 | Home page |  | Text size |  | E-mail this page |
Arctic Training Centre opens doors Permanent Armed Forces facility cost $25 million in Resolute
Glenn Werkman
Northern News Services
Published Friday, August 16, 2013
QAUSUITTUQ/RESOLUTE
A permanent Armed Forces facility in Resolute was officially opened by the federal government on Aug. 15.
The Canadian Armed Forces Arctic Training Centre was officially opened in Resolute on Aug. 15. The facility cost approximately $25 million -- $21 million for construction and $4 million for telecommunications upgrades. It shares buildings and infrastructure with Natural Resources Canada's Polar Continental Shelf Program. - photo courtesy of Department of National Defence
|
"The Canadian Armed Forces Arctic Training Centre will reinforce the Canadian Armed Forces' presence in this important region of Canada while providing support to civilian authorities,” stated Defence Minister Rob Nicholson in a news release. “It will ensure that our men and women, regular and reserve, have the capabilities necessary to respond to challenges in the North.”
The new training centre that will be used year-round is a multipurpose facility to accommodate specialized training in cold weather survival, as well as other military training and operations, stated a news release from the Armed Forces.
The training centre is housed within the expanded facilities of Natural Resources Canada’s Polar Continental Shelf Program, which co-ordinates field logistics for more than 165 research projects each year at locations throughout Canada’s North.
"Because of a whole of government approach that allowed for the sharing of facilities with Natural Resources Canada, this state-of-the-art training facility cost approximately $25 million -- $21 million for construction and $4 million for telecommunications upgrades," stated Army public affairs Capt. Denny Brown in an e-mail to Nunavut News/North.
"Natural Resources Canada and DND have produced a comprehensive cost-sharing and facility-management arrangement. While Natural Resources Canada owns and operates the centre, DND has priority access and pays its share of the costs.
"This sharing of facilities has resulted in significantly lower costs than would otherwise be realized. Initial estimates put the cost of an entirely new build at approximately $60 million," Brown stated.
Nunavut's Conservative MP Leona Aglukkaq, who serves as minister of the Environment, minister of the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and chair of the Arctic Council, called it an important investment in the North.
"Our government has made Canada's North a cornerstone of its agenda through an integrated strategy that promotes sovereignty, socioeconomic development, environmental protection, and improved governance in the region," Aglukkaq stated in a news release.
The commander of the Canadian Army, Lt.-Gen. Marquis Hainse, said the move will preserve and enhance the Army's ability to operate in the region.
"Our soldiers will have access to a state-of-the-art training facility capable of supporting individual and collective Arctic and cold-weather training with enough equipment and communication infrastructure to serve as a forward operating base if required," Hainse stated.
The training centre is being touted as an example of the federal government's ongoing commitment to exercise sovereignty over Canada's Arctic.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper first announced the planned establishment of the facility in August 2007 in line with the Canada First Defence Strategy.
Brown stated the centre is designed to accommodate up to 140 personnel, will be used to train Armed Forces personnel in search and rescue and Arctic survival, and will be used for Canadian Ranger operations.
"The centre will also support the Arctic Operations Adviser Course, Arctic Response Company Groups, Canadian Army sovereignty operations, and Armed Forces joint exercises," Brown stated.
"Finally, it will serve as a command and control centre for regional military and civilian disaster-response operations, and provide a location to pre-position training equipment and various types of vehicles in the Arctic."
The training centre "will host two Royal Canadian Air Force courses, the first by the Canadian Forces Schools of Search and Rescue, and the second by the Canadian Forces School of Survival and Aeromedical Training," Brown stated.
The partnership with Natural Resources Canada allowed DND to finish the facility two years ahead of schedule, Brown stated.
| 
