Flood water sandbags 'to go to landfill and local projects'

Stockpiles of sandbags in the Canadian region of Manitoba are to be sent to landfill sites, while some will be used in local zoos and construction sites, it has been reported.

Following a season of particularly heavy flooding in Manitoba, the area's one million plus sandbags will now be put to good use and are more in demand than may have been expected.

As makeshift water buffers are dismantled, gardeners, zoos and construction firms are all eyeing the golden contents of the bags, the Canadian Press reports.

Winnipeg's Assiniboine Park Zoo's curator Bob Wrigley told the news provider that the zoo gets through 76 cubic metres of sand annually for things such as animal litter, keeping enclosures dry and creating new spaces for deer.

Most of Manitoba's flooding woes have stemmed from the Red River, which rose to its highest levels on record this year.

Sandbags, which are typically made from hessian or polypropylene, have been used through the decades in military operations, in the balancing of ships or tanks and to stem floods.