Centre for Environmental Genomics Applications (CEGA) Officially Opens in St. John’s

June 7, 2017 – St. John’s (NL) – Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency

A research centre focused on the use of genomics for environmental assessment and monitoring opened its doors today. An investment of close to $3 million from the Government of Canada through the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) in eDNAtec Inc. is supporting the establishment of the Centre for Environmental Genomics Applications (CEGA), as well as the development of a new DNA-based methodology for environmental monitoring of industrial projects, especially as it relates to oil and gas operations. This facility is the first of its kind in the world.

Environmental genomics is the study of genes to characterize biological components of the environment. It is a novel application of genomics that has the potential to enhance or replace conventional approaches to biological analysis in Environmental Assessment and Monitoring (EA&M) programs.

The federal funding was announced today by Nick Whalen, Member of Parliament for St. John’s East, on behalf of the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA).

The investment from ACOA is provided through the Atlantic Innovation Fund (AIF), which encourages partnerships among private sector firms, universities, colleges and other research institutions to develop and commercialize new or improved products and services.

Canada’s Innovation and Skills Plan aims to make this country a global centre for innovation—one that creates jobs, drives growth across all industries and improves the lives of all Canadians. Investments in these projects demonstrate the Government of Canada’s new approach to economic development through innovation.

Over the next five years, all six regional development agencies across Canada, including ACOA, will invest a total of $1.5 billion to strengthen innovation capacity and economic growth in each region. Part of these investments will go towards supporting projects such as the one announced today, that are adopting new technologies to boost innovation capacity and competitiveness.

Other partners in this project include the Hibernia Management and Development Company Ltd. (HMDC), the Research & Development Corporation (RDC) and Petroleum Research Newfoundland & Labrador (PRNL).