Transport, Infrastructure and Communities

Opening remarks

Thank you, Mr. Chair, and all honourable members of the committee. First of all, allow me to recognize and thank each of you for your particular attention and focus on the support, diversification and modernization of Canada's port system. As you may be aware from my colleagues, who have made many presentations now, and the Association of Canadian Port Authorities, we've been diligently advocating for reform to the Canada Marine Act and, more recently, regulatory reforms without any necessary changes to the act. These things would provide Canada's national port system with the flexibility and the tools necessary to prosper and meet the full intent of the act, which is to contribute to the competitiveness, growth and prosperity of the Canadian economy. I always begin by reminding the audience that Canada has many coasts. It has the east, the west and the north, but it also has an underutilized southern corridor, Canada's fourth coast: the St. Lawrence Seaway system, or more descriptively, the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway System. Surrounded by two provinces and eight states, collectively, we make up the world's third-largest economy. However, we allow this corridor to languish…

Opening remarks

Good afternoon, Mr. Chair. Good afternoon, members of the committee. Vigie citoyenne port de Contrecœur is a group of citizens concerned about the environmental, social and economic effects of the Contrecœur port project. Let's talk about the economic aspect first. Recently, on CBC News's The National, Professor Jean‑Paul Rodrigue, a marine traffic specialist at Texas A&M University, said that the Contrecœur port project should have been built 20 years ago, but that it's no longer relevant. He explains that this is because new container ships are getting bigger and bigger and can't navigate to Contrecœur or Montreal because of the shallow draft of about 11 metres. Mr. Rodrigue believes that this $2.3 billion expansion would not open up new markets but would cannibalize the existing one in Montreal. In his view, the future lies with deepwater ports starting from Quebec City. A recent academic study by Éric Pineault of the Institut des sciences de l'environnement at the Université du Québec à Montréal also concludes that the port of Contrecœur is at risk of being underutilized, unprofitable and a financial burden for Canadian taxpayers. The study explains that the Port of…

Opening remarks

Mr. Chair and members of the committee, thank you for having me here today. The Port of Trois-Rivières handles more than four million tons of cargo annually and sees 70,000 trucks, 11,000 railcars and nearly 250 ships pass through its facilities. It serves businesses located throughout Quebec, Ontario and as far away as western Canada that operate in key economic sectors, including manufacturing, agri-food, mining and energy. The Port of Trois-Rivières is currently carrying out the largest investment project in its history. Between 2024 and 2027, more than $300 million will have been invested by the Trois-Rivières Port Authority, its partners and the governments of Quebec and Canada to rebuild or construct two docks and three terminals. This project is the culmination of a major upgrade effort launched in 2008 that has modernized a large portion of the port's freight infrastructure. However, as soon as they are completed, those facilities will be operating at full capacity. To help businesses access overseas markets, the Port of Trois-Rivières will need to be able to deploy additional capacity. In the St. Lawrence corridor, several infrastructure projects are reaching the end…