US embassy cable - 03HALIFAX352

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HALIFAX 000352 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, ETRD, EFIS, ECON, EPET, MOPS, SENV, ASEC, CA, Environment, Energy, Petrolium 
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S VISIT TO NOVA SCOTIA: SECURITY, ECONOMY, 
ENVIRONMENT FILL THE AGENDA 
 
REF: HALIFAX 349 
 
 
1.  SUMMARY:  Ambassador's visit to Nova Scotia October 9 - 14 
was useful in reinforcing a traditionally good relationship 
between the province and the U.S., as well as dispelling 
misperceptions about U.S. energy, environmental and foreign 
policy.  Primary topics of discussion were security, economic 
and environmental issues.   END SUMMARY. 
 
2.  Ambassador and Mrs. Cellucci visited Nova Scotia October 9 - 
14.  The trip took them from Halifax to Cape Breton, and 
provided the opportunity to raise security, trade and 
environmental issues with a wide range of interlocutors. 
 
HALIFAX 
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3.  CANADIAN NAVY -- Vice-Admiral Glenn Davidson, commander of 
Canada's Maritime Forces Atlantic (MARLANT) briefed the 
Ambassador on MARLANT's role and force structure, stressing the 
Canadian Navy's close association with the U.S. Navy and its 
desire to continue to assist in the war against terrorism and to 
provide unique capabilities such as diesel-electric submarines 
for joint exercises.   Ambassador said that he would continue to 
call for the defense spending necessary for maximum 
interoperability among U.S. and Canadian forces.  He toured the 
Command's operations center, as well as the joint Navy/Coast 
Guard/Air Force search and rescue operations center which 
handles over 2,000 distress calls annually.  Ambassador also had 
the opportunity to watch a number of defensive drills on the 
frigate HMCS TORONTO during a tour of the vessel by its captain. 
 
4.  PREMIER HAMM -- Nova Scotia's Premier John Hamm briefed the 
Ambassador on damage caused by Hurricane Juan, noting with 
appreciation that the governor of Maine had called to offer any 
help necessary.  Hamm said that he hoped the Prime Minister 
would agree to provide additional funding for disaster relief. 
He asked what could be done at a regional level to improve U.S. 
- Canadian relations.  The Ambassador stressed the need to take 
security issues seriously, citing the positive example of the 
Port of Halifax (reftel).  On energy issues, Premier Hamm said 
he had heard that EnCana was having "some success" in 
exploratory drilling, and that he hoped this would help the Deep 
Panuke project go forward.  He also said that he would join 
other premiers on a Team Atlantic trade mission to Washington 
November 2 - 6. 
 
5.  ENERGY CONFERENCE SPEECH -- The Ambassador delivered the 
keynote speech at the Onshore/Offshore Technologies Association 
of Nova Scotia (OTANS) energy conference.  His remarks focused 
on U.S. energy and environmental policies, stressing the need to 
correct misperceptions about both. 
 
6.  STUDENT Q&A -- Dalhousie University students turned out in 
large numbers to hear the Ambassador speak and answer questions 
about U.S. policy.  The students were respectful but critical in 
their questioning and the Ambassador was able to address 
effectively issues such as U.S.-Canada differences on Iraq 
policy, the Arar case, and the gap in perception of security 
threats between the U.S. and some in Canada. 
 
7.  HALIFAX AIRPORT -- Halifax International Airport Authority 
President Reg Milley and Chairman Bernie Miller hosted a dinner 
for the Ambassador.  Preclearance for Halifax was of course on 
the menu, and Milley described HIAA's efforts to address 
concerns posed by Bangor, Maine, and its lobbyist in Washington, 
including indemnifying Bangor for lost business and renouncing 
any intention of seeking in-transit preclearance for Halifax. 
According to Milley, Bangor was beginning to accept HIAA's 
argument that preclearance could actually be beneficial to 
Bangor because of increased regional traffic. 
 
CAPE BRETON 
----------- 
 
8.  Many of the Ambassador's interlocutors in Cape Breton 
stressed the efforts being made to recover from the economically 
disastrous loss of the coal and steel industries, as well as the 
collapse of groundfish stocks.  Preservation -- of language, 
culture and the environment -- was also a recurrent theme. 
 
9.  ISLE MADAME --  On Isle Madame the Ambassador met with a 
number of local businesspeople, educators and community 
activists to get a sense of how this primarily French-speaking 
area was faring in the face of economic changes.  The picture 
that emerged -- in meetings with a cranberry producer, a boat 
builder, seafood processors, the director of the local branch of 
the College de l'Acadie, and others -- was one of resilience in 
the face of the loss of traditional livelihoods. 
 
10.  Fishermen and onshore processors have switched from cod to 
crab, and while overall employment in the fishery is down, the 
value of the catch is greater now than the early 1990s.  Native 
fishermen have become significant players in the industry in the 
wake of the Supreme Court's Marshall decision, and they are now 
buying boats and other equipment from local manufacturers.  One 
such boat builder, Daryl David of Samson Enterprises in Arichat, 
told us that his firm had entered into a partnership with a 
local community to use land and a wharf formerly occupied by a 
fish processor that had closed its doors after the collapse of 
the fishery.  The new Samson facility allows the firm to build 
larger multispecies vessels and local Mi'kmaq fishermen are 
among the major customers for Samson's boats.  Several 
interlocutors told us that the longstanding integration of the 
Francophone, Anglophone and native communities meant that there 
had been less friction over the fishery than in New Brunswick. 
 
 
11.  CULTURAL PRESERVATION -- Both the Acadian and Scottish 
communities were seeking to preserve culture and traditions, 
with notable success.  French language education and culture 
were maintained at institutions like the Centre La Picasse in 
Petit-de-Grat where the Ambassador attended a performance 
featuring local musicians and dancers.  Gaelic is still spoken 
in some sections of Cape Breton, and organizations like the 
Highland Village and the recently established Gaelic College 
seek to preserve that tradition. 
 
12.  BRAS D'OR LAKES ECOLOGY -- Ambassador received an extensive 
briefing from a local marine biologist on the unique ecology of 
the world's largest inland sea, the Bras d'Or Lakes.  Local 
residents described plans to seek a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve 
designation for a portion of the lakes known as the St. Andrew's 
Channel and to build and endow a marine research center on the 
lakes.  They also expressed concerns about seismic exploration 
going on in the region, noting that energy exploration or 
production in the lakes themselves could damage a fragile 
ecosystem. 
 
13.  Both Francophone and Anglophone communities saw education 
as key to moving the island's economy in new directions now that 
traditional sources of jobs had disappeared.  The College de 
l'Acadie and the University College of Cape Breton both offer 
innovative programs and distance education to provide Cape 
Bretoners with skills and knowledge necessary to succeed in the 
modern economy. 
 
COMMENT 
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14.  The visit was useful in multiple respects, including 
dispelling misperceptions about USG energy, environmental and 
foreign policy in well-attended public fora.  The trip has 
generated favorable comments from Nova Scotians, particularly 
among the Acadian community, and has helped to reaffirm strong 
U.S.-Canadian ties in a region where people tend to view the 
U.S. positively. 
 
 
 
HILL