Public sessions in Ste. Agathe discuss raising the dike

Our province is in the planning stages of raising the dike at Ste. Agathe. And the public was invited to offer feedback.

Mitch Duval is Chief Administrative Officer for the Rural Municipality of Ritchot. He says public engagement sessions took place yesterday where residents could discuss design options and provide their thoughts.

Duval explains that the province's objective is to bring the dike in Ste. Agathe to a level that would protect the community in the event of a 1 in 200-year flood. Currently, ring dikes in the Red River Valley are protecting against 1 in 100-year flood events. To provide that extra protection, Duval says the dike in Ste. Agathe will need to be raised about two feet. 

The public engagement sessions were a time to discuss preliminary designs of raising sections of the dike, examine current riverbank stability and even include the construction of new links. 

With regards to riverbank stability, Duval says every spring when there is a high water event, the province builds up the west bank of the Red River. Then, after water levels drop, that temporary dike is removed. He anticipates that this will be part of the discussion today, as to whether there might be a more permanent solution. 

According to Duval, raising the dike at Ste. Agathe is strictly an initiative from the province. And the project will be paid for entirely by the province. They have hired a consultant team led by KGS Group to do the engineering, as well as Scatliff Miller Murray to perform the preliminary design and consultant work.

Duval says there is no timeline for construction.