This is a view of Long Pond harbour, where Ocean Choice International wants to build a new wharf and cold storage building. (Adam Walsh/CBC)
Conception Bay South’s deputy mayor says the town has to consider two important factors before it votes on whether to approve an ambitious infill proposal for the harbour in Long Pond: the impact on residents, weighed against possible economic spinoffs.
While Richard Murphy says it’s too early to speculate on which way he will vote, he says he does see the economic upside to the project.
“In this day and age, when economic development is at an all-time low, we have a company now that wants to come into the town and set up, which means 30 to 40 full-time jobs, $15 million in startup,” he told CBC News on Tuesday.
Murphy said Ocean Choice International’s proposal for a wharf and cold storage facility could also spark other economic benefits when it is finished.
If approved, OCI’s proposal would see part of the Long Pond harbour filled in to make way for the new development. Some residents oppose it, saying the plans would have an adverse environmental impact on the area. They have been calling for an environmental assessment and for the project to be moved along the Conception Bay shoreline.
This map shows how OCI altered its proposal to move it southwest in the harbour. (Ocean Choice International)
OCI recently altered its plans and shifted the project to the harbour’s southwest, which has traditionally been the industrial side, while the eastern side has homes and is also used for recreational boating. The shift opens up more room for small craft entering and exiting the harbour.
In a media release Friday, company president Blaine Sullivan said the adjustments were made after getting feedback from Transport Canada’s navigable waters division, which is part of the regulatory process, as well as from people who have “shown an interest” in the company’s proposal.
This is a possible design of the cold storage facility from a local architecture firm hired by OCI. (Ocean Choice International )
“For a project this size, there’s been more openness, more consultation. We’ve set up a website, we’ve put everything out there,” said Sullivan in an interview the same day.
Sullivan said if the company gets the green light, he wants infill work to start as soon as possible so construction could begin on the cold storage facility next summer.
Once completed, it would store the company’s frozen-at-sea product from five of its offshore fishing vessels.
This is another view of the possible design for OCI’s cold storage facility. (Ocean Choice International)
Ted Perrin, who grew up in Long Pond and uses the harbour for both commercial and recreational boating, said Monday the recent alterations make it a little better for boats to pass. But, he said, the plan still leaves a lot of unknowns, such as potential line-of-sight issues and whether the spring thaw could lead to an ice blockage and flooding.
“You’re still building an island in the middle of the harbour that’s used by pleasure boats and commercial boats continuously 365 days of the year,” said Perrin, who is part of the community group Advocates for the Responsible Development of Long Pond.
Ted Perrin, an avid commercial and recreational boater from Long Pond, has navigational concerns about the project. (Adam Walsh/CBC)
Fellow group member Andrea Canning wants much bigger project alterations.
“It’s essentially in the middle of the harbour. So when we look out here we’re going to see cars parked in the middle of our harbour,” said Canning. “Why can’t that be on the shoreline?”
We’re going to see cars parked in the middle of our harbour. Why can’t that be on the shoreline?– Andrea Canning
Both Canning and Perrin say they want to see the company, the town council and residents agree on a plan that everyone is happy about.
For its current proposal, OCI still has to complete a land-use impact assessment report, which would identify and propose mitigation of potential environmental and community impacts.
Conception Bay South Deputy Mayor Richard Murphy says while he sees an economic benefit to the project in tough times, he has not yet made a final decision on whether to vote for it. (Adam Walsh/CBC)
“We’re going to want to make sure that all the facts are laid out and the decision is based on good stuff for the town, good stuff for the residents. We want to try and get that balance,” said Murphy.
OTTAWA – Canada’s unemployment rate held steady at 6.5 per cent last month as hiring remained weak across the economy.
Statistics Canada’s labour force survey on Friday said employment rose by a modest 15,000 jobs in October.
Business, building and support services saw the largest gain in employment.
Meanwhile, finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing experienced the largest decline.
Many economists see weakness in the job market continuing in the short term, before the Bank of Canada’s interest rate cuts spark a rebound in economic growth next year.
Despite ongoing softness in the labour market, however, strong wage growth has raged on in Canada. Average hourly wages in October grew 4.9 per cent from a year ago, reaching $35.76.
