Matheson Point DEW Line Station

Military Conversion and Technological Obsolescence. The station was closed as part of the transition from the Distant Early Warning (DEW) Line to the more modern and automated North Warning System (NWS). The NWS utilized superior long-range radar technology which required fewer sites, making the numerous, closely-spaced intermediate stations like Matheson Point redundant. The end of the Cold War also reduced the perceived threat of a Soviet bomber attack, which the DEW line was designed to detect, further justifying the decommissioning of older, high-maintenance facilities.

Abandoned and Remediated. Following its closure, the site was abandoned for several years. Like other DEW Line stations, it contained significant environmental contaminants, including PCBs, lead-based paint, asbestos, and thousands of rusting fuel drums. Between the late 1990s and the 2000s, Matheson Point was subject to the comprehensive DEW Line Clean-Up Project, a multi-billion dollar initiative managed by Canada's Department of National Defence. Under this project, all buildings were demolished, hazardous materials were removed and disposed of, contaminated soils were remediated, and the site was restored to a near-natural state. The airstrip is no longer maintained and is considered unusable. The site is now remote, unpopulated, and has no active infrastructure.

Matheson Point was an Intermediate DEW Line station, designated CAM-3. It was part of the Cambridge Bay Main Sector (CAM-M) in the Canadian Arctic. Constructed between 1955 and 1957, the DEW Line was a chain of over 60 radar and communication stations running across the 69th parallel, designed to provide early warning of a potential Soviet air attack over the North Pole. As an 'intermediate' or 'gap-filler' station, CAM-3's primary role was to use its AN/FPS-19 doppler radar to detect low-flying aircraft in the gaps between the more powerful radars of the larger Main and Auxiliary stations. The site was staffed by a small crew of 4-5 technicians and support personnel. The associated airstrip, a short gravel runway approximately 3,200 feet long, was critical for its operation, enabling the delivery of personnel, food, fuel, and equipment, typically by smaller STOL aircraft like the Douglas C-47 Skytrain or de Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou.

None. There are no known plans or prospects for reopening the Matheson Point station or its airstrip. Its original military purpose is obsolete, and its extremely remote location on the Adelaide Peninsula in Nunavut offers no civilian, commercial, or strategic value that would warrant the immense cost of rebuilding infrastructure and re-establishing operations.