Echoing a time long ago, Prime Minister Mark Carney has lamented that Canada used to build big things. “We used to build big things in this country, and we used to build them quickly. It’s time to get back at it, and get on with it. That starts with getting out of the way,” Carney said in Edmonton last week on the eve of announcing new nation-building projects. Carney fails to acknowledge why building big things is more difficult.
Decades ago, countries everywhere did big things. From building railroads that criss-crossed countries to massive factory complexes to process the materials from giant mines, damming rivers with hydro dams, to clear cutting and drilling into the earth. Massive infrastructure projects like subways, highways, and bridges, were all easy to build. Need a new highway, no problem – draw a line on a map and go. But there is a problem with that kind of development – zero consultation.
A politician or administrator had a great idea for the next big thing, and poof – things started. A couple rich guys wanted to build a new railroad or a plant, government money rained down on them, and damn those affected by whatever the scheme was.
One example of this is our rail infrastructure. Between 1900 and 1919, there was massive government support to build two more national railways to open the west and compete with Canadian Pacific. Millions were funneled to big business owners to lay rails across the country – too many rails. First nations communities were moved, land bulldozed, and rails laid. Once the Great War hit, money dried up and those two great schemes were exposed for what they were. In the post war recession, the two entities were bankrupted, nationalized and owned by us for over 75 years.
Where I live, nine villages were wiped out, one more was relocated, and one was partly relocated for a massive hydro-electric dam project and shipping project, the St. Lawrence Seaway.
More than 6,500 people were moved, homes relocated or destroyed, centuries of history wiped out, all with the government running roughshod over people’s rights, land ownership, and with meager compensation for many. Consultation amounted to some public meetings, expropriation notices in the local papers, and communities lost. What people received in return was empty promises of economic prosperity, and decades of sorting out the messes made by the federal and provincial governments – a task that in some ways is still ongoing 70 years later.
These are not isolated stories. It happened all over because that was the way things were done. No one considered minority rights, property rights, the environmental impact, heritage concerns, or the long-term cost of a project. Get those shovels into the ground like yesterday!
The pendulum has swung. Environmental and heritage assessments matter now. Economic impact, jobs, culture, and land rights matter as well. Consultation with stakeholders, whether that’s local residents, First Nations, or businesses, matters.
In many cases, bureaucracy has pushed that pendulum too far. Duplication of processes, disputes over government jurisdiction, and petty politics draw project time lines out far longer than needed. Sometimes to the point that the project is abandoned. Reforming that requires communication and agreement: a framework between everyone involved. Carney’s Bill C-5 didn’t help with this. Nor did Doug Ford’s Ontario equivalent.
A yearning for the past ability to build big things should raise alarms for anyone who could be affected by big things. What some call roadblocks, others call protections. And while they do not work well at times, they are needed.
Worthwhile big things should be tough to build. There should be scrutiny and accountability because large-scale projects are nearly irreversible.
This column was originally published in the September 17, 2025 print edition of the Morrisburg Leader.
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