Coast guard’s aging fleet needs help breaking ice on trade routes

OTTAWA — The Canadian Coast Guard has been given new powers to call on industry for shortterm help in clearing ice-choked seaways — even as plans for replacing the agency’s aging icebreaker fleet over the long term remain in flux.

The new powers were outlined Tuesday as officials marked the start of the spring icebreaking season in the St. Lawrence Seaway and the Great Lakes, through which much of Canada’s foreign trade flows.

The coast guard will be able to enlist pre-approved companies for help as needed without having to go through a formal bidding process, resulting in quicker and more reliable service for those in need, officials say.

The measure is intended as a last resort when the coast guard doesn’t have enough icebreakers to respond, such as when one of its vessels has a mechanical breakdown.

Yet there are fears such a scenario will become increasingly common in the coming years as the coast guard’s icebreaking fleet continues to get older — with no replacements on the horizon.

Officials stood by their aging vessels, noting the federal government has invested millions of dollars in the past few years to maintain and extend the lives of many of the coast guard’s aging icebreakers. “We have a very strong plan in place with scheduled and planned maintenance, refit and vessel life extensions to support the fleet renewal plan as we are moving forward with our assets,” said assistant commissioner Julie Gascon.

“Our vessels are very capable and very reliable.”

But the icebreakers, which are on average over 35 years old, have seen their share of problems in recent years — including one high-profile breakdown in January that left a ferry stuck in ice near Quebec City for four hours.

Concerns about the state of the fleet were also flagged in briefing notes to Fisheries Minister Dominic LeBlanc back in 2016, where officials reported that 1,595 operational days had been lost due to breakdowns in 2013-14 alone.

The federal government’s national shipbuilding strategy includes a new heavy icebreaker, but that vessel won’t be ready until at least the mid-2020s, while work continues on plans for replacing the rest of the fleet.