N.S. moves step closer to protecting 20% of its land and water by 2030

The Nova Scotia government announced plans Monday to protect 9,300 hectares of Crown land by creating six new nature reserves and expanding seven wilderness areas.

In the Halifax area, the government is creating a new 800-hectare Sackville River Wilderness Area.

"Land conservation is essential for Nova Scotia's environmental health, economic growth and prosperity," Environment Minister Tim Halman told a jubilant crowd gathered at the Springfield Lake Recreation Centre in Middle Sackville on Monday.

No one was more excited to hear the news than past president of the Sackville Rivers Association, Walter Regan, who led the group in an impromptu cheer before he addressed them.

 "Ready, hooray, ready, hooray!", said Regan. "Unbelievable. I never thought this day would happen."

"Today we are preserving land because there's not much land left to preserve and every acre counts and that's why the Sackville River Wilderness area is so important," he said.

"It is indeed a Christmas come early for us", said Regan. "This will be Upper Sackville's first provincial park." 

Halman says the new nature reserves and expanded wilderness areas will help the province reach its goal of protecting 20 per cent of Nova Scotia's land and water by 2030. The latest designations bring the amount of protected areas to 13 per cent.

The minister says protected areas play an essential role in fighting climate change and help conserve the province's biodiversity.

"There is still lots of work ahead of us," Halman said in a statement. "The funding announced today will help our land conservation partners continue their important work and leadership."

Ray Plourde, wilderness co-ordinator for the Halifax-based Ecology Action Centre, said the Sackville River Wilderness Area will not only benefit those living near it.

"It's also an important wildlife corridor connector piece, with the rest of HRM and the Chebucto peninsula beyond it, connecting to the rest of the mainland," said Plourde. "And in Metro, it is the only salmon-bearing river left in the entire area flowing into Halifax harbour in the Bedford Basin."

Beyond designating land, Halman also announced the province would be topping up a trust fund by $20 million to help private conservation groups acquire land for protection.

Nova Scotia Nature Trust is one of the groups designated to draw from the account. Executive director Bonnie Sutherland said the money will help conservation groups buy more land.

"We can ramp up our efforts even more to help reverse biodiversity loss, to help protect 20 per cent by 2030, and to ensure that that 20 per cent includes the right lands, the most ecologically rich, diverse, endangered and most treasured lands through private land conservation," Sutherland said.

Another wilderness area slated for expansion is the Economy River Area in Colchester and Cumberland counties which will grow by 5,495 hectares.