The Honourable Loyola Hearn, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, on behalf of the Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities and the Honourable Jack Byrne, Minister of Newfoundland and Labrador Municipal Affairs, are pleased to announce that the Town of St. Anthony will be the first municipality to benefit from funding under the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Agreement on the Transfer of Federal Gas Tax Revenues and will receive a cheque for over $87,000.

"The new Government of Canada is proud to provide this funding, which will help Newfoundland and Labrador�s cities and communities like St. Anthony meet their infrastructure needs," said Minister Cannon. "This money will be used to ensure that the residents of the province enjoy a high quality of life, economic opportunity, a healthy environment, and safety and security."

"It is great to see the gas tax revenues starting to flow to municipalities," said Minister Byrne. "The Town of St. Anthony is an excellent example of a community taking full advantage of gas tax revenues to improve local infrastructure."

Following the approval of its capital investment plan by the province, St. Anthony will invest the money in water, sewer and roads projects, which will provide major enhancements to the town.

"This funding will help enhance basic infrastructure that will benefit residents of St. Anthony," said the Honourable Trevor Taylor, MHA for the Straits and White Bay North. "It is also an investment in the future, as the improvements are an important part of the development and expansion of the town."

"The announcement of the gas tax funding will allow our council to continue its positive momentum with the installation of new water, sewer and road infrastructure that would not have been possible otherwise," said St. Anthony Mayor Boyd Noel. "This type of progressive government thinking and investment shows a commitment to municipalities and an understanding of the need to improve community infrastructure."

The $82 million Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Agreement on the Transfer of Federal Gas Tax Revenues was announced in August 2006. With this payment, Newfoundland and Labrador has now received gas tax funds totaling $19.7 million. Cities and communities in the province can use this funding towards environmentally sustainable municipal infrastructure projects, such as water, wastewater management, solid waste management, public transit, community energy systems, municipal capacity building, and roads and bridges, where it can be demonstrated that they will enhance environmental sustainability outcomes.

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