Sydney Steel Corporation
Encyclopedia
Sydney Steel Corporation (SYSCO) was a Crown corporation in the Canadian
province of Nova Scotia
.
in 1901 by American investors. This entity was named Dominion Iron and Steel Company Limited (DISCO) and was a subsidiary to the Dominion Coal Company Limited (DOMCO). DOMCO coal was used to create coke
to fuel the blast furnace
s for smelting iron ore which arrived from Bell Island in Newfoundland
.
In 1920, DOMCO (and its DISCO subsidiary) merged with the Nova Scotia Steel and Coal Company (SCOTIA) to form the British Empire Steel Corporation (BESCO). In 1930, BESCO reorganized as Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation
(DOSCO). In 1957, DOSCO was purchased by A.V. Roe Canada
, which was later purchased and made a subsidiary of Hawker Siddeley Canada
in 1962.
In response to a vast public outcry in industrial Cape Breton County, the Minority government
of Prime Minister Lester Pearson announced J.R. Donald would head a Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Cape Breton coal industry, with hearings held in 1965 and 1966. The Donald Commission recommended that a federal Crown corporation be established to acquire and manage DOSCO's coal operations, with the aim being to slowly wean the Sydney area economy off the coal industry.
On July 7, 1967 the Cape Breton Development Corporation
, or DEVCO, was established to operate the mines in the interim, while phasing them out throughout the 1970s and, at the same time, develop new economic opportunities for the surrounding communities.
On March 30, 1968 DEVCO expropriated DOSCO's coal mines and the Sydney and Louisburg Railway
, settling for a payment of $12 million. The federal government's plans to gradually shut down coal operations during the 1970s were derailed by rising world energy prices and changes in political priorities. Similarly, the provincial government's 1-year temporary commitment to transitioning ownership of the steel mill from DOSCO turned into a 33-year commitment, adding over $1 billion to the cash-strapped province's debt.
SYSCO became a political football
for economically depressed Industrial Cape Breton
and no provincial government dared to shut it down, opting instead to use heavily-subsidized federally produced DEVCO coal for coking fuel to continue running the antiquated mill. Over time, the provincial government gave limited capital investments to SYSCO from the late 1970s into the early 1980s. In the mid-1980s the provincial government of premier John Buchanan
decided to modernize the steel mill prior to selling it to the private sector. This modernization changed the steel making process from a fully integrated oxygen blast plant using iron ore into an electric arc mini mill using scrap steel. The blast process fuelled by coke was mothballed in favour of using electricity to smelt the scrap recycled metal brought in by rail.
Finally, the Progressive Conservative government of John Hamm
opted to sever provincial funding for the company entirely upon being elected in 1999. In July 2001, it was announced that SYSCO's mini mill was being sold to an India
n company named Zoom Developers who planned to dismantle it and ship it overseas.
Despite worker protests, SYSCO's steel production was shut down that year and the workers have been helping to dismantle the entire facility for site remediation.
The coke ovens used in Sydney were located across Victoria Road from the steel mill and since 1967 were operated by the federal Crown corporation DEVCO, which also operated the mines that produced the coal supply. The associated run-off from these coke ovens over a period of 85 years ended up in the Muggah Creek tidal estuary downhill from the coke ovens and adjacent to the steel mill, creating the Sydney Tar Ponds
.
The Tar Ponds are one of the largest environmental hazards in Canada and are currently planned for remediation under a controversial joint federal-provincial project.
Canada
Canada 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...
province of Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova 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...
.
Steel comes to Sydney
An integrated steel mill was established on the southeast side of Sydney Harbour in the Whitney Pier neighbourhood of Sydney, Nova ScotiaSydney, Nova Scotia
Sydney is a Canadian urban community in the province of Nova Scotia. It is situated on the east coast of Cape Breton Island and is administratively part of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality....
in 1901 by American investors. This entity was named Dominion Iron and Steel Company Limited (DISCO) and was a subsidiary to the Dominion Coal Company Limited (DOMCO). DOMCO coal was used to create coke
Coke (fuel)
Coke is the solid carbonaceous material derived from destructive distillation of low-ash, low-sulfur bituminous coal. Cokes from coal are grey, hard, and porous. While coke can be formed naturally, the commonly used form is man-made.- History :...
to fuel the blast furnace
Blast furnace
A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally iron.In a blast furnace, fuel and ore and flux are continuously supplied through the top of the furnace, while air is blown into the bottom of the chamber, so that the chemical reactions...
s for smelting iron ore which arrived from Bell Island in Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland 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...
.
In 1920, DOMCO (and its DISCO subsidiary) merged with the Nova Scotia Steel and Coal Company (SCOTIA) to form the British Empire Steel Corporation (BESCO). In 1930, BESCO reorganized as Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation
Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation
The Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation was a Canadian coal mining and steel manufacturing company.Incorporated in 1928 and operational in 1930, DOSCO was predated by the British Empire Steel Corporation which was a merger of the Dominion Coal Company, the Dominion Iron and Steel Company and the...
(DOSCO). In 1957, DOSCO was purchased by A.V. Roe Canada
Avro Canada
Commonly known as Avro Canada, this company started in 1945 as an aircraft plant and became within thirteen years the third-largest company in Canada, one of the largest 100 companies in the world, and directly employing over 50,000...
, which was later purchased and made a subsidiary of Hawker Siddeley Canada
Hawker Siddeley Canada
Hawker Siddeley Canada was the Canadian unit of the Hawker Siddeley Group of the United Kingdom and manufactured railcars, subway cars, streetcars, aircraft engines and ships from the 1960s to 1980s.-History:...
in 1962.
