Analysis of Agricultural Water Supply Issues: National Summary

3.0  NATIONAL SUMMARY

Water supply constraints to agricultural production were evident in all provinces except Newfoundland/Labrador; however, even in Newfoundland/Labrador, a lack of information on water supply needs for the various agriculture sectors was identified, which in itself could be considered a constraint. The types of constraints vary across the country and are generally related to climate, poor information on groundwater resources, commodity group needs, or allocation rights. Constraints were most widespread in location and type in the Prairies and British Columbia. In the central and eastern provinces, constraints were primarily related to irrigation supplies.

3.1 Overview

Summary of Water Supply Constraints

Similar water supply constraints are experienced throughout the country, though not necessarily in all provinces (Table 3.1). The main constraints can be summarized as follows:

• Fully allocated water supplies - water is not available for use because it has been fully allocated. In some cases, the allocations are not fully used, but no new licences can be granted because the permitting process always assumes that each individual allocation is being fully used all the time.
• Limited surface water or ground water supplies - although supplies may not be fully allocated, there are insufficient supplies to sustain agricultural needs (either surface water or ground water).
• Lack of information on groundwater resource - availability, quality and/or sustainability of groundwater resource is not known, and people are unwilling to risk fronting the cost for test drilling in case there is no supply.
• Lack of information of water supply and water demand - there is limited information on how much water is really available, when it is available and what the demand for the water is from all sectors.
• Seasonal water shortages - there is sufficient water on an annual basis to cover all water supply demands, but there are times (generally during the growing season) when the available water supply cannot meet the demand.
• Regulatory/Licensing issues - there is sufficient water for all demands, but the permitting or licensing process doesn't allow for (immediate) withdrawal, either due to temporary moratoria or an inefficient process (i.e. long waits for license approvals).
• Poor quality of water - a water supply exists but cannot be utilized because of poor quality. This affects both surface water supplies and groundwater supplies. In many cases, treatment systems could render the water useable, however in most cases it is uneconomical to implement treatment.
• Lack of water supply infrastructure - a water supply exists, but there is no infrastructure available to distribute the water where it is needed. This is typically associated with large-scale irrigation systems or regional water pipeline supplies.
• Limited uptake of water conservation strategies - a sufficient supply of water may exist if conservation strategies/techniques were adopted. This is often a result of limited education, extension or technical assistance opportunities in an area.
• Limited local capacity for funding regional water supply development - there are limited means for the local producers to build capacity to fund a regional water supply development.
• Competition from industry or environmental uses - there is a lack of water for agricultural use because other uses have priority. This constraint in some cases may be a subset of the first, however it is kept separate to illustrate that in some areas, agriculture cannot compete for its water needs.
• Lack of technical assistance - there are limited resources available to producers to access information or assistance on water development options.

Table 3.1: Summary of Water Supply Constraints in each Province. The main constraints for each province are identified in bold text.

Regional Priorities

Although the study teams were able to identify regions within a province that suffered constraints, most groups were not able or unwilling to prioritize funding by region. The main reasons for this include:

• A lack of comprehensive information for the entire province - In some areas of a province, information does not exist to allow identification or quantification of the constraint. This is particularly apparent in terms of information on groundwater resources. Therefore, although a constraint may be identified in some regions because information is available, it does not necessarily imply that the constraints do not exist elsewhere.
• Differences in commodity group requirements - Some regions have specific constraints that have been identified because the region primarily supports a specific commodity group. Other regions have different constraints because they support other commodities. The study format did not allow for a process to evaluate the severity of one type of constraint over another. Therefore it is difficult to prioritize one region over another.
• The study was not intended to create new information - In some cases, there may be statistical information available that would allow more in-depth analyses of water supply constraints; however, the study timeframe and format did not allow for new data collection or interpretation. Therefore, although it may be possible to construct an analysis to determine regional priorities, such an analysis was not part of this study objective.

The difficulties in identifying regions within provinces where constraints are more critical, and in determining the value of one constraint over another suggest that it may be inappropriate to prioritize by region. Instead of identifying regions that are eligible for funding, the consultations suggested it would be more appropriate to develop program criteria that could help target where funds should be directed.

Programming Options

In general, the reports identified four main priorities for agricultural water supply expansion:

• Improved knowledge of our surface water and groundwater resources, specifically in terms of the available supply and the demand placed upon them by all sectors.
• Encouragement of more efficient use of available water.
• Improved planning and communication among all parties responsible for aspects of water supply development and withdrawal.
• Additional water supply and distribution infrastructure to support sustainability and growth of the agricultural sector.

