By Matthew Liebenberg
Southwest Booster
The Friends of Lac Pelletier is asking the Ministry of Agriculture to cancel an intensive livestock operation (ILO) permit issued to Monette Farms in 2024.
The letter was submitted via e-mail for the attention of Minister of Agriculture David Marit on Sept. 14, 2026.
The letter argues that the cancellation of the ILO approval is warranted in light of the findings of a recent third-party engineering report and the issuing of an order to remedy by the Rural Municipality (RM) of Lac Pelletier No. 107 that directs Monette Farms to take steps to address contraventions of the zoning bylaw.
Monette Farms indicated in a statement to this newspaper that it disagrees with the alleged points of contravention and it hopes to find a resolution through discussion with the RM of Lac Pelletier to avoid a lengthy appeal process.
Dan Kane from the Friends of Lac Pelletier said the group felt a need to submit the request to cancel the ILO approval to the Ministry of Agriculture after becoming aware of the actions of the RM of Lac Pelletier.
“We’ve been saying those kinds of things all along,” he noted. “It’s hard to beat an inspection report and a report from an engineering company, especially one that’s so reputable.”
The Friends of Lac Pelletier letter is asking the Minister to invoke section 24 of the Agricultural Operations Act, which authorizes the Minister to suspend or cancel the approval of an ILO where the person whose plan has been approved has failed to comply with the plan or where there is an immediate danger of pollution of surface or groundwater.
“We believe that’s what happened here or what the reports have pointed out is exactly what section 24 does, and it allows the Minister to cancel the ILO approval,” Kane said.
The Monette Farms winter-only feedlot is located about 2.3 kilometres east of Lac Pelletier Regional Park. He emphasized that the Friends of Lac Pelletier goal is to address concerns about the feedlot operation.
“What we’re trying to do is making sure that the community is looked after,” he said. “We believe the feedlot is in the wrong spot and we believe it should be moved. On the other hand, it’s still there. So let’s make sure that whatever effluent there is, it stays on the site.”
According to the letter from the Friends of Lac Pelletier the feedlot site was inspected by representatives from the RM of Lac Pelletier in mid-June. Afterwards the RM of Lac Pelletier asked its appointed engineering firm WSP Canada Inc. to review the ILO infrastructure.
The engineering firm provided a report to the RM of Lac Pelletier in July, which indicated that not all drainage within the feedlot area is contained and a large portion of drainage flows onto neighbouring property.
The RM of Lac Pelletier issued an order to remedy to Monette Farms on Aug. 24. The order noted that all development within the RM must comply with the provisions of the zoning bylaw, whether or not a permit has been issued for a development.
The order instructs Monette Farms to cease all feedlot operations and related development activities until the identified contraventions have been remedied and any permits or other approvals required by the RM has been received.
The order instructs the company to remove all structures, materials and related development located within the 45-metre municipal road allowance setback distance. The company is ordered to repair, reconstruct, seal and reinforce all containment berms to prevent agricultural runoff, and it must implement temporary containment measures while this work is being carried out. The order also determines that Monette Farms must remove any structures that were not authorized in a development permit previously issued by the RM.
The order includes a deadline of Sept. 25 for Monette Farms to comply with these conditions, but the company has the right to submit a notice of appeal.
Monette Farms issued an e-mailed response to this newspaper on Sept. 16 about the RM order to remedy. It stated that the company is working diligently to ensure it is in compliance.
“The Ministry of Agriculture requested a few minor changes to the ILO construction, which were completed last week,” the statement noted. “We expect final approval sometime next week. Other than those minor changes, they have otherwise approved the state of the ILO and we are in full compliance.”
According to Monette Farms the RM order to remedy gave no guidance as to how the company was non-compliant, for example the order stated that certain berms were deficient without specifying which berms or what made them deficient. The company made contact with the RM development officer to work through solutions and it was waiting to hear back from him. The company was hoping to avoid a lengthy appeal process.
“As it currently stands, we disagree with all three alleged points of contravention and the RM has not provided us with any information or evidence of such contravention – only allegations,” Monette Farms stated.
The company mentioned that it has not received a copy of the letter from the Friends of Lac Pelletier to the Minister of Agriculture. It is therefore not aware of the letter’s content.
“All in all, we don’t really know what we’re supposed to do right now,” the statement said. “If we don’t hear from the RM before the appeal deadline, we will of course appeal all three points, as we are in full compliance with all applicable legislation at the moment.”
