Ottawa threatens to pull funds for Chignecto Isthmus if N.B., N.S. don’t partner

HALIFAX — Federal cabinet ministers are threatening to pull an offer of $325 million to protect a vital land link between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick unless the two provinces agree to share costs.

Letters released Tuesday by Infrastructure Minister Sean Fraser and Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc say they’ll shift the money elsewhere in the country if the provinces won’t pay their half of the $650-million cost of upgrading the Chignecto Isthmus.

Climate researchers have forecast that one severe tidal storm moving up the Bay of Fundy is capable of overcoming dikes, flooding communities, disconnecting the province from the rest of Canada, and stopping ground or rail transport of goods and services.

Premier Tim Houston sent a letter Sunday to the seven Liberal members of Parliament in Nova Scotia urging Ottawa to fully fund the expensive work needed to protect the Chignecto Isthmus.

In his letter of response, Fraser writes that Atlantic Canadians won’t be pleased to learn that Ottawa is ready to invest hundreds of millions of dollars but cannot because provincial governments “are making a conscious choice not to help.”

The letter says if Nova Scotia and New Brunswick are not willing to pay for half the cost of the project, he will transfer the money, which comes from Ottawa’s disaster mitigation and adaptation fund, to provinces willing to be more co-operative.

LeBlanc’s letter says the two provinces “have refused to budge” from their position that Ottawa should cover the full cost and are causing delays by taking the matter to court.

Fraser’s letter also expresses political frustration with the Houston government over its tactic of “blaming” Ottawa rather than collaborate on solutions. “A quick review demonstrates that you have deployed this specific tactic at least three times in recent weeks,” his letter says, referring to the isthmus issue, the province’s refusal to accept asylum seekers and a call for Ottawa to do more to enforce fisheries rules.

The letter goes on to take issue with Houston’s arguments that the province will have to cut health-care spending if it shoulders part of the cost to upgrade the isthmus. He argued the province could apply last year’s budget surplus of $143.6 million to the project.

Last year, the Houston government sought a ruling at the province’s Court of Appeal about whether Ottawa has exclusive responsibility to maintain the dikes and other structures to protect the Isthmus.

The premier told reporters on Tuesday that the court battle will proceed and his position that Ottawa should pay the full bill hasn’t changed.

“For them to say, ‘take $325 million or nothing,’ it’s a threat, it’s not right and I’m hopeful that one Liberal somewhere … will stand up for Nova Scotians,” said Houston.

“They are trying to rip off Nova Scotians,” he said.

In the province’s letter to Ottawa on Sunday, the Houston government says its lawyers “are confident that the courts will determine that the federal government is responsible for key infrastructure connecting our country.”

It argues that Ottawa has a history of funding infrastructure projects that are of national importance, citing the example of the new Champlain Bridge in Montreal, for which the federal government assumed 100 per cent of the $4.2-billion cost.

In a phone interview on Tuesday, Fraser said the amount being offered under the adaptation fund is the maximum permitted under the program.

“This is a challenge that I’d love to work through, but in the absence of a willingness to acknowledge there is a role for the province to play it’s difficult to understand how we can get to a deal,” he said.

Asked if there is a deadline by which the provinces must agree to make their contribution, Fraser replied, “I’ve not set a specific date. I’d like to give the provinces time to respond before we put them on a clock.”

Zach Churchill, the leader of the provincial Liberal party, urged both sides to come to the table and hammer out an agreement.

“All parties need to … put their big person pants on and get this deal done so Nova Scotians can be assured our isthmus is going to be protected,” the Opposition leader said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.

Michael Tutton, The Canadian Press