Raymond Irrigation District
About Us

Who We Are

The RID operates, maintains and owns an irrigation works system that delivers irrigation water to over 52,000 acres of irrigated land in the Welling, Raymond and Stirling areas within the Province of Alberta Canada. The district operates under the Irrigation Districts Act of the Province of Alberta. An elected board of directors meet at least monthly to discuss and approve the business of the district. The district has over 300 water-users which includes municipal, farm, acreage, and habitat.

The rid has 81,000 acre feet of water licenses from a combination of the Waterton, Belly and St Mary’s rivers. The communities of Welling, Raymond and Stirling receive their water from the works of the RID. Through a water license amendment the RID makes water available for “other purposes” to interested municipal, industrial, environmental and agricultural users. If you have specific questions about the RID please feel free to call the RID office at 403-752-3511.

Mission Statement

The Raymond Irrigation District’s mission is to enable a prosperous, healthy, and enjoyable lifestyle for people within the boundaries of the RID by delivering water:

  1. For domestic use
  2. To increase the productivity of farms and livestock operations
  3. For the beautification of businesses and homes
  4. To provide recreational opportunities, and
  5. To create habitat for wildlife.

Vision Statement

To efficiently distribute water to support agricultural prosperity and community resilience within the boundaries of the district.

Core Values

Stewardship Over District Resources

  • Conserve and efficiently manage water
  • Financially responsible
  • Maintain our infrastructure and equipment in good working order

People Matter

  • We are district created by irrigators and we work for the irrigators
  • Our staff are talented, committed individuals whom we value and fairly compensate
  • We support the communities that are within our boundaries

Adapt and Embrace the Future

  • We plan for the future
  • We continuous learn and seek to improve
  • We consider the future generations

 

Our History

The RID was incorporated on March 1, 1925. Prior to that time, the area had been part of the Alberta Railway and Irrigation Company and later the CPR. This portion of the system was purchased from the CPR by the water users of the Welling, Raymond and Stirling areas. The area has been irrigated since July of 1900 when water began to flow through a constructed canal built under contract with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. As part of the contract the church was required to create two new towns having at least 400 inhabitants each, at the end of the contract. These towns are Stirling and Magrath. The Town of Raymond was founded a little later by a wealthy church member and industrialist and Philanthropist, Jesse Knight. The town was named in honour of his son Raymond. Mr. Knight established the first sugar beet factory in Alberta located in Raymond and encouraged local farmers to support this new venture. Over the years the sugar industry has moved away from the RID but is still a vibrant industry in the Taber and Vauxhall areas where some 18,000 acres of sugar beets are grown and processed each year. Today the RID consists of over 52,000 acres of irrigated land. The main crops grown here are hard wheat, alfalfa, canola and barley.  The RID has several detailed history books available at the RID office.