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From YouTube: JULY 27 2020 Statements Linda Larson
Description
The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
5th Session
41st Parliament
A
Boundaries
some
coming.
Thank
you,
mr
speaker.
The
town
of
oliver
recently
unveiled
a
plaque
recognizing
the
100
year
anniversary
of
the
south
okanagan
irrigation
system
in
1919,
the
premier
of
bc,
john
oliver
created
the
soldier
settlement
project
to
provide
work
for
returning
world
war,
one
veterans
and
supply
them
with
viable
settlement
lands.
A
The
project
would
begin
with
the
building
of
a
dam
at
the
south
end
of
basal
lake
to
divert
water
from
the
okanagan
river.
The
first
water
improvement
district
in
the
province
of
bc
was
established
to
manage
the
system.
150
men
would
work
on
this
project
for
seven
years,
completing
40
kilometers
of
canal
stretching
from
vassal
lake
to
the
u.s
border.
8
000
acres
of
desert
land
became
productive
agricultural
land.
Today
the
system
is
just
under
20
kilometers
in
length
providing
more
than
600
irrigation
water
services
for
approximately
5
200
acres.
A
Mr
speaker,
the
south
okanagan
has
seen
incredible
growth
as
a
result
of
this
canal
system.
Oliver
was
once
the
cantaloupe
capital
of
canada
and
now
rightly
takes
its
place
as
the
wine
capital
with
wines
that
have
gained
recognition
on
the
world
stage,
but
everything
that
happens
in
the
south
okanagan
depends
on
a
reliable
source
of
water.
A
In
recent
years,
a
rockslide
did
extensive
damage
to
this
canal
system.
The
previous
liberal
government
committed
funds
to
the
repairs
and
the
current
government
has
honored
that
commitment,
and
while
the
province
did
set
aside
funds
to
help
with
the
repairs,
access
to
capital
from
other
sources
was
impossible.