Today, the Honourable Gordon O’Connor, Minister of National Revenue, on behalf of the Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, handed over the first 2008-09 installment from the Gas Tax Fund, totaling $3,750,000, to the Honourable Carolyn Bertram, Prince Edward Island Minister of Communities, Cultural Affairs and Labour.
“We have a great partnership between the governments of Canada and Prince Edward Island, and I am pleased to see Island communities receive their allocation from the federal Gas Tax Fund today,” said Minister O’Connor. “Islanders’ health and prosperity are a priority for our government. Together with the Government of PEI, we will help them meet their infrastructure needs, such as safe drinking water and safe local roads, and access to modern and efficient local infrastructure.”
The original Gas Tax Agreement was signed in 2005 and outlined the $37.5 million investment (2005-2010) to Prince Edward Island. The 26 PEI municipalities that supply sewer and/or water services to their residents were required to submit a Capital Investment Plan (CIP), outlining how their allocation of funds would be spent. Prince Edward Island is pleased to announce that these communities have all of their CIPs in place.
“Planning is a key component to municipal infrastructure,” said Minister Bertram. “The province of Prince Edward Island has been working with municipalities to ensure that they have plans in place for their future infrastructure needs. This funding supports hundreds of important infrastructure projects and is critical to the Island’s economic and environmental sustainability.”
Already under the Fund, more than $15 million in gas tax funding has supported a variety of projects, including:
Construction of the new Montague Bridge;
Sewer and water extensions in Cornwall;
Sidewalks in Kensington;
Retrofit of the community complex in Mount Stewart;
Water Supply Protection Plan in Stratford; and
Community Office retrofit and a new pumping station in Tyne Valley.
The Gas Tax Fund supports environmentally sustainable municipal infrastructure that contributes to cleaner air, water and reduced greenhouse gas emissions. Eligible categories of investment include public transit, water and wastewater infrastructure, community energy systems, the management of solid waste, local roads and bridges, and capacity building.
In May 2008, the governments of Canada and Prince Edward Island announced the signing of the Building Canada Framework Agreement. With this agreement, the Government of Canada committed to an investment of more than $270 million towards infrastructure needs in Prince Edward Island from 2007 to 2014. On July 14, 2008, a first call was made for projects that could be jointly funded through the Communities Component of the plan. In addition, Budget 2008 announced that the Gas Tax Fund will become permanent beyond 2014, at $2 billion nationally per year. This will provide municipalities with stable funding for their infrastructure needs.
For more information about federal and provincial infrastructure initiatives on Prince Edward Island, visit www.infrastructure.gc.ca or www.gov.pe.ca/go/infrastructure.