporate feedback from the ongoing federal and provincial environmental assessment processes, key stakeholders, and Indigenous communities.
"It's up to our federal government and our Indigenous partners to allow us to move earth. We are set to begin construction of the Lake Manitoba outlet as early as this fall."
Construction could take four years to complete.
