The Ontario government is investing $135 million in water systems and irrigation infrastructure in Niagara Region and the Municipality of Leamington to help build more homes, protect farmland and keep workers on the job. The announcement was made August 11 by Kinga Surma, minister of infrastructure.
Niagara Region will receive approximately $94 million, which includes approximately $53 million for six water systems projects to help unlock up to 14,000 new homes through the Municipal Housing Infrastructure Program’s (MHIP) Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund (HEWSF) stream, and another $41 million for irrigation pipelines to help deliver water to hundreds of farms and agricultural businesses.
Leamington will receive $41 million to help protect thousands of acres of greenhouse operations with improved wastewater treatment services, supporting domestic food production.
The two agriculture projects in Niagara Region and Leamington will help improve crop yield, quality, and drought resilience by ensuring a consistent water supply that will particularly benefit high-value fruit and vegetable crops such as peaches for Niagara, as well as enhance water quality in Leamington through the collection of nutrient-heavy wastewater from the greenhouse operations.
“This investment is a clear example of our government’s plan to protect Ontario’s economy by supporting the people and sectors that drive it,”said Trevor Jones, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness. “By funding critical infrastructure like the Niagara irrigation and Leamington wastewater projects, we’re strengthening local economies, safeguarding food security, and making sure Ontario farmers have the tools they need to grow, compete, and succeed, now and for the future.”
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