Chelsea, Quebec, July 30, 2009 – Acting on behalf of the Honourable Denis Lebel, Minister of State for Canada Economic Development, the Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister responsible for the Outaouais Region and Member of Parliament for Pontiac, today joined Stéphanie Vallée, Member of the National Assembly for Gatineau and Parliamentary Assistant to the Premier of Quebec, acting on behalf of Laurent Lessard, Quebec's Ministre des Affaires municipales, des Régions et de l'Occupation du territoire, in announcing that the Municipality of Chelsea will receive $2,448,366 in joint government funding under the Communities Component of the Building Canada Fund – Quebec for sewage treatment in the city's Centre sector.
The project consists of the establishment of a wastewater collection, catchment and treatment facility for the Centre sector, which is essentially located on a Highway 5 access road near the entrance of Gatineau Park. The work will primarily involve laying roughly 1,250 metres of gravity sanitary sewer lines on Old Chelsea Road and Padden Street, installing a pumping station, an approximately 240 metre force main and a four-cell aerated lagoon sewage treatment plant, including a treated water main outletting to the Gatineau River.
This overall project, which will directly benefit some 200 local residents, will help improve public health, safety and security, while renewing community infrastructure from a sustainable development standpoint.
“Once this work is done, the water treatment facilities will be better able to meet the needs of Chelsea residents. Our communities across the country have to be able to rely on quality public infrastructure to ensure their development and to better face the challenges ahead. That is why the Government of Canada is proud to join forces with the Government of Quebec in providing concrete support to a wide range of projects dedicated to improving infrastructure that is essential to the well-being of our communities. Demonstrating its commitment, our government will contribute, through the Building Canada Fund, one of the new Building Canada Plan funding programs, more than $1.9 billion toward infrastructure projects in Quebec alone,” stated Minister Cannon.
“In supporting this major project, the Government of Quebec is moving forward to ensure that the province's municipalities have infrastructure tailored to their unique realities, while fostering sustainable development, a key element of any modern, wealth-building economy. By injecting new capital into the Quebec Infrastructure Plan, our government is looking to accelerate the execution of numerous infrastructure projects throughout the province in an effort to improve the well-being of Quebecers, create jobs and promote a high-performance economy. Our government wants to leave Quebec municipalities a legacy of quality infrastructure with which to face the challenges of the future,” added MNA Stéphanie Vallée.
Completion of this project will necessitate an overall eligible investment of $3,320,000. The governments of Quebec and Canada will each contribute $1,224,183 toward this work, for a total of $2,448,366 in combined government funding, while the Municipality of Chelsea will invest $871,634 in the project.
The Communities Component of the Building Canada Fund – Quebec is a cost-sharing initiative aimed at funding the execution of infrastructure projects in communities with fewer than 100,000 inhabitants. These communities are thus able to use this assistance to improve infrastructure that is in major need of revitalization, including water treatment plants, water supply systems and cultural or sports centres.
An unprecedented funding commitment on the part of the Government of Canada, the Building Canada Fund – Quebec provides stable and predictable funding to support infrastructure projects. In Quebec, nearly $4 billion will be allocated to that end.
For further details on the Building Canada Fund – Quebec or the process for submitting a funding application, see www.buildingcanada-chantierscanada.gc.ca and www.mamrot.gouv.qc.ca .
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Sources:
Catherine Loubier
Director of Communications
Office of the Honourable Lawrence Cannon
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Tel.: 613-995-1851
Simon Bachand
Press Secretary
Office of the Honourable Denis Lebel
Canada Economic Development
Tel.: 613-996-6236
François Bélisle
Communications
Canada Economic Development
Tel.: 819-825-5260, ext. 235
Sylvain Bourassa
Press Secretary
Office of the Ministre des Affaires municipales, des Régions et de l'Occupation du territoire
Tel.: 418-691-2050
Luce Farrell
Political attaché
Office of Stéphanie Vallée
Member of the National Assembly for Gatineau
Parliamentary Assistant to the Premier of Quebec
Tel.: 819-441-2626
Johanne Levesque
Communications Advisor
Communications Branch
Ministère des Affaires municipales, des Régions et de l'Occupation du territoire
Tel.: 514-873-6403, ext. 6146
