The
Strait of Belle Isle , sometimes referred to as
Straits of Belle Isle or
Labrador Straits) is a waterway in eastern
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
that separates the
Labrador PeninsulaThe Labrador Peninsula is a large peninsula in eastern Canada. It is bounded by the Hudson Bay to the west, the Hudson Strait to the north, the Labrador Sea to the east, and the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the south-east...
from the island of
Newfoundland, in the province of
Newfoundland and LabradorNewfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
.
The strait is approximately 125 kilometres long and ranges from a maximum width of 60 km to just 15 km at it narrowest, the average width being 18 km.
Navigation in the strait can be extremely hazardous with strong tidal currents interacting with the
Labrador CurrentThe Labrador Current is a cold current in the North Atlantic Ocean which flows from the Arctic Ocean south along the coast of Labrador and passes around Newfoundland, continuing south along the east coast of Nova Scotia...
, depths reaching several hundred metres in places, sea ice for 8–10 months of the year, and variable weather conditions including gales and fog.
The strait is the northern outlet for the
Gulf of Saint LawrenceThe Gulf of Saint Lawrence , the world's largest estuary, is the outlet of North America's Great Lakes via the Saint Lawrence River into the Atlantic Ocean...
, the other two being the
Cabot StraitCabot Strait is a strait in eastern Canada approximately 110 kilometres wide between Cape Ray, Newfoundland and Cape North, Cape Breton Island. It is the widest of the three outlets for the Gulf of Saint Lawrence into the Atlantic Ocean, the others being the Strait of Belle Isle and Strait of Canso...
and
Strait of CansoThe Strait of Canso , is a strait located in the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. It divides the Nova Scotia peninsula from Cape Breton Island....
. As such, it is also considered part of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway system. While sea ice prevents year-round shipping, the
Canadian Coast GuardThe Canadian Coast Guard is the coast guard of Canada. It is a federal agency responsible for providing maritime search and rescue , aids to navigation, marine pollution response, marine radio, and icebreaking...
maintains a
vessel traffic serviceA vessel traffic service is a marine traffic monitoring system established by harbour or port authorities, similar to air traffic control for aircraft...
(VTS) to ensure collisions do not occur.
The name is derived from
Belle IsleBelle Isle is an uninhabited island just off the coast of Labrador and north of Newfoundland at the Atlantic entrance to the Strait of Belle Isle which takes its name...
(Beautiful Island), located at the extreme eastern end of the strait and roughly equidistant between Table Head,
LabradorLabrador is the distinct, northerly region of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It comprises the mainland portion of the province, separated from the island of Newfoundland by the Strait of Belle Isle...
, and
Cape BauldCape Bauld is a headland located at the northeasternmost point of Great Northern Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador....
,
Newfoundland.
A seasonal
ferryA ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
service (April through January) operates at the western part of strait between
St. BarbeSt. Barbe is a settlement in Newfoundland and Labrador. It is located on the northwestern peninsula of the island of Newfoundland.It is connected by a ferry across the Strait of Belle Isle to Blanc-Sablon, Quebec...
, Newfoundland, and
Blanc SablonBlanc-Sablon, Quebec is the easternmost community in the province of Quebec, Canada, between the municipalities of Côte-Nord-du-Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent and L'Anse-au-Clair, in Labrador...
,
QuebecQuebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. New road construction for the
Trans-Labrador HighwayThe Trans-Labrador Highway is a Canadian highway located in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the primary public road in Labrador and one of the few in that part of the province....
resulted in the removal of ferry services to
outportsAn outport is the term given for a small isolated coastal community in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Originally the term was just used for coastal communities on the island of Newfoundland but the term has also been adopted for those on the mainland area of Labrador as...
in the northeastern part of the strait in 2002.
The idea of building a fixed link across the strait between Labrador and Newfoundland, known as the
Newfoundland-Labrador fixed linkThe Newfoundland-Labrador fixed link refers to various proposals for constructing a fixed link consisting of bridges, tunnels, and/or causeways across the Strait of Belle Isle, connecting the province of Newfoundland and Labrador's mainland Labrador region with the island of Newfoundland...
, has been raised numerous times in recent decades following an unsuccessful attempt to build a tunnel carrying electrical wires in the mid-1970s. If such a link were built, it would likely be a 17-km-long submerged
railRail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
tunnel. The proposal is meant to reduce the province's reliance upon the
Marine AtlanticMarine Atlantic Inc. is an independent Canadian Crown corporation offering ferry services between the provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia.Marine Atlantic's corporate headquarters are in St...
ferry service to
Nova ScotiaNova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
, but the project's high costs and lack of suitable road network between Labrador and Quebec have been cited as major obstacles. The October 2003 provincial election resulted in the newly elected
PCFor pre-1949 Conservative parties see Conservative parties in Newfoundland The Progressive Conservative Party of Newfoundland and Labrador is a centre-right provincial political party in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Originally founded in 1949 the party has formed the Government of...
government announcing joint federal-provincial funding for a study of the concept, which was promptly derided by
The EconomistThe Economist is an English-language weekly news and international affairs publication owned by The Economist Newspaper Ltd. and edited in offices in the City of Westminster, London, England. Continuous publication began under founder James Wilson in September 1843...
.
Leiv Eriksson called the strait
Straumsfjord.
External links