News Release

April 3, 2003

PRIME MINISTER CHRÉTIEN AND PREMIER DOER ANNOUNCE $160 MILLION FOR THE RED RIVER FLOODWAY EXPANSION

WINNIPEG, Manitoba - Prime Minister Jean Chrétien and Manitoba Premier Gary Doer today announced that their governments would each contribute $80 million towards the expansion of the Manitoba Red River Floodway. This is the largest federal-provincial infrastructure investment partnership in Manitoba since the construction of the floodway.

The City of Winnipeg also confirmed its commitment over the next five years to funding municipal flood protection improvements that support flood control and diversion works.

"History has taught us the importance of doing everything we can to protect the citizens of Winnipeg and the Red River Valley from the danger of flooding. The Governments of Canada and Manitoba agree the expansion of the Red River Floodway is their top joint infrastructure priority in this province," said Prime Minister Chrétien. "This project will provide greater safety for residents, as well as significant economic benefits for Manitoba."

"This is one of the largest capital projects in Manitoba history. It will provide the City of Winnipeg and capital region with greater flood protection, safeguarding families and our economy from the devastation of floods like the one we experienced in 1997," said Premier Doer. "Today's announcement supports the first phase of the project and when the expansion of the Floodway is complete, it will fulfill the recommendations of the International Joint Commission."

"I applaud both the federal and Manitoba governments for their leadership in the Red River Floodway Expansion project," said Winnipeg Mayor Glen Murray. "The City of Winnipeg is improving and upgrading flood protection infrastructure to complement the Floodway expansion as part of the overall flood-protection strategy for the region."

The investments announced today build on the International Joint Commission's recommendations included in the Living with the Red Report, published following the 1997 flood. The report called for the highest flood protection that can be economically justified or at least sufficient protection to deal with an event similar to the 1826 flood.

Prime Minister Chrétien and Premier Doer stated that Governments of Canada and Manitoba are committed to support completion of the expanded floodway over the next several years. The cost of completing the full project is estimated at $660 million. When fully completed, it will offer protection from a flood with a 1 in 700 years probability of occurrence. Work on the entire expanded floodway project is expected to generate hundreds of millions of dollars in economic benefits for the Province of Manitoba and for the rest of Canada.

Today's joint investment in the Red River Floodway expansion is consistent with the objectives of the Government of Canada and provincial/territorial jurisdictions in the development of a National Disaster Mitigation Strategy which aims at reducing, through mitigation, the personal, social, economic and environmental impacts of disasters in Canada.

Since 1997, the Government of Canada and the Province of Manitoba have jointly invested $130 million in flood protection, $110 million of which has been invested in flood protection for rural residents of the Red River Valley. With today's investments, the Governments of Canada and Manitoba have invested a total of $290 million to improve flood protection for the City of Winnipeg and the Red River Basin. Both governments have held public consultations to determine the causes and mitigation measures that need to be adopted to increase flood protection in the area.

The Government of Canada's $80-million contribution will come from the $2-billion Canada Strategic Infrastructure Fund, through which it is working with provincial, territorial and municipal governments, as well as with the private sector, to respond to strategic infrastructure needs throughout the country. These investments are directed to large-scale projects of major national and regional significance, in areas that are vital to sustaining economic growth and supporting an enhanced quality of life for Canadians.

In the Speech from the Throne of September 30, 2002, the Government of Canada committed to an additional 10-year involvement in public infrastructure. The federal Budget 2003 reaffirmed this long-term commitment and provided an additional $3 billion for strategic and municipal infrastructure. In combination with the $5,25 billion in infrastructure programs announced in Budget 2000 and 2001, this brings the Government of Canada's recent investment in the nation's infrastructure to over $8 billion.

Today's announcements bring the Government of Canada's investment in Manitoba's infrastructure since 1994 to nearly $450 million.

Contacts:

PMO Press Office
(613) 957-5555

Riva Harrison
Director of Communications
Office of the Premier of Manitoba
(204) 945-1494

BACKGROUNDER

GOVERNMENTS OF CANADA AND MANITOBA CONTRIBUTIONS TOWARDS THE EXPANSION OF MANITOBA RED RIVER FLOODWAY PROJECT

The Governments of Canada and Manitoba will each invest $80 million towards the expansion of the Manitoba Red River Floodway. The federal investment will be made through the Canada Strategic Infrastructure Fund. The Government of Manitoba will be responsible for the implementation of the project. The City of Winnipeg will also fund over the next five years a number of municipal flood-protection infrastructure projects.

