AULAC, N.B. - A research facility that will study wetlands and waterfowl was officially opened Wednesday near the border of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper was among a large contingent of federal and provincial politicians in attendance at the Beaubassin Research Station in Aulac, N.B.

The facility is located in the Beausejour Marshes and is operated as a partnership between Acadia University, Irving Oil Ltd. and Ducks Unlimited Canada.

"The Beaubassin Research Station will allow leading conservationists to collaborate on wetland and waterfowl issues that are of the utmost significance, both to our history and to our future," said Tom Worden, president of Ducks Unlimited.

"This station is indeed a meeting place, where researchers and conservationists will hold many more reunions to develop an internationally recognized centre for coastal wetlands research and historical discovery, which will lead to the conservation of this beautiful coastal habitat for generations to come."

That includes research on salt marsh restoration as a buffer to high tides and storm surges.

The station will also do historical research on the area, which was a major Acadian settlement in the 17th and 18th centuries.

"It is gratifying that the Beaubassin area is starting this new and exciting chapter in its history," Harper told the crowd.

"This great partnership of industry, academia and the environmental community worked together at significant cost to revitalize this important and historic site.

"They built this research station, they restored these wetlands, and they did so without federal or provincial funds."

The Beaubassin facility includes more than 400 hectares of coastal lands.

Later in the day, Harper travelled to nearby Amherst, N.S., to attend a barbecue for Conservative MP Scott Armstrong.

He spoke on the record of his government and efforts to strengthen the economy.

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