Several initiatives were identified that would begin to address some of the constraints. These projects range from providing support for water supply infrastructure, to supporting development of information, or supporting initiation of local water management structures. A general consensus was found that the time frame of the NWSEP was too short, and that the available funds under the NWSEP would be insufficient to address the constraints in the long-term. In many cases, workshop participants suggested that a long-term program with substantially more funding would be required to adequately address water supply issues. Nevertheless, the general recommendations from all provinces include funding and technical assistance for the two broad categories of:

• Strategic work, which includes: information gathering, technology transfer, feasibility assessment and planning; and,
• Infrastructure, which includes: new capital works or improvements to existing water supply infrastructure.

Typical examples of projects that could be funded under each category are illustrated in Table 3.2.

Program Principles

Many of the consultations identified a need for an individual incentive program for water supply development or distribution; however, some also suggested that the available funding was inadequate to initiate such a program. Some consultations identified a need for flexibility in contribution amounts depending on the relative need of the project and the ability of the proponent to pay. Many consultations suggested third party delivery through existing groups or programs and emphasized the importance of partnering with the provincial governments on final program development and delivery. A summary of the identified principles that could be used to guide program development is as follows:

• Flexibility to address regional constraints and issues;
• Assistance for water supply infrastructure should be accessible for both on-farm and regional solutions;
• Water supply infrastructure projects should include some form of agreement with responsible parties for long-term security of the water supply;
• Water source developments should supply safe water for human and livestock consumption;
• Flexible contribution scales depending on project rating and ability of proponents to cost- share;
• Over-sizing of infrastructure facilities to accommodate 10-20 year time-frame at the expense of the program;
• Existing institutional arrangements and resources should be used where possible (i.e. directing funds through 3rd party);
• Linkages should be created between water development and monitoring the water use; and,
• Research activities should be multi-stakeholder oriented.

Project Rating Criteria

Most of the reports identified a need for development of a set of criteria to guide program delivery. Many suggested criteria were similar among provinces or among project type. A summary of the most commonly suggested criteria, grouped by project category is as follows:

• Strategic work (information gathering, technology transfer, feasibility assessment and planning)
  • Study must fill in identified knowledge gaps
  • Partnerships with other government agencies, NGO's and industry are desirable
  • Public benefits should be greater than private benefit
  • Promotion of conservation of water
  • Should support rural development/ sustainability
• Infrastructure (new capital works or improvements to existing water supply infrastructure)
  • The extent of public benefits
  • Proof of sustainability of the supply
  • A positive benefit to cost ratio
  • Provides opportunity for rural development / sustainability
  • Promotes conservation of water
  • Provides immediate results
  • Local commitment illustrated

Program Management

Management of the NWSEP program should occur jointly between the provincial and federal governments. A Management Committee could be formed that would include membership from both the provincial and federal governments, and potentially relevant stakeholder groups. Program delivery could occur through either agency or through a third party delivery model, provided the Management Committee would have final authority on all strategic decisions related to project approval and compliance. Both the provincial and federal governments could provide technical support to the program.

3.2 Recommendations

The following list of recommendations is a summary of those recommendations that were offered with respect to the National Water Supply Expansion Program in the regional reports:

1. The program should be structured to allow funding for both strategic work and infrastructure development as described in Section 3.1.
2. The program should be structured to allow for variable contribution rates, including full federal funding on important strategic initiatives if a province does not have sufficient funds to cost-share.
3. The program should include criteria (see section 3.1) to allow for rating of projects.
4. The program should be flexible enough to address differences in needs among commodity groups and/or regions.
5. The program should be managed through a Management Committee that has joint federal and provincial membership.
6. Consideration should be given to development of a long-term program with substantially more funding in order to adequately address the long-term needs associated with water supply.

4.0 REFERENCES

Agriculture and Agri-food Canada, 2003. Final Report: Analysis of Agricultural Water Supply Issues - National Water Supply Expansion Program - British Columbia. Prepared by Golder Associates. 24 p + 8 appendices.

Agriculture and Agri-food Canada, 2003. Final Report: Analysis of Agricultural Water Supply Issues - National Water Supply Expansion Program - Prairie Provinces. Prepared by UMA Ltd. 59 p + 8 appendices

Agriculture and Agri-food Canada, 2003. Final Report: Analysis of Agricultural Water Supply Issues - National Water Supply Expansion Program - Province of Ontario. Prepared by Marshall Macklin Monaghan Ltd. 36 p + 3 appendices.

Agriculture and Agri-food Canada, 2003. Rapport final: Analyse des questions d'approvisionnement en eau pour le secteur de l'agriculture - Programme national d'approvisionnement en eau - Province de Québec. 68 p + 2 appendices.

Agriculture and Agri-food Canada, 2003. Final Report: Agricultural Water Supply Issues: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador. Prepared by CBCL Limited. 61 p + 2 appendices.