Local Farmer Faces $ 300,000 in Fines for Cleaning out Ditches Without Permit.

CHESTERVILLE — Crop farmer Adriaan Rutters was stunned when it looked like a sting operation had arrived on his farm with a search warrant. There were six Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) officers, two OPP officers, one conservation officer and three biologists.

"I thought they were checking out a grow-op or a crack house," said Rutters, as he eyed the guns and the bullet proof vests. "It was quite a shock. You say, ‘what in hell is going on here?’" Turned out Rutters himself was the subject of investigation. His next shock was that he could now be facing $300,000 in fines. His crime: unlawfully destroying a fish habitat. He said he didn’t know he needed a permit.

Rutters is under investigation for doing what many farmers do: clean out their ditches. "A lot of people clean their own ditches," Rutters said, noting he’s been doing it for years. It’s simply responsible stewardship of land, he said. "Drainage is like tools to a mechanic. Without tools you can’t fix anything. Without drainage, you can’t grow anything."

In Rutter’s case, he typically tells the local mayor what he wants to do, gets the nod and cleans the ditch himself, saving the township the costs. Rutters spent about $4,000 to clean ditches around 500 acres of land that he and neighbours owned. "One culvert was under two feet of sediment. Now, I’ve never had better drainage. The neighbours are impressed."

All ditches, however, are considered fish habitat, so you need clearance and a permit from your local conservation authority before you start digging. The nearest fish to Rutters’ land is a river about four kilometres away, he said. A fish couldn’t get to his land "unless it grew feet."

How many farmers know about this regulation? Almost no one, says Rutters, who has since talked with numerous farmers, including those at local Stormont County Federation of Agriculture meeting. "Everybody I talk to doesn’t know about it."

Rutters said his MPP Jim Brownell told a small group of farmers that he had never heard of needing permits either and he was councillor in the area for 14 years. Rutters’ lawyer argues you shouldn’t convict if the law is unknown. Even a DFO officer agreed the department has done a poor job in communicating the law, Rutters said.

Steven Flegg, the local contractor who cleaned Rutters’ ditches, said his father’s operation has been excavating and draining ditches since 1974 and they first found out about the requirement for permits after the job was done. He now faces a fine of $50,000 for cleaning the ditch without a licence and is waiting for the result of the investigation. "We’re waiting with a noose around our necks," he said.

DFO investigating officer Brian Round does not sound forgiving. He told Farmers Forum that farmers know the rules. Permits start at $170 and it takes two to three weeks to get one, said Denis O’Grady, general manager of South Nation Conservation Authority in Berwick. Large projects can take several months as up to 10 agencies may need to approve it, he said. The required permit has been listed in the Fisheries Act since 1985.

Ontario Federation of Agriculture researcher Peter Jeffrey noted that the OFA would like to tighten up the time it takes to get a permit but "we’re not hearing huge outcries" about delays or confusion about needing permits.

Tammy Hart, a councillor for the local township of South Stormont disagrees. She argues that not only has every level of government ignored the law on cleaning out ditches, it takes months to get a permit. She said regulations like this are making "farmers the endangered species."

After meetings with numerous farmers and authorities she said drainage superintendents are frustrated by the influence of conservation authorities and DFO. They are holding up work and unnecessarily complicating and controlling the issue, she said. "We have to work on our politicians — MPPs and MPs — to tell these people to back off. Let the municipalities do their work. They’re closer to the people. Why are we doubling up on the bureaucracy?"

Rutters and Flegg are not the only ones feeling the heat. Rural Ottawa’s Nick Richardson bought his hobby farm four years ago and referred to the Marlborough Ditches and Watercourse Act.  "I located the legal documents and found that it is the responsibility of the landowner to maintain the drains and keep them free and clear of debris," he said. "I performed my civic duty. Now I am facing charges."