Think tank: Ottawa must build marine transport system in Nunavut
Iqaluit meeting produces call for deep water ports, ports of refuge

A forklift truck ventures out at low tide to offload pallets from a barge carrying goods brought to Iqaluit by a ship that’s anchored further down the bay in the summer of 2010. Nunavut’s dangerously inadequate lack of basic marine infrastructure is a major barrier to the economic development of the territory, an Ontario-based think tank says. (FILE PHOTO)
Ottawa must begin working towards the creation of a new marine transport corridor in Nunavut as an act of nation-building, a researcher with an Ontario-based think tank said July 24, following a two-day conference this past May in Iqaluit.
“The federal government, in collaboration with stakeholders and in support of its jobs and growth agenda, should develop an “Arctic Maritime Corridors and Gateways Initiative,” starting modestly…,” said John Higginbotham, a senior fellow at The Centre for International Governance Innovation in Waterloo, Ont.
Eventually, this maritime corridor would comprise deep water ports, ports of refuge and re-fueling facilities, Higginbotham said.
A former assistant deputy minister in three federal departments, Higginbotham attended a two-day policy workshop that CIGI held May 1 and May 2 in Iqaluit with Inuit leaders, business people and government officials.
His conclusions? Nunavut suffers from two big problems.
One is a lack of basic marine infrastructure that prevents the territory from meeting basic needs and developing its economy.
The other is a confusing and overly complex governance system that could discourage investment and may not be agile enough to adapt to changing global conditions.
That also adds up to lots of bureaucracy — but limited services.
“Although most services are in short supply in Nunavut, complex multi-layer governance is not among them,” Higginbotham said.
On marine shipping, he said all coastal communities in Nunavut suffer from a big transportation deficit, because there are no facilities anywhere to offload goods directly from a vessel to a port.
“The current unloading method was described as inefficient, archaic and dangerous by participants attending the workshop in May,” Higginbotham said, echoing complaints the shipping industry has made for years.
At the same time, Nunavut is ill-prepared to handle new mines and ill-prepared to handle the increased levels of destinational resupply shipping the future is likely to bring.
Nunavut’s urgent needs include:
• better navigational aids and charting;
• small craft harbours;
• credible marine search and rescue;
• credible oil spill mitigation;
• rebuilding the causeway in Iqaluit;
• ramps, breakwaters and windbreaks for small communities.
To plug these gaps, he recommends “pragmatic, functional solutions” rather than large, grandiose projects.
“Hundreds of small craft harbours originally funded by the federal government exist elsewhere in Canada, but Nunavut has almost none. At this point, Nunavut needs only the basics, not the frills,” Higginbotham said.
But at some point, the federal government “should move dutifully into the breach with new ideas and resources,” he said.
And that means federal leadership aimed at bringing together all players, public and private, in the spirit of nation-building, he said, citing the Trans-Canada Highway and the Confederation Bridge between New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island as examples.
“Preparing Nunavut for coming economic changes in the Arctic should be a priority of Canadian, territorial and Aboriginal public policy,” he said.
As for Arctic cruise ship tourism, Higginbotham said rapid growth and irresponsible behaviour by some operators could damage local cultures and the environment.
“Private sector practices range from excellent to barely acceptable,” he said.
To fix this, he recommends “a voluntary, but stringent” code of conduct for cruise operators and private yachts.
And he also suggests that so-called “adventurers” who travel by land or sea be required to buy search and rescue insurance.
“Finally, there needs to be a greater exchange of available information among government agencies as to the location and status of ships and boats of all types in Nunavut waters,” he said.
Within the federal civil service, a lack of understanding of northern realities often undermines current federal efforts, he said.
To fix that, he said Ottawa should offer three-month internships in Nunavut to mid-level regulators, so that they’re better able to respond to northern conditions.
“The National Building Code of Canada, rules governing contaminated sites and regulations against certain products travelling by air represent areas where urgent work should be undertaken to ensure that rules and regulations in place are actually workable in the North,” Higginbotham said.
And to help outside investors understand Nunavut’s complicated, multi-layered governance structure, he recommends more contact and co-operation.
“Several of the new observers in the Arctic Council — China, Japan and South Korea — are already significant investors in northern Canada, and a special effort should be made to encourage their broader understanding of local conditions to shape their long-term interest in Nunavut.”
The CIGI think tank was created in 2001 by Jim Balsillie, the ex-CEO of Blackberry-maker Research in Motion.
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