Drainage

Drain Maintenance

Under Section 74 of the Drainage Act, municipalities are responsible to maintain municipal drainage systems within their jurisdiction. Drain maintenance within the jurisdiction of the Town of Lakeshore is considered upon request of the road authority, the drainage superintendent or landowner(s) within the watershed. The following is a procedure for initiating maintenance on a Municipal Drain:

1. The Town of Lakeshore receives request for maintenance. 
2. The Drainage Superintendent holds a site meeting with affected landowners to discuss the proposed maintenance of the drain.
3. The Drainage Superintendent prepares a tender for the maintenance of the drain with consideration of all concerns from landowners present at the site meeting.
4. Maintenance of the drain will be completed as recommended at the site meeting.

The control of cattails and phragmites within Municipal Drains is managed by a more expedient process.  The following is the procedure for initiating the cutting or spraying of cattails and phragmites in a Municipal Drain;

1. The Town of Lakeshore receives a request for the control of cattails and phragmites (form not required).
2. The Drainage Superintendent will visit the site to determine the scope of work and control method to be used.
3. The Drainage Superintendent will direct a predetermined contractor to complete appropriate cattail and phragmites control.

For further information, please read:

• So What's a Municipal Drain

The assessed cost of maintenance will appear on your tax bill the year after construction. The municipality will obtain agricultural grants and bill the remainder as per the current by-law and engineer's report for the said municipal drain.

Repair or Improvement

Under Section 78 of the Drainage Act, landowners can request to repair or to improve the whole or part of a drainage system. All projects under Section 78 require an appointment of a drainage engineer to prepare an engineer's report. The following are common landowner requests for repair and improvements:

• New access bridges or culverts
• Replacement of existing bridges or culverts
• Installation of piping to enclose the drain (ditch)
• Relocation of the drain (ditch)

The following is a procedure for a request to repair or improvement to a municipal drain:

1. The Town of Lakeshore receives request for repair or improvement.
   
2. The appointed Drainage Engineer along with Drainage Superintendent conducts a site meeting with affected landowners to discuss the proposed repair or improvement project.
3. The Drainage Engineer prepares an engineer's report for the proposed project with consideration of all concerns from landowners present at the site meeting.
4. The Drainage Engineer submits the engineer's report to the municipality for consideration at a Drainage Board meeting.
5. The Drainage Clerk circulates the engineer 's report and a notice of the meeting to consider to all assessed parties as outlined in the report.
6. The Drainage Board conducts the meeting to consider and court of revision and Council adopts the engineer's report by By-Law as required under the Drainage Act.
7. After all appeals are dealt with, the Town of Lakeshore tenders the project in accordance with the purchasing policy and construction is completed.

The assessed cost as per the engineer's report will be billed directly or you can debenture the cost over 5 years on your taxes, which include the interest rate of the debenture. The invoice must be greater than $750 in order to debenture. If the request is greater than or equal to $5,000, a request for a ten (10) year period from the date of the debenture can be approved, with interest from the date of debenture.

For further information, please read:

• Understanding Drainage Assessments
• Drainage Act Appeals

Tile Loans

Tile loan funds are available through the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and are administered on a first come first served basis. The term of the loan is 10 years and repayment is due annually. The interest rate for the loans issued under the program will be 6%, fixed for the 10 year term of the loan. Interest is compounded annually and the loan can be paid out any time without penalty.

• Tile Loan Programs

Contractors

Contractors must apply every three years to renew their prequalified status with the Town of Lakeshore.  Contractors that have not submitted a bid in a two year period will be removed from the list. Performances may be evaluated and if they are deemed unsatisfactory, contractors may be removed from the list in accordance with section 4.12 of the purchasing by-law and policy.

Drainage Fact Sheets from Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs

Duties of the Landowner Under the Drainage Act

Municipal Drains and the Landowner

Soil Water Management

Land Use Planning Links

More information available by visiting the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs website.

History

The Town of Lakeshore has a total land area of approximately 540 square kilometres, of which approximately 500 square kilometres is rural area. The rural area in the Town of Lakeshore is virtually entirely under intensive agricultural production and the lands require effective artificial drainage to be productive. The majority of these storm drainage systems have been constructed under the Drainage Act. There are approximately 1000 municipal drains which total 1040 kilometres of open and closed drainage systems. In addition, there are approximately 60 pump stations. Under current drainage legislation, the Town of Lakeshore is responsible for overseeing the maintenance, repair, improvement, or expansion of this drain infrastructure.