The discussions between all levels of government involved in the project announced today are well on their way. The components that will be undertaken thanks to the $160 million announced today will be ones that will have the most significant short-term impact on flood protection. Public consultations in identifying priorities for the expanded floodway were held over the last two years, in the aftermath of the 1997 flood. These consultations included:

• International Joint Commission Task Force (report published in January 2000)
• Clean Environment Commission Hearings (January 2002)
• All Party Committee struck by Premier Doer (March 2002)
• Value Engineering Review (August 2002)
• Municipal Meetings in Selkirk and St. Adolphe (December 2002)

Manitoba Expanded Floodway

The existing floodway diverts a portion of the Red River floodwaters around Winnipeg. Spring runoff flood events are controlled by raising the inlet structure limiting flows through the City of Winnipeg. It provides protection from floods with a 1 in 90 years probability of recurrence and has been employed 21 times since 1969, with seven of those floods being serious events. Although the 1997 flood had a probability of recurrence of 1 in 100 years, over 103,000 people on both sides of the border were forced to evacuate their homes.

According to the International Joint Commission Task Force, once completed, the expanded floodway would reduce the risk of overwhelming the City of Winnipeg's flood protection works would increase protection for the City of Winnipeg from a 1 in 90 year flood up to a 1 in 700 year flood.

The overall Manitoba Red River Floodway Expansion project consists of enhancements to various components of the existing flood control works and Floodway diversion system. These include the following:

• modifications to 13 railway and highway bridges, five transmission lines, other crossings, seven drainage structures and the excavation of 35 million m3 of soil for Floodway channel widening and deepening;
• upgrades of the inlet control structure, including a fire protection system and installation of additional riprap and erosion protection to the embankments;
• increases of crest elevation of the west dike and raising a portion of the Floodway channel adjacent to the inlet control structure; and
• widening of the outlet structure and the discharge channel to the Red River. This would include addressing river bank stability and erosion in the Red River north of the oulet;
• major components of the City of Winnipeg Flood Protection Works include primary and secondary dike upgrades, flood pump station reliability upgrades, land drainage, sewer outfall gate structures and land drainage pump station replacement; and
• renewed discussions on the dredging north of the floodway.

The City of Winnipeg will fund over the next five years a number of municipal flood-protection infrastructure projects, such as secondary diking, flood pump station reliability upgrades, land drainage and storm sewer outfall gate controls. All projects that will improve the City's flood protection infrastructure so it meets the higher standard afforded by the floodway expansion.

Today's investment builds on previous contributions made by both the Governments of Canada and Manitoba first for the construction of the initial floodway in 1968 and then for improvements in the aftermath of the 1997 flood.

QUICK FACTS ECONOMIC IMPACTS AND OPPORTUNITIES OF THE RED RIVER FLOODWAY EXPANSION PROJECT*

• The total project cost is estimated at $660 million, 93 percent of which will be spent within Manitoba.
• The economic benefits of the total expansion of the Floodway for the Province of Manitoba and the rest of Canada are estimated to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars.
• The workforce requirements for the Red River Floodway expansion are diverse, and the project represents a unique employment opportunity for many local industries. The project will expand job prospects for youth, and promote entrepreneurial opportunities and job creation for Aboriginal people.
• At the peak of the construction, the project is expected to generate a total of 3,500 full-time jobs over the four years of the project, 2,475 of which will be in Manitoba.

*(All the figures in the Quick Facts have been compiled by the Manitoba Bureau of Statistics)

FEDERAL - MANITOBA COOPERATION ON FLOODWAY CONSTRUCTION AND FLOOD PROOFING

Cooperation between the Governments of Canada and Manitoba on floodway construction and flood proofing began after the Greater Winnipeg Flood of 1950. Building on the work done by the Red River Basin Investigation established by the Government of Canada, the Royal Commission on Flood Cost Benefit, established in 1956, recommended the construction of the Greater Winnipeg Floodway, Portage Diversion and Shellmouth Dam.

In 1962, Canada and Manitoba signed an agreement that facilitated the construction of the Floodway. The arrangement shared the initial costs on an approximately equal basis and ultimately total costs were shared on a 58 per cent federal, 42 per cent basis. The Portage Diversion and Shellmouth Dam were also cost shared between the Governments of Canada and Manitoba.

Following the 1997 flood also known as the "flood of the century" the Governments of Canada and Manitoba have participated in a number of joint initiatives:

• $130-million Rural Flood Proofing Program for homes and businesses.
• Reference to the International Joint Commission by Canadian and US federal governments - review and report on reducing the impacts of flooding in the Red River Basin. This study indicated that people and property remain at risk under current conditions.
• LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) mapping and additional computer modelling to better define the flooding risks both north and south of Winnipeg.
• Commissioning of the KGS Group of consulting engineers to analyse the two major flood protection schemes identified by the International Joint Commission, namely the Red River Floodway expansion project and the Ste. Agathe Detention Structure. In their report, KGS rated the Floodway expansion option superior to the Ste. Agathe Detention Structure.
• Value Engineering review of the KGS study conducted by the Government of Manitoba with a focus on the Floodway Expansion option. The review brought together 26 engineers from Manitoba and the Federal Government as well as a number of respected international engineers.

The Province of Manitoba and the Government of Canada have agreed on the need for greater flood protection for the City of Winnipeg as recommended by the International Joint Commission and the subsequent KGS report. The expansion of the Floodway is the next step in federal-provincial co-operation on flood mitigation in the province.

