There's a sense of cautious optimism, when it comes to the province's 2016 Spring Flood Outlook. They released their forecast yesterday, indicating a minor to moderate risk of flooding across the province. Lakes Manitoba and Winnipeg were deemed a minor risk, and the chair of the Lake Manitoba Rehabilitation Committee feels that's good news as we head into the spring. However, Tom Teichroeb notes there's always some concern in the back of their mind.

"For the moment in time it's a good report, but we know from past experience that it can change in a heartbeat, so we're always a little worried about what may or may not come."

He also says despite the minor risk around the lakes, they're still not looking at the best case scenario. While soil saturation and ice packing have been favourable, Teichroeb says it would be preferable to have the lake levels sitting a bit lower.

"I guess the thing that would give us a little more reason to smile, from my perspective in my area, Lake Manitoba could be a little further down and have those levels where we have a bigger buffer zone. That way, in case the weather does change and we become very wet again, we would have a flood mitigation tool available to us, rather than not."

When it comes to the creation of an additional outlet between Lake Manitoba and Lake St. Martin, Teichroeb anticipates little to no movement on the project until the provincial election wraps up. Despite the delay, he's confident all parties are aware of the project's importance.

"From what I can take away from the parties that are hoping to be in party, I think it's a priority for them, I guess, with the contingent that the federal government will step up to the plate with the announcements they had made in terms of infrastructure development and contribution. If the federal government can come through with that, we'll hopefully move forward with this no matter who comes into power here in Manitoba."

Federal funding for the additional outlet was announced during a flurry of pre-election campaign announcements by the Conservative Government. They promised $165 million, on the condition the project meets the applicable federal eligibility requirements, with the provincial government covering $330 million.