Short Rail Line Brings Southwest Communities Together

source: Farm and Food Report

It takes determination to raise enough capital to acquire over 300 miles of short rail line, engines and maintenance equipment, and to cover operational costs that includes the salary of 14 employees in southwestern Saskatchewan. Yet, that is precisely what a group of agricultural producers and investors have managed to do in Ponteix, Gravelbourg, Bracken, Admiral, Kincaid, Shaunavon, Eastend, Climax, Frontier, Neville, Vanguard and Lafleche when they acquired Great Western Railway Ltd. recently.

Leo Legault is a farmer and, now, a Director of the company. “In three weeks, our group of 15 raised $3.8 million. We had to deal with complex legal issues and we had much to learn. We wanted to keep all the staff because they have so much knowledge about how to run this operation. We made a formal offer to Westcan a year ago and, on November 2, 2004, it became a done deal.”

Ponteix’s Legault and his partners knew that the stakes were high. In recent years, over $18 million was invested in various grain handling infrastructures along the line. Around 40 jobs depended on this deal coming through. Had the bid been unsuccessful, the future of these new facilities would have been jeopardized.

“We were well aware that the only way to ensure that producers get a greater share of revenues from our agricultural activities would be for us to own the transportation network that links all our towns and villages in the Southwest,” Legault said.

Legault believes that everyone wins as a result of this deal — from those who hold jobs along the line, to taxpayers, governments, producers and municipalities — in savings alone.

“Our studies indicate that our rail transportation system saves $5.4 million in road maintenance costs annually. Our roads simply are not designed to sustain the kind of heavy traffic they are subjected to because of agricultural transportation needs.”

And this traffic is likely to keep on putting additional pressure on highways, as Shaunavon looks at building a $90 million ethanol plant that would require around 10 to 15 million bushels of wheat to produce 150 million litres of ethanol a year.

Conrad Johnson owns a mixed farm in Bracken. He is also the new Chair of the Board of Great Western Railway Ltd. “Look at any country in the world today — look at how closely economic development and diversification are associated with the availability of a rail transportation service. It is phenomenal and particularly relevant to the geography of the Southwest. We want our children to have a future here. We want to ensure the economic prosperity of our region for our grandchildren, and we are taking the means to do just that.”

Putting his beliefs into practice, Johnson and three partners recently acquired an old Wheat Pool elevator along the line and converted it into a state-of-the art field pea cleaning plant. His Whitewater Coulee Cleaners has processed 120 rail car loads of peas in the last two years, plus 300 cars of cereal grains. Johnson is the first to admit that his success and that of the Great Western Railway and other projects along the line now hinges on communities working more closely together than ever before.

“It is funny how, when you look back 20 to 30 years, we had these rivalries between towns in this part of the province about hockey teams, schools and all those divisive issues,” Johnson said. “Things have changed quite a bit since then. I believe we now realize that we must work together for the good of the entire area. We are all proud of what we have accomplished so far and we look forward to the future.”

As far as Leo Legault is concerned, every new day that comes breaks new ground and breeds hope for the economic outlook of the whole region.

“You know, this is the longest short line in Canada,” Legault beams with pride. “Fifty-two per cent of all the grain moved on short lines in Saskatchewan is moved on our railway. When you think of it, there is no end to what we can accomplish — just keep watching us.”

Efforts to Preserve Burrowing Owl Habitat Pays Off

When Emile and Josie Tessier of Minton joined Operation Burrowing Owl in 1987 and set aside about 40 acres of native prairie a stone’s throw away from their house, they had a feeling this was the right thing to do.

“I grew up seeing the owls around in the hills,” says Emile Tessier. “I’ll never forget the way they looked at me with eyes on a head that just about turned around 360 degrees, perched on a post or standing on the small dirt pile right by the hole where they nested. I was amazed at their adaptation to the land — from a gopher hole widened by a badger hunting gophers, these beautiful creatures made their home.”

Tessier speaks fondly of the owls, like most of the 450 Operation Burrowing Owl participants who have kept their land from cultivation, to ensure the owls have a home. For the third year in a row they have reported an increase in the number of owls nesting on their land. In 2004, 52 of them reported 95 pairs, compared to 75 pairs reported by 44 landowners in 2003.

Kim Dohms is Operation Burrowing Owl’s Project Manager. “The trend is very encouraging. It makes us think that what we’ve been doing for 17 years is having an impact on the population, and it likely reflects what is happening elsewhere in North America. Without the landowners, of course, none of this would be possible.”

About half of the participants have been with the program for at least 15 years. On average, they make about 80 acres of land available, but in some cases, as much as a full section is allocated as habitat. Operation Burrowing Owl signs are provided, if desired, and certificates of recognition are issued. However, there is no financial compensation for this commitment. Dohms is quick to point out that the land need not be taken out of production to qualify for the program.

“Producers can still use the land for grazing. It seems cattle don’t bother the owls very much. Some landowners report owls flying in the face of cattle that come to close to their nest, to chase them away. Pretty much the only agricultural activity that cannot take place is cultivating the land. Key to success is the landowners’ commitment to staying with the program for many years, even if the owls don’t come back.”

Apparently, burrowing owl populations are still a long way from what they were: 10 per cent only of 1988 population figures. Dohms tells how every April, for participants and for her, “there is always a period of anxiety over whether the owls that nested last year will be back again. For those who didn’t have owls the previous year, the question in their mind is: are they coming?”

Emile Tessier has often asked that. After a number of years without owls, two pairs settled on his land two years ago. Then last year, a big break: to his amazement, four pairs established themselves.

“A combination of factors must have made this possible. There was no spraying in surrounding areas and there was good hunting. I could see skulls of mice everywhere in the area. When the technicians came to band the birds, it was a real treat to see how they went about catching the owls right in their nest.”

Tessier believes that it is a bit of a miracle that there are any owls left at all.

“They are nocturnal animals — therefore, they hunt at night. The pasture is about 300 feet away from Highway 6. They fly low and they tend to be blinded by oncoming traffic. Nature has put cars on their evolutionary path. They must contend with that now. With a bit of luck, the owls will stick around a while longer, for the next generations to appreciate them.”