Controversial bridge project given the green light in Moncton

CTV Atlantic: N.B. announces $60 million bridge The N.B. government announced a $60 million project to replace Moncton's Petitcodiac River bridge. Jonathan MacInnis has more.

A 250-metre section of causeway spanning the Petitcodiac River between Moncton and Riverview, N.B. will be removed and four-lane bridge built in its place.

The joint project between the New Brunswick and federal governments worth nearly $62 million was announced Friday.

For nearly 50 years, the flow of the Petitcodiac River has been choked by a causeway -- blocking a habitat for fish to spawn, and stifling the famous tidal bore.

“It’s going to help us create jobs in the short term, and of course do what’s right for the environment,” said N.B. Premier Brian Gallant.

"It is an historic announcement for the river and the region," said Daniel LeBlanc, the original Petitcodiac Riverkeeper, a spokesman on river restoration for environmental groups.

Surfers from around the world have been riding the tidal bore on the Petitcodiac River since gates in the causeway were opened in 2010.

The bore, a wave which moves upriver at high tide, ranges from one to two metres in height and travels at speeds up to 13 kilometres per hour.

"There's no doubt that we're going to have more people come to see the tidal bore. There's going to be more people coming to want to surf the Petitcodiac River," Premier Brian Gallant said as he made the announcement in Moncton along with Fisheries and Oceans Minister Dominic LeBlanc.

"There's going to be more people that are just going to want to come see and walk the trails next to the Petitcodiac River,” Gallant continued.

Liberal MP Dominic LeBlanc blamed the Harper government for the delay in making this announcement.

“I don’t want to impede motive but the previous Conservative government didn’t have the interests, certainly that we do, in restoring the river,” says MP Dominic LeBlanc.

The Chief of the Fort Folly First Nation says this announcement will help her people.

“We work on the Petitcodiac in regards to a salmon restoration, so this is big news for us so that means the fish can have safe passage now, and a wider passage so it’s really good news,” says Chief Rebecca Knockwood.

The causeway has been a point of contention with environmentalists, politicians and Moncton area residents since construction on it began in 1966. It was completed two years later.

The structure created a lake, but halted the natural tidal flow of the river upstream.

"The bridge construction will restore the channel fairly closely to where it was previously in the centre of the river, and the river itself will be able to restore itself to as close as possible to what it was 50 years ago," Daniel LeBlanc said.

Green Leader David Coon said it's probably the third river that has been restored in North America, and the first of any significant size in Canada.

"That river has impacts all the way down the Eastern Seaboard from an ecological perspective, and it is certainly important to the Bay of Fundy as well. It's a great thing ... to see a river of that importance restored," he said.

The provincial government is contributing $32.9 million to the project, while the federal government will provide the remaining $28.7 million.

"It's historic because it's something we all have talked about for quite some time, knowing that we had to address a problem that was created decades ago," Gallant said.

He said work is expected to begin in the spring and take four to five years to complete.

Matt Abbott of the Conservation Council of New Brunswick said he expects the river will be able to recover.

"With the first phase of the restoration -- the opening of the gates -- we saw really impressive natural activity bounce right back from that. I think we'll see more from the Petitcodiac going forward with the removal of the causeway and the building of the bridge. It really is exciting," he said.

The Petitcodiac is also known for its chocolate-brown colour that results from sediment stirred up by the tides.

Ernie Steeves, the Tory MLA for Moncton Northwest, said the colour may not be the best but it's still a beautiful, winding river and he's glad it's being restored.

With files from CTV's Jonathan MacInnis and Kevin Bissett of the Canadian Press