Major Irrigation Projects
South Saskatchewan River Projects
The South Saskatchewan River Project was the culmination of a century-old dream, and stands as one of the PFRA's greatest achievements. The idea of a dam across the South Saskatchewan River was first proposed by Professor Henry Hind during his exploration of the Prairies in 1858. Hind reasoned that such a dam would allow the South Saskatchewan to be connected to the Qu'Appelle River, creating a navigable waterway stretching from Lake Winnipeg to the Rocky Mountains.
One hundred years after Hind's visit, the government of Canada and Saskatchewan signed the agreement that would bring such a dam into being. The objective? To create a huge reservoir in the center of the Palliser triangle and thereby use the waters of the South Saskatchewan for a variety of purposes- irrigation, urban and rural water supply, hydroelectric power generation and recreation. Prior to construction of the project, less than one per cent of the river's flow in Saskatchewan was being used.
To bring Lake Diefenbaker into existence, two dams had to be built- the Gardiner, which was the main structure, and the Qu'Appelle, which was needed to control the amount of water flowing from the South Saskatchewan into the Qu'Appelle River system. PFRA was responsible for the planning, design and supervision of construction for this massive undertaking. Construction costs were shared by Canada and Saskatchewan, with the province contributing $25 million and the remainder, which would total $95 million, being provided by Canada.
The design and construction of the Gardiner Dam was a tremendous engineering challenge, due partly to the difficult nature of the shale foundation rock underlying the damsite. Work on the structure began in 1959, and was completed in 1967. One of the largest earth-fill dams in the world, it measures 64 meters in height and 5,000 meters in length and contains 65 million cubic meters of material. It's 1.2 km-long spillway is capable of discharging water at the rate of 7,500 m3/s. The Qu'Appelle Dam, though smaller, is still impressive.
Begun in 1963, it is 27 meters high and 3,300 meters long. Together they create Lake Diefenbaker, which stretches for 225 km and contains 9.4 million dam3 of water.
The South Saskatchewan River Project provides an array of benefits to both the surrounding area and beyond. With water from Lake Diefenbaker, the province has developed nearly 35,000 ha of land for irrigation, which represents one third of the current Saskatchewan total. Using water from the project, the potential to irrigate a much greater area exists.
Irrigation has brought a diversification of agriculture in what was primarily a wheat-growing area. The PFRA Demonstration Farm at Outlook has played an important part in this conversation. With specialty crop production, food processing and other irrigation-related businesses have grown up, bolstering the economies of such communities as Outlook.
But more than the farm sector has reaped rewards. The hydroelectric station at the damsite, constructed by the province, provides a significant portion of Saskatchewan's power needs, while the reservoir helps supply water to a variety of municipal and industrial users and the cities of Saskatoon, Regina and Moose Jaw. Lake diefenbaker's roughly 800 km of shoreline offers ample opportunity for recreation, and the lake now hosts three provincial parks.
As agreed in 1958, Saskatchewan assumed ownership of the South Saskatchewan River Project in 1969. However, PFRA staff will continue its maintenance and operation until 1994. An important aspect of this work is the monitoring of the foundation, embankments and corrosion prevention systems of the dams.
The South Saskatchewan Irrigation Project
The idea to create a dam across the South Saskatchewan River was first introduced in 1858, but it would be some time before the idea came to fruition. The benefit of the dam would be to connect the South Saskatchewan river to the Qu'Appelle River, so that there would be a navigable waterway stretching from Lake Winnipeg to the Rocky Mountains. More importantly, the reservoir could be used for irrigation, urban and rural water supply, and hydroelectric power generation and recreation. The reservoir became known as Lake Diefenbaker.
It wasn't until 1944 that James G. Gardiner, Minister of Agriculture, authorized test drilling for an adequate site for construction. The larger structure of the irrigation project, the Gardiner Dam, is named after him.
To bring Lake Diefenbaker into existence, two dams had to built, the Gardiner and the Qu'Appelle, to control the amount of water flowing from the South Saskatchewan River into the Qu'Appelle River system. The Gardiner, the main structure, was built between 1959 and 1967, while the Qu'Appelle was begun in 1963 and finished in 1967.
The hydroelectric station at the dam site provides much of Saskatchewan's power needs, while the reservoir helps supply water to a variety of municipal and industrial users, and the cities of Saskatoon, Regina, and Moose Jaw. Water supplied irrigates farmland used to produce alfalfa, canola, beans, potatoes, wheat, barley, and a variety of pulse crops. The lake hosts the Danielson, Douglas, and the Saskatchewan Landing Provincial Parks, as well as three regional parks, Palliser, Prairie Lake, and Herbert Ferry. The lake also supports three marinas (names?)and several cottage subdivisions. It also provides habitat for several species, and water piped to Luck Lake Marsh provides wetland for shorebirds, waterfowl and other wildlife.
PFRA was responsible for the planning, design and supervision of construction for this massive undertaking. The province assumed ownership of the South Saskatchewan River Project in 1969, but PFRA continued its maintenance and operation until April1, 1997 (?). From that point on, the province took on total financial responsibility for both dams. SaskWater took over general maintenance of the Gardiner Dam in 1994.
Facts about the South Saskatchewn River Project
- The South Saskatchewan River supplies roughly 8.3 billion m3 of water a year. Lake Diefenbaker can store one half of that flow.
- About 45% if Saskatchewan's population receives their drinking water either directly or indirectly from Lake Diefenbaker.
- The lake lies in a 42,000 hectare, or 103,740 acre bowl between the Gardiner Dam and the Qu'Appelle River Dam. It supplies water to approximately 43,000 hectares (106,210 acres) of farmland.
- At full-supply, the reservoir's level is 556.86 metres.
- Up to 345,000 dam3 of water are evaporated from the lake each year–an amount that would fill 90,000 Olympic-size swimming pools.
- For construction of these two dams, PFRA paid $95 million, while the province paid $25 million, for a total of $120 million. Today, that would amount to $1 billion.
- The Gardiner Dam is the largest earth-filled dam in Canada and one of the largest in the world. It measures 64 metres high, is 5,000 metres in length, and was constructed out of 65 million m3 of material.
- The 1.2 km-long Gardiner spillway is capable of discharging water at the rate of 7,500 m3/s. It required 280,000 m3 of reinforced concrete to complete.
- The Qu'Appelle Dam is 27 metres high, and 3,100 metres long.
- Lake Diefenbaker stretches for 225 km, has a shoreline of almost 800 km, and contains 9.4 million dam3 of water.
- About 94% of the water released from Lake Diefenbaker passes through the penstocks of the Coteau Creek Power Station to produce electricity for the province.
- The lake provides habitat for the Piping Plover, a shorebird that was listed as an endangered species in 1985. Lake Diefenbaker is one of the few places this bird can be found.
