Cancelled Canadian radar program is Sri Lanka's gain

A high-tech radar capable of monitoring small boats operated by drug dealers and terrorists and developed with Canadian tax dollars is being installed in Sri Lanka after the federal government decided it couldn't use the system.

The high-frequency surface wave radar, developed at a cost of $39-million by Ottawa defence scientists and Raytheon Canada Limited, had been hailed several years ago by federal officials as the only one of its kind in the world and a major boost for domestic security.

The federal government set aside $43-million to build and operate eight radar sites on the East and West Coasts as part of its push to improve security in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks on the U.S.

But the government has shut down the existing experimental radar sites in Newfoundland and the program has been cancelled. The project was derailed after one complaint was received that the radar interfered with civilian communications. The experimental radars had been operating for 10 years without a complaint.

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