Federal government announces dollars for sonar to map Arctic sea floor
4 multi-beam sonar systems to be installed on coast guard icebreakers
The federal government says it's making safety improvements for northern shipping following an audit last year that
found mapping services to be lacking.
The government announced Friday that $22 million will be spent over five years to improve the safety of marine transportation in the Arctic.
A news release says some of the money is to buy and install four multi-beam sonar systems aboard Canadian Coast Guard icebreakers for sea-floor surveying.
An audit by Canada's environment commissioner in 2014 noted the area has been "inadequately surveyed and charted," with some Arctic maps dating back to the early 1970s.
The report noted that growth in marine shipping in the Arctic has meant a spike in demand for more accurate, detailed surveys and maps.
Coast guard data indicates that between 2002 and 2013 there were about 100 small, mostly oil and gasoline spills in the Arctic.
"Our enhanced ability to map Canada's Arctic waters will result in better charts and navigational information, leading to improved safety for mariners in the North," Transport Minister Lisa Raitt said in a news release Friday.
In delivering her report to the House of Commons last October, Environment Commissioner Julie Gelfand said many charts available to mariners are not current or reliable.
Gelfand said the opening of just one mine project could increase traffic significantly.
Ottawa responded by promising to prioritize hydrographic surveying efforts, review navigational aid systems and consider "modern and efficient solutions" for coast guard service delivery.
The government said Friday it will increase the Coast Guard Auxiliary presence in remote locations to improve emergency response and search-and-rescue capacity.
It said it would also conduct "extensive reviews" to identify further ways to enhance Arctic marine navigation services and infrastructure, including aids to navigation.
"This investment will not only improve marine safety in the Arctic, but will directly benefit remote communities that depend on marine transportation for their day-to-day need," Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq said in the news release.
Also on Friday, the government announced $4.4 million for science and infrastructure upgrades to Canada's Polar Continental Shelf Program facility in Resolute, Nunavut. The program provides logistical support to researchers working in the North.