Environmental charges against Bill Boyd relate to land near controversial irrigation project

Environmental charges against former Saskatchewan cabinet minister Bill Boyd stem from apparent damage done to land near an irrigation pilot project he was touting to potential Chinese immigrants. 

The former economy minister is charged with three counts under the Environmental Management and Protection Act and one count under the Wildlife Habitat Protection Act.

• Environmental case against Bill Boyd adjourned, pleas expected soon

Earlier this summer, a CBC investigation found the former minister was pitching an irrigation project to would-be Chinese immigrants, saying an investment could help them gain permanent citizenship in Canada.

The minister came under fire after it was revealed land Boyd farmed was being watered by the company he was promoting. 

• Irrigation equipment from Chinese immigration scheme would water land farmed by Bill Boyd
• Bill Boyd promoting immigration scheme that would benefit company he's involved in

One count alleges Boyd cultivated an area of native grassland near Eston, Sask., between April 1 and May 3.

The other counts allege that between June 15 and July 15 he altered the configuration of the bed, bank or boundary of the South Saskatchewan River near Eston; displaced, added or removed material from the riverbed; and removed vegetation from its bank.

CBC News travelled to the land described in the court documents outlining the charges against Boyd.

The spot is on the bank of the South Saskatchewan River near land where Boyd and his family farm. On Tuesday, irrigation equipment, pipes and pumps were still on that land near the river's edge. None of it appeared to be in use. 

It appeared gravel had been moved from the shoreline to make way for the equipment. An excavator sat idle near the site. 

This was the same spot shown in an online post on July 17 of the irrigation pilot project, located on a quarter section of Crown land that Boyd farms near the South Saskatchewan River.  

A government representative said that the land in question is Crown land owned by the Ministry of Agriculture. The South Saskatchewan River is regulated by the Water Security Agency.

Boyd was scheduled to make a court appearance in Kindersley this week, but his case was adjourned.

The case is due back in court on Nov. 7. Boyd is expected to enter pleas at that time. 

The prosecutor said in court Tuesday that the Crown is trying to resolve the case. 

At the time of the initial reporting, Ian Stedman, a lawyer who specializes in political ethics at Osgoode Hall Law School in Ontario, said Boyd was in a potential conflict of interest because of his involvement in the Chinese irrigation company while acting as the minister in charge of the province's immigration program. 

The conflict of interest investigations concluded in August with Boyd being found to have violated the act.