St. Andrews, New Brunswick – Keeping our oceans clean, safe and healthy for current and future generations is a top priority for the Government of Canada. That is why we are making significant investments, under the Oceans Protection Plan, to help protect our coasts and prevent spills from happening.
The Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, along with the Member of Parliament for New Brunswick Southwest, Karen Ludwig, announced today that the Government of Canada is investing $2.4 million in scientific research and supporting approximately 25 jobs at the Huntsman Marine Science Centre.
With this investment, the Centre will study how spill response measures, such as the use of dispersant chemicals, affect fish and other aquatic species of interest. The goal of the project is to ensure the use of effective response measures, without harming ocean life in the event of a spill. This project will add to the growing body of scientific knowledge about Canada’s spill response, and will ensure that first responders have the best available information while making decisions.
Funding for this project is from the Multi-Partner Research Initiative. This fund supports a variety of research projects on alternative response measures for oil spills. It is aimed at building partnerships among the leading researchers across Canada and around the world. These collaborative efforts will improve our knowledge of how oil spills behave, how best to contain them and clean them up, and how to minimize their environmental impacts.
Source : Government of Canada