WHEREAS in many communities a network of drainage ditches has been constructed in order to channel water, establish and maintain the productivity of agricultural land and to protect urban areas from flooding; AND WHEREAS these engineered ditches, to be effective, need to be cleaned on a regular basis, and staff from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the Ministry of Environment have exercised unreasonable control over the timing and method of cleaning the ditches: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that UBCM request that the provincial government through the Ministry of Agriculture confirm that the maintenance of engineered ditches be recognized as an acceptable farm practice under the Right to Farm Act.
Ministry of Agriculture The Farm Practices Protection Right to Farm Act FPPA does not apply to activities conducted by local governments, only farmers. Activities conducted by farm operators under the FPPA must still abide by provincial and federal environmental legislation and policies. In April 2005, the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection now Ministry of Environment and the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans jointly prepared a Drainage Management Guide that outlined a process for farmers to clean constructed ditches on their farms. This guide can also be used by local governments to develop a drainage maintenance plan for channels maintained by local governments. Once approved and signed off by all agencies, the plan can be used to conduct drainage maintenance without further approvals from agencies for many engineered or constructed channels and ditches.