I hope there will be many benefits environmentally. I worked quite hard with one of our members of Parliament on a project in Merrickville, where the waste water treatment plant is about to collapse, with the potential of sending raw sewage down the Rideau, which is now a UNESCO world heritage site. If we can come out of these economically challenging times and can put people to work to provide a stimulus to the economy--which will go far beyond those people who work in construction or in providing materials--it will provide big benefits throughout the economy, and if they have an environmental infrastructure investment that can last a hundred years, I think that'll be very good.
One of the things I talked about with the Saskatchewan government and one of the members of Parliament there is mining. If we can make investments in transportation and roads or rail that will facilitate economic growth well into the future, that will be positive. If we can make investments in public transit, as we've committed to do in Toronto--the ground will be broken quickly--and in Vancouver and elsewhere, we'll have quality of life, less congestion, and less air pollution, which I think will be a benefit.
Everyone has their top priority as to what they'd like to see. Obviously I'm Minister of Transport, so I want to see transport infrastructure. In Prescott, they want improvements to their port. In Belledune, New Brunswick, they want improvements to their port. I'm facing a significant amount of lobbying from various ports
in the province of Quebec, in areas such as Sept-Îles, in Quebec city and in Montreal. This is a matter that falls under federal jurisdiction. The investment process was intended for areas of federal jurisdiction, such as airports as well.
But as a former environment minister, obviously clean water is something I think is important. Public transit is important. So too is basic infrastructure for roads, for water treatment, for sewer upgrades, which are important.