INTERNATIONAL JOINT COMMISSION LIVING WITH THE RED REPORT

Recognising the significant socio-economic costs associated with repeated floods, the Governments of Canada and Manitoba have worked together to protect communities in the Red River basin. Construction of the Winnipeg Floodway, the ring dike protection of communities, and the Flood Damage Reduction Program to further protect communities and to establish flood risk mapping and zoning procedures, are some examples of federal-provincial cost-shared efforts in the Red River basin.

Following the Red River flood of 1997, the Governments of Canada and the United States requested the International Joint Commission (IJC) to address the causes and impact of floods in the Red River basin and make recommendations on means to reduce, mitigate and prevent harm from future flooding in the basin. The IJC established the International Red River basin Task Force to assist with the study. In its final report, submitted in December 2000, the IJC stressed that flooding in the Red River Basin remains a fact of life and that people and property will continue to be at risk until comprehensive, integrated, binational solutions to flood problems are developed and implemented. It also noted that there is no single solution to the challenge of reducing flood potential and protecting against flood impacts, and as such, several complementary approaches should be employed.

The report includes 28 recommendations, which provided all levels of government with a blueprint for action to ensure that such destruction does not occur again. The IJC recommendations cover the following themes:

• preparing for the next flood; flow reduction considerations, protection of large population centres, and emergency information management;
• environmental considerations such as chemical contamination, transfer of alien invasive species;
• managing the floodplain through comprehensive basin-wide, integrated planning; and
• institutional arrangements for managing floods.

Winnipeg, which is the largest population centre in the basin, remains at high risk from future floods. The 1997 flood came very close to overwhelming existing flood protection capability, which would have forced the evacuation of some 300,000 people, and caused damages estimated in the billions of dollars. The expansion of the Manitoba floodway would address this major vulnerability. The IJC recommended that: "the design flood used as the standard for flood protection works for Winnipeg should be the highest that can be economically justified or, at a minimum, the flood of record, the 1826 flood". Once completed, the expanded Manitoba Floodway would provide the City of Winnipeg protection for a flood with a 1 in 700 years probability of recurrence, while the 1826 flood had a 1 in 300 years probability of recurrence.

The Governments of Canada and Manitoba also committed in 1997 to the $130-million cost-shared Partnership Agreement on Red River Flood Protection to provide support beyond the sums available under federal disaster financial assistance for the restitution of flood damages. The agreement included additional protection of homes, businesses and communities, enhancement of data networks and scientific knowledge, and refurbishment of associated provincial flood infrastructure. Most of the elements of this agreement have been implemented and respond to the recommendations contained in 'Living with the Red', and in some cases, build upon the initiatives of the IJC Task Force.

NATIONAL DISASTER MITIGATION STRATEGY

The Government of Canada's Office of Critical Infrastructure Protection and Emergency Preparedness (OCIPEP) is developing a National Disaster Mitigation Strategy (NDMS), aimed at reducing or eliminating the personal, social, economic and environmental risks and impacts of natural and human-induced disasters.

Disaster mitigation can be achieved through both structural and non-structural measures. Examples of structural mitigation include ensuring building structures can withstand the effects of disasters, for example, by bolting homes in tornado-prone areas to their foundations, constructing dams, river-channel diversions and dykes to prevent or reduce flooding. Non-structural mitigation measures include establishing land-use zoning to prevent construction on flood plains and conducting hazard, vulnerability and risk assessments to develop emergency plans.

The clear benefit of these measures is the potential for reducing the costs associated with responding to disasters and recovery efforts, making the development of a NDMS a wise investment. In recent years, Canada experienced three of its most devastating natural disasters: the Saguenay (1996) and Red River (1997) floods, and the Ice Storm (1998) that affected central and eastern Canada. Together, these events cost an estimated $7.8 billion to governments, private industry and voluntary sectors.

In June 2001, the Minister of National Defence and Minister Responsible for Emergency Preparedness, announced that OCIPEP would lead consultations with the provinces, territories, the private sector and key stakeholders to assist in the development of a NDMS. In the spring of 2002, this national dialogue considered the scope of the NDMS and discussed roles and mechanisms for the implementation and coordination of disaster mitigation activities. With its key partners, OCIPEP is currently assessing the results of the consultations to develop a comprehensive approach for disaster mitigation for the Government of Canada's consideration later in 2003.

In February 2001, the Prime Minister announced the establishment of the Office of Critical Infrastructure Protection and Emergency Preparedness. Operating as a civilian organization within the Department of National Defence, OCIPEP's role is to provide national leadership in the protection of Canada's national critical infrastructure and enhancement of Canada's emergency management framework.

For more information about the Office of Critical Infrastructure Protection and Emergency Preparedness and the National Disaster Mitigation Strategy please contact OCIPEP Public Affairs:

Telephone: (613) 944-4875 or 1-800-830-3118
E-mail: communications@ocipep-bpiepc.gc.ca
Internet: http://www.ocipep-bpiepc.gc.ca

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