Donald Commission
Hawker Siddeley sought to eliminate money losing operations and in 1965, DOSCO announced that its mines had only 15 years of production left and concluded that the cost of opening new underground mines in the Sydney Coal Field would be too expensive. The company made its intentions clear that it would be exiting the coal mining business within months. DOSCO's continued operation of its steel mill, lacking modernization and far removed from the steel markets of the midwest and central Canada, was tentative at best.In response to a vast public outcry in industrial Cape Breton County, the Minority government
Minority government
A minority government or a minority cabinet is a cabinet of a parliamentary system formed when a political party or coalition of parties does not have a majority of overall seats in the parliament but is sworn into government to break a Hung Parliament election result. It is also known as a...
of Prime Minister Lester Pearson announced J.R. Donald would head a Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Cape Breton coal industry, with hearings held in 1965 and 1966. The Donald Commission recommended that a federal Crown corporation be established to acquire and manage DOSCO's coal operations, with the aim being to slowly wean the Sydney area economy off the coal industry.
-
- "Future planning should be based on the assumption that the Sydney mines will not operate beyond 1981."
On July 7, 1967 the Cape Breton Development Corporation
Cape Breton Development Corporation
The Cape Breton Development Corporation, or DEVCO, was a Canadian federal government Crown corporation. It ceased operation on December 31, 2009, after being amalgamated with Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation ....
, or DEVCO, was established to operate the mines in the interim, while phasing them out throughout the 1970s and, at the same time, develop new economic opportunities for the surrounding communities.
Nationalization
On December 1, 1967, the provincial government established Sydney Steel Corporation (SYSCO) under an act of the provincial legislature to operate DOSCO's steel mill for a period of 12 months until the steel mill could be resold to another private operator.On March 30, 1968 DEVCO expropriated DOSCO's coal mines and the Sydney and Louisburg Railway
Sydney and Louisburg Railway
The Sydney and Louisburg Railway is a historic Canadian railway. Built to transport coal from various mines to the ports of Sydney and Louisbourg, the S&L operated in the eastern part of Cape Breton County, Nova Scotia...
, settling for a payment of $12 million. The federal government's plans to gradually shut down coal operations during the 1970s were derailed by rising world energy prices and changes in political priorities. Similarly, the provincial government's 1-year temporary commitment to transitioning ownership of the steel mill from DOSCO turned into a 33-year commitment, adding over $1 billion to the cash-strapped province's debt.
SYSCO became a political football
Political football
A political football is a political topic or issue that is continually debated but left unresolved. The term is used often during a political election campaign to highlight issues that have not been completely addressed, such as the natural environment and abortion.There are many reasons that an...
for economically depressed Industrial Cape Breton
Industrial Cape Breton
Industrial Cape Breton is a geographic region in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. It refers to the eastern portion of Cape Breton County fronting the Atlantic Ocean on the southeastern part of Cape Breton Island.-Geography:...
and no provincial government dared to shut it down, opting instead to use heavily-subsidized federally produced DEVCO coal for coking fuel to continue running the antiquated mill. Over time, the provincial government gave limited capital investments to SYSCO from the late 1970s into the early 1980s. In the mid-1980s the provincial government of premier John Buchanan
John Buchanan
John MacLennan Buchanan, PC, QC is a Canadian lawyer and former politician who served as the 20th Premier of Nova Scotia from 1978 to 1990 and as a member of the Senate of Canada from 1990 to 2006.-Early life:...
decided to modernize the steel mill prior to selling it to the private sector. This modernization changed the steel making process from a fully integrated oxygen blast plant using iron ore into an electric arc mini mill using scrap steel. The blast process fuelled by coke was mothballed in favour of using electricity to smelt the scrap recycled metal brought in by rail.
Closure
With no purchasers from the private sector and tumultuous steel markets during the 1990s, the provincial government began to seek ways to rid itself of SYSCO. Numerous proposals for sale to foreign and domestic companies came and went, raising and lowering the hopes of Sydney and its surrounding area each time announcements were made and then promises broken.Finally, the Progressive Conservative government of John Hamm
John Hamm
John Frederick Hamm, is a Canadian physician and politician and was the 25th Premier of Nova Scotia, Canada.Hamm, a graduate of the University of King's College and Dalhousie University, was a family doctor in his hometown of Stellarton, Nova Scotia, and the president of the Nova Scotia Medical...
opted to sever provincial funding for the company entirely upon being elected in 1999. In July 2001, it was announced that SYSCO's mini mill was being sold to an India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n company named Zoom Developers who planned to dismantle it and ship it overseas.
Despite worker protests, SYSCO's steel production was shut down that year and the workers have been helping to dismantle the entire facility for site remediation.
Environmental legacy
Until the mid-1980s, SYSCO along with its predecessors, Hawker-Siddley, DOSCO, BESCO, and DOMCO/DISCO, was a user of coke as a fuel for the mill's blast furnaces. Coke is produced by slowly baking coal, evaporating or leaching out various liquids in the process.The coke ovens used in Sydney were located across Victoria Road from the steel mill and since 1967 were operated by the federal Crown corporation DEVCO, which also operated the mines that produced the coal supply. The associated run-off from these coke ovens over a period of 85 years ended up in the Muggah Creek tidal estuary downhill from the coke ovens and adjacent to the steel mill, creating the Sydney Tar Ponds
Sydney Tar Ponds
The Sydney Tar Ponds are a hazardous waste site on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada.Located on the eastern shore of Sydney Harbour in the former city of Sydney , the Tar Ponds form a tidal estuary at the mouth of Muggah Creek, a freshwater stream that empties into the harbour...
.
The Tar Ponds are one of the largest environmental hazards in Canada and are currently planned for remediation under a controversial joint federal-provincial project.