US embassy cable - 03HALIFAX27

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HALIFAX 0027 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
 
DEPT FOR WHA/CAN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, PTER, PBTS, ETRD, EFIS, EAGR, CA, US, Border Patrol 
SUBJECT:  ATLANTIC CANADA WORRIED BY IMPACT OF BORDER 
SCREENING REGULATIONS ON U.S.-BOUND EXPORTS 
 
REF:  A. STATE 036401,  B. 02 Halifax 0091 
 
1. SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - ENTIRE TEXT. 
 
2. (SBU) SUMMARY:  Nova Scotia officials have raised with CG the 
deep concerns in Atlantic Canada over the potential that USG 
border screening systems, including the regulations emanating 
from the Bioterrorism Act, will hurt the large volume of 
agricultural and fish exports from this region to the United 
States.  END SUMMARY 
 
3. (SBU) Nova Scotia's Agriculture and Fisheries Minister, 
Gordon Balser, accompanied by a group of economic officials from 
various departments of the provincial government, requested a 
meeting with CG on February 7 to express concerns about the 
potential impact of the USGQs new bio-terrorism preparedness 
measures on Atlantic CanadaQs exports to the United States. 
 
4. (SBU) Both the governments and private companies in this part 
of the country have heard fairly dire warnings from industry 
groups about what they fear will be cumbersome new requirements 
that will result from the Public Health Security and 
Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002.  For 
example, the Fisheries Council of Canada held a seminar last 
month in Halifax spelling out new requirements for shippers to 
register with the FDA, to provide exhaustive "traceability" 
records for exported goods, and to provide eight hours advance 
notice whenever a truckload of agricultural or fish products is 
about to approach the U.S. border. 
 
5. (SBU) Balser explained that, based on what they have heard 
from the Fisheries Council and other groups, Nova Scotia 
exporters are concerned about the potential for these new 
paperwork requirements to cause long delays at the land border 
crossings.  These delays, he postulated, might be compounded 
once the USG finishes putting in place new secure ID and 
biometric systems for screening people entering the United 
States.  The Minister noted that USG border programs such as 
FAST, NEXUS, and C-TPAT are not as well understood in Atlantic 
Canada as they are in other parts of the country because they 
have not been employed as much here until now.  He begged for 
the USG to consider setting up pilot projects for Atlantic 
exporters that would enable companies that ship goods frequently 
to get their drivers properly credentialed early. 
 
6. (SBU) Nova Scotia officials are particularly concerned about 
fish and agricultural products, which constitute the majority of 
Atlantic exports to the United States and are the lifeblood of 
many small communities.  Minister Balser, who happens to be the 
legislative representative one such community, worries that 
delays would be devastating for perishable food products such as 
live lobsters and fish with a short shelf life. 
 
7. (SBU) The Minister made no secret of his distrust of Ottawa 
on these issues.  He observed that the Canadian federal 
government does not appreciate the impact of new border measures 
on Atlantic Canada and has little willingness to help the region 
participate in these pilot programs.  He told CG that this was 
yet another case of Ottawa politiciansQ "dismissive attitude" 
toward protecting the interests the interests of the 
economically depressed Atlantic region.  With that, Balser said 
his province must look at mounting its own campaign to see the 
region get fast-track participation in any new USG border 
programs. 
 
8. (SBU) CG provided Minister Balser and the other officials 
with the information concerning the Bioterrorism Act contained 
in ref A, and promised to deliver a more extensive briefing on 
FAST/NEXUS/C-TPAT in the near future. 
 
9. (SBU) COMMENT:  Atlantic officials perennially complain about 
neglect from Ottawa, but in this case they perceive strongly 
that other regions of Canada have benefited from preferential 
treatment in terms of advance participation in new USG border 
screening programs.  New Brunswick Premier Bernard Lord has 
sought to bring pilot projects to land border crossings in his 
province (ref B), but has not up to his point received much 
support from regional counterparts.  BalserQs comments suggest 
that a regional push from officials of all four provinces might 
be forthcoming. 
KASHKETT