Small-craft harbours getting federal funding
Four Newfoundland and Labrador projects — in Lawn, St. Lewis, Fox Island River and Fox Roost — are being funded this year
CORNER BROOK — Four projects in Newfoundland and Labrador will be funded as part of the federal small-craft harbours program this year.
Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard Minister Diane Lebouthillier, and Mike Kelloway, the minister’s parliamentary secretary and the Liberal MP for Cape Breton-canso, highlighted new funding for harbours across the country during a virtual press conference on Monday, April 29.
The precise breakdown of how the $463.3 million will be spent over three years will be made at a later date. Information provided by the department indicates four projects will be funded in Newfoundland and Labrador in 2024-25.
These include redredging in Lawn, wharf repairs in St. Lewis, dredging and channel wall reconstruction associated with damage from hurricane Fiona in 2022 in Fox Island River and wharf/breakwater reconstruction associated with Fiona damage for Fox Roost.
The new funding is on top of the department’s annual budget of $90 million for the small-craft harbours program and will support current and future local economic development, providing safe and functional harbours for those working in the fisheries, aquaculture, construction and marine engineering sectors.
The Canadian government is currently funding repairs and/or dredging at 42 harbours across the country to ensure they are in good working condition.
Once Budget 2024 is adopted, DFO will work to identify the priorities of each region and will announce the breakdown of the latest funding when that information is available.
According to the federal government, all of the harbours that were affected by hurricane Fiona are now back to an operational status, but there is still more work to be done at several harbours.
“It’s important to keep working hard to really upgrade our infrastructures, which are going to have to cope with increasingly violent storms due to climate change, and we know that sea levels are rising,” said Lebouthillier.
Kelloway called it a historic announcement that will help create more resilient harbours and said it is important the right projects get funded.
“If you look at the environment and the impact in my neck of the woods, it is absolutely mind-boggling the amount of storms of a variety of kinds that have impacted small-craft harbours, and this money goes right into those communities, helps those (fish harvesters), helps those businesses and helps those with respect to community wealth,” he said.
GHOSTED FUNDING
Kelloway was also asked if the federal government has any plans to announce more funding for its ghost gear fund, a program that funds projects to remove lost and abandoned fishing gear from marine environments. The last round of funding for that program ran out in March 2024 and no new money has been announced to replace it.
Kelloway said Budget 2024 was not the place to announce new funding for this sort of program, but that doesn’t mean no funding is forthcoming.
“Further announcements will be made in due course,” he said. “And I would encourage communities (not just) in my riding, but communities outside of my riding, to continue submitting projects under this particular funding mechanism.”
He added that the federal government will continue to work with its partners in the ghost gear program until new funding mechanisms are in place.
“The timelines may be a little different from last year, but the intent is still there to work with those groups to ensure that they are actively involved in being the stewards of the ocean.”