PRIME MINISTER STEPHEN HARPER ANNOUNCES CONSTRUCTION OF NEW SMALL CRAFT HARBOUR IN PANGNIRTUNG

August 20, 2009

CANADA’S ECONOMIC ACTION PLAN
New harbour will create jobs and open up new opportunities for local community

PANGNIRTUNG, NUNAVUT –  Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced the construction of a new small craft harbour in Pangnirtung, Nunavut, one of dozens of harbour restoration and construction projects contained within Canada’s Economic Action Plan.

“Our government views Canada as a country that stretches from coast to coast to coast and our Economic Action Plan is backing up this northern vision with real action,” said the Prime Minister.  “Work on Pangnirtung’s harbour will create local jobs right away.  When completed, this harbour will give fishermen in the region a modern and reliable base of operations for years to come.  This project will further one of the key priorities in our Northern strategy and create new economic opportunities for families and businesses in Canada’s North.”

Pangnirtung, a key outpost on Canada’s Arctic shoreline, has been allocated $17 million to accelerate the construction of a new harbour.  The project will be carried out in two phases, with preliminary work for phase one underway in early September.  The Government of Canada will also provide scientific research and resource management support to the Nunavut fishery. 

Nunavut’s fishery presents an excellent opportunity for local economic growth and for the development of regional employment.  In the last ten years, Nunavut’s offshore fishery, based in the Davis Strait, has become the Territory’s most important.  The greatest potential for future economic development occurs in the inshore turbot fishery.

As a major component in Canada’s Economic Action Plan, the Small Craft Harbours Program is receiving $200 million over the next two years to accelerate maintenance and repairs and carry out necessary dredging at small craft harbours across the country. 


Backgrounder

CANADA’S ECONOMIC ACTION PLAN

HARPER GOVERNMENT INVESTS IN NEW SMALL CRAFT HARBOUR IN PANGNIRTUNG

ABOUT PANGNIRTUNG

Nunavut’s fishery presents an excellent opportunity for local economic growth and for the development of regional employment.

In the last ten years, Nunavut’s offshore fishery, based in the Davis Strait, has become the Territory’s most important.  However, the greatest potential for future economic development occurs in the inshore turbot fishery.

The Government of Nunavut’s 2003 Economic Development Strategy identified the increased participation of Nunavummiut in local fisheries as a means to distribute the benefits of the fishery more widely and to increase the economic diversification of the region.

Local fishermen do not yet have an appropriate harbour-related infrastructure or the supporting services needed to encourage further development of the inshore fishery.

In 2006, a joint Government of Canada (Department of Fisheries and Oceans)-Nunavut study concluded that Pangnirtung would be a promising site for investment in a small craft harbour as it offered the opportunity for positive impacts on local industry and regional fisheries.  Pangnirtung is located in the Qikiqtani Region of the Territory of Nunavut near the southern tip of Cumberland Peninsula.

In the 2008 federal budget, $8 million in funding for a small craft harbour in Pangnirtung was provided, while a further $17 million was allocated in Budget 2009 under Canada’s Economic Action Plan.

The Government of Canada is providing additional support through aids to navigation and scientific and fishery resource management, updated hydrographic charts for the harbour and the immediate surrounding area, and new programs and staff.  Furthermore, the Government is working to implement new regulations to ensure an ongoing, sustainable fishery for the future.

Phase one of the construction will involve the building of a second breakwater to protect the existing inner harbour from the main wave and wind conditions.  This phase will provide: shelter to users, their vessels and gear; installation of floating docks to tie up, load and unload small vessels; dredging of a small inner basin to provide many users with longer and safer access to and egress from the harbour; and a marshalling area to load and unload small vessels and to dry haul vessels for repair or storage.  Once the first phase is completed, the facility will be able to accommodate small vessels, while the second phase will permit mid-size vessels to make use of the facility.  Further details about the second phase will be available as the construction develops.

ABOUT THE SMALL CRAFT HARBOUR PROGRAM

The Federal Government is responsible for 1163 harbours, of which 986 are fishing harbours and 177 are recreational harbours.  Nearly 90 per cent of all fish landings in Canada, valued at approximately $2 billion, occur at ‘small craft harbours’ and harbour infrastructure plays a vital role in the economy of many coastal communities.

To encourage job creation and new economic opportunities in these communities, Canada’s Economic Action Plan includes $200 million to help accelerate repair and maintenance and undertake dredging at core commercial fishing harbours across Canada.

This investment is in addition to the regular Small Craft Harbours Program budget of approximately $80 million for projects across Canada in 2009-10.  Budget 2008 also committed $5 million in 2009-10 for repairs and environmental cleanup at recreational and non-core fishing harbours, to permit their transfer to interested parties.