Provincial-municipal partnership creates job and economic opportunities for eco-industrial area

With the memorandum signed, the TMIP and the Province can start the next step, which is determining how much of the available land will be used. After that, they can begin bringing industries to the area, which Nixon says shouldn’t be too much work. He says the Northwest has done a great job of attracting investors and job creators, and this project will provide stability for those investments to go forward.

Nixon says this partnership ensures all the land and planning work is done at once, making it easier for businesses to move in.

“So now if an investor wants to come up here, to this neck of the woods, and come and build a facility or put in some sort of a business, the process is already done, the land use has already been determined, and they can move forward at a faster rate. Whereas if they’re coming in, each time they have to deal with the Crown to go through that when it comes to Crown Land. That’s a significant time constraint, [which is] significant for investors coming in, and then they have to go through the bureaucratic process. This puts that to bed, people know where to come, and then we can get an investment to move into the community.”

Finance Minister, President of the Treasury, and MLA for Grande Prairie-Wapiti, Travis Toews, says investors have a genuine interest in the area, and moving this project forward is vital in creating jobs, opportunities, and wealth for both the region and the province.

Toews adds that, as Nixon alluded to, this business development is responsible.

“It results in a better environmental outcome, as better planning can take place ahead of time proactively. And it certainly creates a more competitive environment for businesses, as they look to invest in the region. And it also allows businesses to come together, use common infrastructure, and again, improve the competitiveness of potential investments.”

Toews adds that this project fits in the Province’s strategy to create a more competitive business atmosphere, that ultimately bring in more revenue for the municipal and provincial governments.

Reeve of the MD of Greenview, Dale Smith, says this project has taken a lot of hard work, but is sure that bringing large heavy industry to the region will help with economic growth for everyone. Part of the partnership ensures that tax revenue gained from the project goes back to the County and the City of Grande Prairie.

Meanwhile, Leanne Beaupre, the Reeve for the County of Grande Prairie, says this partnership is an excellent opportunity for both the municipalities and the province to be recognized as leaders in this type of an initiative.

Beaupre says the memorandum ensures all of the parties will work together, and the next step is talking about how to secure the land that will be used for the project.

Beaupre says several industries have already looked at setting up in the area, though that was before the memorandum, when it was still classified as Crown Land.

“Unfortunately it wasn’t quite ready yet, some of those major players have relocated to the Red Water area, which is great because they remain in the province of Alberta. But we think that they should be here, closer to where the feed stock is, closer to market, and certainly provides prosperity not only for the province but for this region as well.”

Smith adds to Beaupre’s point, saying the area they’re working on provides a lot of benefits.

“We’ve got the feed stock, we’ve got the rail access, that’s one of the key components of where TMIP is situated, that product can be moved out on a rail. Highway 40 is there, hopefully we can get it twinned in the future, and also help industries personnel have a safer travel to their work. We’ve got major power lines through the area, and water source close by, so we feel we have all the components, we just need to get the land base ready for the big industries to come forward on it.”

Smith and Beaupre says though it’s easier to move onto private land, by creating a hub can create opportunities, such as producing the feedstock for an industry in the same area, or using a neighbouring business’s waste product to produce something in another industry.

The TMIP has been working on this project for three years, consulting with the Ministry of Environment on where they could set up this industry hub. They’ve also been working with Indigenous communities, industrial companies, and potential investors, to ensure the project could work, and that it will benefit all the parties involved.

There is no firm time line on when this project will be ready to go, or how many jobs it could create.

by Liam Verster

Provincial-municipal partnership creates job and economic opportunities for eco-industrial area

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