Friday’s report also shed some light on the financial health of households.
According to the agency, 28.8 per cent of Canadians aged 15 or older were living in a household that had difficulty meeting financial needs – like food and housing – in the previous four weeks.
That was down from 33.1 per cent in October 2023 and 35.5 per cent in October 2022, but still above the 20.4 per cent figure recorded in October 2020.
People living in a rented home were more likely to report difficulty meeting financial needs, with nearly four in 10 reporting that was the case.
That compares with just under a quarter of those living in an owned home by a household member.
Immigrants were also more likely to report facing financial strain last month, with about four out of 10 immigrants who landed in the last year doing so.
That compares with about three in 10 more established immigrants and one in four of people born in Canada.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
The Canadian Institute for Health Information says health-care spending in Canada is projected to reach a new high in 2024.
The annual report released Thursday says total health spending is expected to hit $372 billion, or $9,054 per Canadian.
CIHI’s national analysis predicts expenditures will rise by 5.7 per cent in 2024, compared to 4.5 per cent in 2023 and 1.7 per cent in 2022.
This year’s health spending is estimated to represent 12.4 per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product. Excluding two years of the pandemic, it would be the highest ratio in the country’s history.
While it’s not unusual for health expenditures to outpace economic growth, the report says this could be the case for the next several years due to Canada’s growing population and its aging demographic.
Canada’s per capita spending on health care in 2022 was among the highest in the world, but still less than countries such as the United States and Sweden.
The report notes that the Canadian dental and pharmacare plans could push health-care spending even further as more people who previously couldn’t afford these services start using them.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
As Canadians wake up to news that Donald Trump will return to the White House, the president-elect’s protectionist stance is casting a spotlight on what effect his second term will have on Canada-U.S. economic ties.
Some Canadian business leaders have expressed worry over Trump’s promise to introduce a universal 10 per cent tariff on all American imports.
A Canadian Chamber of Commerce report released last month suggested those tariffs would shrink the Canadian economy, resulting in around $30 billion per year in economic costs.
More than 77 per cent of Canadian exports go to the U.S.
Canada’s manufacturing sector faces the biggest risk should Trump push forward on imposing broad tariffs, said Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters president and CEO Dennis Darby. He said the sector is the “most trade-exposed” within Canada.
“It’s in the U.S.’s best interest, it’s in our best interest, but most importantly for consumers across North America, that we’re able to trade goods, materials, ingredients, as we have under the trade agreements,” Darby said in an interview.
“It’s a more complex or complicated outcome than it would have been with the Democrats, but we’ve had to deal with this before and we’re going to do our best to deal with it again.”
American economists have also warned Trump’s plan could cause inflation and possibly a recession, which could have ripple effects in Canada.
It’s consumers who will ultimately feel the burden of any inflationary effect caused by broad tariffs, said Darby.
“A tariff tends to raise costs, and it ultimately raises prices, so that’s something that we have to be prepared for,” he said.
“It could tilt production mandates. A tariff makes goods more expensive, but on the same token, it also will make inputs for the U.S. more expensive.”
A report last month by TD economist Marc Ercolao said research shows a full-scale implementation of Trump’s tariff plan could lead to a near-five per cent reduction in Canadian export volumes to the U.S. by early-2027, relative to current baseline forecasts.
Retaliation by Canada would also increase costs for domestic producers, and push import volumes lower in the process.
“Slowing import activity mitigates some of the negative net trade impact on total GDP enough to avoid a technical recession, but still produces a period of extended stagnation through 2025 and 2026,” Ercolao said.
Since the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement came into effect in 2020, trade between Canada and the U.S. has surged by 46 per cent, according to the Toronto Region Board of Trade.
With that deal is up for review in 2026, Canadian Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Candace Laing said the Canadian government “must collaborate effectively with the Trump administration to preserve and strengthen our bilateral economic partnership.”
“With an impressive $3.6 billion in daily trade, Canada and the United States are each other’s closest international partners. The secure and efficient flow of goods and people across our border … remains essential for the economies of both countries,” she said in a statement.
“By resisting tariffs and trade barriers that will only raise prices and hurt consumers in both countries, Canada and the United States can strengthen resilient cross-border supply chains that enhance our shared economic security.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
