THE MAIN-À-DIEU COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION
2886 Louis–Main-à-Dieu Rd., Main-à-Dieu, NS, B1C 1X5
Tel: (902) 733-2258 | Fax: (902) 733-2653
Email: reception@coastaldiscoverycentre.ca | Web: coastaldiscoverycentre.ca
The Honorable Denis Lebel
Minister of Transport
House of Commons
Parliament Buildings
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6
November 1, 2011
Dear Minister Lebel,
On behalf of the Main-à-Dieu and Area Community Development Association, I am writing to urge you to take urgent and effective action to remove the wreck of the gaining bulk carrier MV Miner from the shores of Scaterie Island, located just offshore our small fishing village and its pristine waters. When the vessel ran aground on the Island’s shoals on September 20, I fully anticipated such action in due course from your Department. The licensing of the craft, evidently unfit for towing by tug across the Atlantic, was after all a Federal decision in which the Provincial authorities had no say; in addition, the danger not only of an oil spillage or other toxic leaks but of the vessel’s disintegration at the hands of the sea posed a clear and present danger to the fragile marine environment on which our community’s economic wellbeing and social character overwhelmingly depends. The onus in preventing such a disaster, we all assumed, would fall primarily on the Federal Departments of Transport, the Environment, and Fisheries and Ocean.
Instead, the steps directed from Ottawa, amounting essentially to removing fuel from the wreck and verifying that it does not pose an imminent threat to other shipping, are, while minimally necessary, woefully insufficient to the task at hand. Indeed, with winter fast approaching and fall storm season already here, it is now the Provincial government that is paying a Dutch salvage company, Mammoet, to remove as much potentially hazardous chemical and other material remaining onboard. In our considered estimation, however, the potential for serious, sustained pollution and contamination can only be averted by the removal of the remaining structure of the ship.
Naturally, the most obvious responsibility for dealing with the consequences of the accident lies with the owners of the MV Miner. Unconscionably, however, the Federal Government issued its license for the vessel to be towed with no stipulation that the owners insure the vessel against mishap; nor did the Government ascertain the financial state of the company in the event legal action be required to compel and fund remedial measures. We now learn that the ‘company’ is a shell, about as structurally sound as the MV Miner itself, with no assets and located out of Canadian legal reach in the Marshall Islands.
In view of this glaring failure of Federal oversight of the licensing process, and in light of the clear Federal responsibility to protect the Canadian coastline from harm and pollution, I implore you to review your Department’s response to the crisis to date and to elaborate, in cooperation with all relevant levels of jurisdiction, an action plan commensurate to the scale of the crisis.
If it would help to expedite or facilitate the process of review, our Association would be happy to host, at your earliest convenience, an emergency strategy session here in the village for officials and experts from your and other relevant Departments. We also stand ready, at any time, to offer any information or assistance you may require.
