Huge strides have been made on completing the Reinland Drain, located one mile south of the Village of Blumenfeld in the R.M. of Stanley.

Erosion of the drainage ditch has been a nagging issue for the R.M. of Stanley for a number of years already. Then in 2016, significant upgrades to the drain were well on the way to being completed, however, heavy rains ripped out a large portion causing considerable damage.

Stanley Reeve Morris Olafson says thanks to meeting the criteria for the Provincial Disaster Financial Assistance Program, the R.M. was able to make much-needed repairs. The total cost of the project was $3.7 million, however, thanks to the provincial funding the R.M. only had to pitch in around $50,000.

"The idea is to quit the erosion and keep the ditch in a normal state...there's no reason that this ditch won't last for 50 years," Olafson says. "Since I came on council this thing (The drain) has always a bad point."

Olafson says as much as it was important for the R.M. to complete the project, it was also significant for landowners in the area. "We're talking $5,000 to $10,000 an acre down here, and the guys want to use their land, so you don't want to goof up."

Over the past three years, Olafson says the R.M. has rented some land from area farmers around the drain, noting they were fully supportive of what the R.M. was doing. "It helps everyone along the way."

Olafson notes the new ditch will help with water flowing on both sides of Highway 32. He says the volume will still be the same, it just won't be going by at 100 miles an hour.

The project is 90% complete with only some hydro-seeding, landscaping, and site rehabilitation left to finish. It's anticipated that work will be complete by June.

The following are a few facts about the new Reinland Drain, provided by the R.M. of Stanley:

• A total of 3,628 gabion mattresses were placed and filled
• Total 7,278 cubic yards of rock placed.
• Just over 368,700 square feet of Armormax (erosion control product) placed – which equates to 6.5 NFL football fields)
• Over 92,000 pins and 20,000 anchors (4 ft. long) were used to install the Armormax.

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The following gallery photos submitted by the R.M. of Stanley