Woods Harbour cell service issue raised again

Digby initial goal for number of teams surpassed

The issue of insufficient cellphone service in Woods Harbour, Shelburne County, has been raised again by the MLA for the area.

Argyle-Barrington MLA Chris d’Entremont questioned the province’s minister of Business on the issue in the Legislature.

“We’ve heard many questions in this house about areas in Cape Breton that lack sufficient or reliable cellphone service…Other regions in this province lack cellphone service as well, and one of those communities is Woods Harbour in Shelburne County,” said d’Entremont.

“They had it, actually, but something happened and now most of that service is gone,” he said. “They repointed the towers, or whatever the excuses from the cellphone companies are.”

He asked the minister if there are any plans, or means of influencing mobile companies, to bring cell service to Woods Harbour and other underserviced communities.

“The reality is that we can’t force, or in any way impose upon, private sector operators to take on projects, take on services that result in – again, the technical term is market failure – but really that there is no way to have profit after the investment is made,” said Business Minister Geoff MacLellan.

“That obviously falls to the government and that’s why we’re so proud of the efforts we’ve made,” he said, referring to a $120 broadband investment the government had announced prior to tabling its budget. He said government knows there are gaps in Internet and cell service.

MacLellan said funding will provide the province with “a tremendous opportunity to add to the infrastructure that includes cellphones.”

“So, when we’re talking about broadband towers – the pipeline, the infrastructure that we need – this will be the conversation that we can have with municipal partners and communities, to add cellphone coverage to that,” the minister said.

D’Entremont said the frustrating part of the issue in Woods Harbour is it doesn’t revolve around the available equipment.

“The equipment is actually there. Someone in their infinite wisdom decided that they would point the towers in different directions . . . it’s now pointed out to the ocean for the fishing industry, which from a safety standpoint makes sense, but they cut loose a community that used to have it.

“Millions of dollars of lobster are sold from there and that business is done on cellphones. The world does their business on cellphones today,” he said, interjecting a bit of humour into the conversation. “With no access . . . kids even are finding themselves having to talk to their parents because they can’t use their cellphones either.”

The MLA asked if there is a strategy to fill gaps in coverage and bring cellphone service to all parts of Nova Scotia.

Said MacLellan, also adding some humour, “Yes, this government – and all governments, all representatives – want to make sure we do whatever we can to avoid human beings having conversations with each other, so we are committed to that.”

In all seriousness, though, MacLellan said the lobster industry is the number one export for the province and is important to the economy. He said the government is working to get “closer to the finish line” when it comes to connecting Nova Scotians and businesses to the Internet and providing cellphone coverage.

Teams and participants of Digby’s Relay for Life are getting an early start at fundraising and registering this year.

The Relay for Life is June 16 from 6 until midnight but teams have been fundraising since early March.

There are already 16 teams registered and more than 130 participants signed up.

Three years ago, Niki Lewis started her position as the Southwest district co-ordinator with the Canadian Cancer Society and since then the Digby relay numbers have doubled.

“We don’t usually have these numbers,” she says.

The goal was 14 teams but having surpassed this the new goal is to reach 21 teams and 150 participants. Lewis thanks the local committee that is working towards reaching this goal and getting the community excited about the event.

“It’s a real step in the right direction and a lot of them are going above and beyond with advertising and promoting,” she says. “It’s exciting.”

Teams can start their own fundraisers but there are fundraisers Relay for Life is helping out with, including raffle tickets for passes to the Cavendish Beach Country Music Festival and a Bay ferries pass.

“Some real excitement has been building because of all the team fundraisers so far,” says Lewis.

People can register alone and join a team or as well sign up for their own team. Find out more on the Relay for Life Digby Facebook page.