Transport committee  I'd be happy to. Thank you, sir.

Transport committee  You're right. It was a fine project, a three-way effort involving the federal and provincial governments. Thanks to the project, our small community got a multi-purpose building, which is in the process of being finished. The community can use the building 365 days a year. There's an indoor rink in the winter, and a large canopy-covered area in the summer that can be used for countless community activities.

Transport committee  You're right, the fund is very helpful to municipalities, all of which have access to the funding. We've had to make major investments in our underground infrastructure, the wastewater system. Obviously, the funding is never enough. That is in no way a criticism of the federal government.

Transport committee  I am not criticizing the parties. I would love to have you sit down with me to look at our infrastructure projects and talk about the bridge. That kind of work isn't possible with the amounts available through the gas tax. Whichever government is in power, as Canadians, we need to be ambitious.

Transport committee  There's absolutely no communication. We usually find out in a news release put out that day. Since you brought up water levels, I should point out that, oftentimes, ferry operators don't even know when the floodgates are being opened in the summer to let the water in. They have to adjust the docks and all the marine infrastructure.

Transport committee  That's a good question. Although we have a good relationship with Parks Canada, which manages the locks in Saint‑Ours, two years ago, we got together with five other municipalities and sent the agency a letter asking it to delay opening the locks. Our request was rejected. Someone somewhere, in Dorval or Ottawa, decided to open them anyways.

Transport committee  My first idea is quite clear. When it comes to big funding programs, they tend to have a specific focus, so the danger is that certain projects get overlooked. My preference would be to segment the programs a bit more and, above all, give everyone a chance. Sometimes just splitting a fund into two streams—one for large municipalities with more than 25,000 residents and one for smaller municipalities with fewer than 25,000 residents, say—allows smaller municipalities to participate.

Transport committee  In terms of climate change, we have very engaged environmental groups. They educate us on measures we should take municipally. That said, the federal and provincial governments limit what we can do. In many cases, we have to get their permission before we can take things further.

Transport committee  You're right. The biggest challenge is always finding the entry point to set those good ideas in motion. Keep in mind, this was something the federal government wanted to do in 1982. The federal leadership was already there. It just takes some renewed leadership. What's more, the project has the support of the towns, the regional county municipalities and the provincial government.

Transport committee  Obviously, our region is on first nations territory, and we have excellent co‑operation on that front. As far as NGOs are concerned, we have less of those. Being pretty far from Montreal, we attract fewer NGOs. We do, however, have local groups, grassroots initiatives and community mobilization.

Transport committee  We have all the resources we need to apply for the funding. That isn't the problem. What's needed, in my view, is a way to ensure that funding envelopes are set aside for municipalities, or provinces. That would allow for continuity and ensure some fairness for smaller municipalities.

Transport committee  Saint-Ours is a small municipality. When we apply for federal programs, we often get stonewalled. The response is often unfavourable, for all sorts of reasons. We applied to just about every conceivable program that was available, whether it was related to culture, communications, infrastructure or adaptation, and we rarely got a positive response.

Transport committee  The danger of winter ferries is ice. Even if the river does not freeze, there is ice coming from Lake Champlain, often without warning. It is dangerous for a ferry to go aground, especially when vehicles are on board. Some projects exist, but it is complicated. This is considered marine transportation, so managing such a service is quite difficult.

Transport committee  The difficulty is always the same: It's a matter of knowing where to go to get access to these grants. Municipalities are not familiar with the programs that exist, and that's one of the reasons I'm here today.

Transport committee  The biggest downside is detours. In reality, in order to have access to the other side, people have to travel a detour of about 30 kilometres. It is also important to understand that this has an impact on economic development. People often live on our side of the river and work at ArcelorMittal or Rio Tinto.