States of emergency, agricultural disaster declared in parts of drought-stricken Manitoba
The rural municipality of St. Laurent has declared a state of emergency, while the RM of Coldwell has declared a state of agricultural disaster.
"In the RM of Coldwell, there's a huge cattle industry, and right now … I would say that on average, the hay's maybe 25 per cent of what they got last year, which is not very good," said Reeve Virgil Johnson.
"Everybody's hoping for rain, but we didn't get any — nothing that's really measurable."
Many farmers use irrigation systems, relying heavily on dugouts with stored water, "but the dugouts are drying up," Johnson said.
The situation is the same in St. Laurent, which is just south of Coldwell. They're both on the west side of Manitoba's Interlake region, up against Lake Manitoba.
"We have had many farmers contact us. Their hay is dry and they need help," said St. Laurent Reeve Richard Chartrand.
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada said as of June 30, the Interlake is in a severe drought situation.
Johnson was in touch with Manitoba Agriculture Minister Ron Kostyshyn a couple of weeks ago, but since then, "it's gotten worse."
That prompted a meeting among administrators in the region and an agreement to publicly declare the urgent situations.
"We're hoping with everybody doing that, it goes back to the government, and hopefully they can put out some programs for us and help the producers here in a meaningful way, whether that's with feed or freight," Johnson said.
"Once they see how many people are actually in trouble in the farming industry in the area — up and down No. 6 highway, it's pretty dry, and surrounding areas as well — hopefully … it does put pressure on them."
In a written statement to Radio-Canada and CBC, a spokesperson for Manitoba Agriculture said the province is in discussions with several farmers and municipal officials in the Interlake region.
"While we are closely monitoring the situation, we will continue to work with producers to help them address business challenges, including through existing business risk management programs. We remain committed to supporting farms in the Interlake region and across Manitoba," the statement said.
Loni Jack, co-owner of Clegr Farms in Lake Francis, just south of the RM of St. Laurent, estimates she'll get barely a third of the canola she had planned to harvest. The same goes for wheat.
"We were able to plant our fields, but it hasn't rained, so the crops aren't growing well at all," she said. "It's positive to have planted them, but if they don't grow, we won't make any money."
To people passing by the farms while driving along the highway, some crops might look good, but they're not, Johnson said.
"The heads just aren't filling out that well," he said, referring to the seed-bearing part of a crop, where the grains develop.
Without anything for cattle herds to eat, producers must transport their animals from pasture to pasture, "and it's a big chore," Johnson said.
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