Municipal Drains

A municipal drain is an engineered drainage system with legal status under the Drainage Act. Most municipal drains are ditches of closed systems such as pipes or tiles buried in the ground. They are primarily constructed to improve the drainage of agricultural land by serving as the discharge point for private agricultural tile drainage systems. They also remove excess water collected by roadside ditches, residential lots, schools, industrial lands, commercial lands and any other properties in the surrounding areas. Municipal Drains are important to the local infrastructure and without them many areas would be subject to regular flooding.

The Drainage Act

Municipal Drains are constructed under the authority of the Drainage Act. The construction and maintenance costs of Municipal drains are shared among benefiting landowners. The Township, through its Drainage Superintendent, is responsible for administering the repair and maintenance of Municipal drains.

The Ministry of Agriculture Food and Rural Affairs has a variety of resources available to the public regarding Municipal drains.

Additional information relating to the drainage act is provided by Headway Engineering.

How Does a Municipal Drain Affect You?

If you have a Municipal drain on your property or are included in part of the drainage area of a Municipal drain, you have a responsibility for the drain. You can expect that the Township will periodically arrange to enter onto your property and perform necessary maintenance work. After it is completed you will be billed for your share of the cost.