Michael Harris is a writer, journalist, and documentary filmmaker. He was awarded a Doctor of Laws for his “unceasing pursuit of justice for the less fortunate among us.” His eight books include Justice Denied, Unholy Orders, Rare ambition, Lament for an Ocean, and Con Game. His work has sparked four commissions of inquiry, and three of his books have been made into movies. He is currently working on a book about the Harper majority government to be published in the autumn of 2014 by Penguin Canada.

HALIFAX — Ottawa’s controversial decision to close down the world-renowned research facility known as the Experimental Lakes Area may not be final, according to Manitoba premier Greg Selinger.

In an exclusive interview with iPolitics at the Council of the Federation (COF) meetings in Halifax, Premier Selinger said he had a “bilateral” meeting with federal Environment Minister Peter Kent at the recent Rio+20 Conference that left him with the impression that there was a “glimmer of hope” at the political level that Ottawa’s decision was not final.

“I met with Minister Kent in Brazil and he indicated something of an openness to reconsidering this decision,” Premier Selinger said.

The Manitoba premier and his environment minister are spearheading a “pan-Canadian” movement to save the ELA and to help restore Canada’s international reputation as a champion of world-class scientific research, which Selinger says has “really been diminished” by Ottawa’s dubious cost-cutting decision.

“The fact is, the ELA has helped save the Great Lakes, helped save Lake Winnipeg, by doing ground-breaking work on acid rain and phosphorous. This facility, which we are profoundly committed to rescuing, has produced tremendous benefits in North America and around the world.”

The federal government cut the ELA’s funding last spring, ostensibly as a contribution to balancing the budget. Despite claims by the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans and Environment Canada that Ottawa worked with its provincial partners in this matter, Premier Selinger says that both Manitoba, which houses the Freshwater Water Institute, and Ontario, where the 58 lakes of the experimental complex are located outside Kenora, were blindsided by the decision.

“We had no idea it was happening. We had no warning. This struck like a bolt out of the blue. We were shocked and so was Ontario. We were both blown away. After all, what could be more important that keeping our fresh water fresh?”

One of Premier Selinger’s greatest worries is what will happen to the scientific expertise operating out of facilities like the Freshwater Institute in Winnipeg, as well as the ELA complex itself, if Ottawa’s decision is allowed to stand.

“We’ve got a lot of great young scientists doing work in our province and I can tell you that everyone is very positive about the work they do, you can’t find anyone who is against the ELA. But if it closes, what happens to all that talent, all that expertise? I don’t think the federal government has thought this through.”

It is the same question that scientist Christopher Majka, a program co-ordinator for the Museum of Natural History in Nova Scotia worries about. Majka, who is attending the COF to speak to premiers on environmental issues, says that there are two dangers to closing a facility like the ELA.

“First, you lose all those seasoned scientists who have been working on these vital issues for years. Some go to the States, some to other places. But there is also the worry of all those young Ph.D’s who see their government downgrading science and eliminating their jobs. Some of those people get right out of the field. Some of those people become gardeners. That is a tragedy.”

Selinger disputes Ottawa’s stated reason for closing the ELA on financial grounds, pointing out that for modest funding, approximately $2-million annually, there is a huge dividend to Canadian society and the international community. When asked about claims from Environment Canada that recent experiments at the ELA had produced “disappointing” results, Premier Selinger quoted Winston Churchill.

“Churchill had it right when he said, ‘Success is moving from failure to failure with enthusiasm.’ That’s how science works. With every failed experiment something is learned. I don’t think Ottawa understands that.”

Since announcing the closure of the ELA, Ottawa has faced a backlash from both Canadian and international scientists. Two thousand scientists recently participated in a protest on Parliament Hill dubbed the Death of Evidence rally. Speakers like professor Jeff Hutchings of Dalhousie University denounced the government for yet another attack on science by closing a storied research facility, and protested the Harper government’s communications policy that effectively muzzles scientists from talking about their work to Canadians.

A group of young scientists and students also started an internet campaign to save the ELA and gathered nearly 3,000 signatures from Canada and around the world for their online petition. The group’s leader, Ph.D candidate Diane Orihel, has been lobbying the media and parliamentarians for months to take the case public.

Premier Selinger’s concerns about the Harper government’s go-it-alone approach to the ELA issue have been echoed by several other premiers on a variety of issues. Quebec premier Jean Charest said yesterday that he had never seen such unilateralism coming out of any federal government during his long, political career. Host premier Darrell Dexter told iPolitics that he is very concerned about the Harper government’s lack of consultation with the provinces before major decisions are taken.

“The outstanding question for me as Chair of the Council, is whether Canadians are being well-served by a federal government that isn’t meeting with the provinces … I believe there is great value in the two levels of government working together. In the end, we’re hoping for greater partnership and collaboration to improve Canadians’ lives.”

The prime minister has yet to respond to an invitation from the premiers to attend a first ministers meeting later this year to discuss the economy.

Readers can reach the author at [email protected]. Click here to view other columns by Michael Harris.

The views, opinions and positions expressed by all iPolitics columnists and contributors are the author’s alone. They do not inherently or expressly reflect the views, opinions and/or positions of iPolitics.