Harper Government Invests in Cape Breton's Small Craft Harbours

News Release

Minister Shea announces funding for major harbour improvement projects at New Waterford, Glace Bay, Port Morien and Chéticamp (La Digue)

July 24, 2014 - New Waterford, Nova Scotia

The Honourable Gail Shea, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, today announced that the Government of Canada is investing $4 million in harbour improvement projects at four small craft harbours in Cape Breton.

The four projects in Cape Breton being funded are:

Basin redredging at New Waterford, to be carried out over two years;
Creation of a dredge disposal site in the Glace Bay area;
Completion of construction of a new breakwater wharf at Port Morien; and
Completion of construction of a new breakwater wharf at Chéticamp (La Digue).

Other Nova Scotia Small Craft Harbours projects will be announced at a later date.

This funding is part of the Government of Canada’s investment of $106 million in repair, construction, maintenance and dredging projects at harbours across Canada. This includes $66 million in annual program funding for 2014-15 and an additional
$40 million over two years, as announced in Economic Action Plan 2014.

Quick Facts

Fisheries and Oceans Canada undertakes projects in cooperation with the local harbour authorities that manage and operate the facilities for local users.
Economic Action Plan 2014 provided $40 million in additional funding over two years for repair, construction and maintenance projects at Canada’s small craft harbours.
The Small Craft Harbours Program is responsible for over 1000 small craft harbours across Canada.
Small craft harbours support nearly 90% of all commercial fish landings in Canada. In 2012, the landed value of Nova Scotia commercial fisheries was $768 million.
These four small craft harbours are home port to approximately 145 vessels and over 450 fish harvesters. In recent years, landings represented an estimated annual value of approximately $43 million.
The primary fisheries at these harbours are snow crab, lobster, hagfish, mackerel redfish, snow crab, lobster, American plaice, cod and halibut.

Quotes

“Our Government is proud to invest in Cape Breton’s harbours and to ensure that fishermen and harbour users have safe and reliable facilities to carry out their daily activities. Investing is small craft harbours means investing in our coastal communities. It means creating jobs for Canadians, like the hard-working folks of Nova Scotia.”

The Honourable Gail Shea, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans