Yes, we specialize in road building. It’s an area that has been a primary focus of our association for decades. But road building is just one aspect of what we do to help make Saskatchewan a great place to call home.
Farming and agriculture have long been the identity of this province and farmers and ranchers here are working to find efficiencies to better manage water on their land that will strengthen their operations and protect communities, infrastructure and the environment.
Our members will play a role in developing this unique infrastructure.
The Water Security Agency is investing $1 million on 11 agricultural water management demonstration projects. The Saskatchewan Heavy Construction Association is one of 10 stakeholder organizations partnering with the Water Security Agency on this initiative that will allow the agricultural and environmental communities to find best practices to help farmers and ranchers manage water on their land.
We will be front and centre on the construction of a large drainage system on a farm northwest of Saskatoon.
This is just one of many infrastructure projects our members will be a part of where water is concerned. Last month, the provincial government unveiled its plan to embark on a $4-billion irrigation infrastructure project at Lake Diefenbaker.
It’ll be the government’s biggest ever infrastructure project to date and SHCA will be major players over the next 10 years of construction in three main phases.
The government said it will create more than 2,500 construction jobs per year over the next 10 years, which is welcomed news to our industry.
Looking bigger picture, this massive project is expected to be extremely beneficial to Saskatchewan’s agriculture community. Three key irrigation canal systems will be enhanced, which will create hundreds of thousands of acres of irrigable land across the province.
Our contribution to this project is just one example of how our industry plays an integral role in the growth and economic prosperity in Saskatchewan.