Stop the sale of this public coastal ecosystem to private interests
I was surprised to read in the Jan. 18 article, “Grit candidates graded on the environment,” that Iain Rankin is the Liberal leadership candidate favoured by the Ecology Action Centre (EAC).
If actions rather than words were to be evaluated, surely the EAC would have to change its opinion.
Continue reading “LTE: Deeds don’t match words by Richard Holt”Please click to enlarge.
Data sources:
Significant Species and Habitats Database (Incomplete), NSLNF (2007);
NS Landscape Resilience, S. Bale (2017);
Parks and Protected Areas Plan, NS Environment (2020);
NS Lands Proposed or Pending Protection, NSLNF (2020)
Caption:
Owls Head Provincial Park is a gem of Nova Scotia, containing a variety of ecosystems, including heathlands, salt marshes, bogs, freshwater lakes, and estuaries. This habitat diversity makes it a haven for at-risk species, including the Barn Swallow and Piping Plover. Owls Head Provincial Park had been awaiting protection for decades. However, in 2019, the NS Liberal government removed it from the ‘Pending Protected Area’ list so that this ecological treasure could be sold and developed. The fate of the park remains uncertain, but thousands of Nova Scotians continue to give their time, money, and energy to save it.
It is out of that love that we are dedicating this issue to a plea for the people of Nova Scotia to stop our Liberal government from deliberately committing a terrible crime. The Liberals are doing the bidding of a wealthy American billionaire and his “Lighthouse Links” company who propose turning Owls Head Provincial Park into a gated billionaire bunker housing project for the ultra-wealthy, with a couple of golf courses on the side. The Liberals’ endorsement of this scam is an assault on both the body politic and the rocky bones of the body of the province itself.
Continue reading “Premier Candidates Should Save Owls Head Provincial Park”
Robert Devet
The Nova Scotia Advocate
January 6, 2021
KJIPUKTUK (Halifax) – Jacob Fillmore, the young man camping out on the Grand Parade across from Halifax city hall in support of the threatened mainland moose in Western Nova Scotia has been told by city staff to leave within a day or so.
… Jacob started camping out here three weeks ago, after spending time with the forest protectors deep in the woods of Digby County. When he returned to Halifax he felt that continuing the protest in downtown Halifax would be the best way to keep the threatened mainland moose in the public eye.
And it’s not just the moose, he is equally upset about what’s happening with Owls Head, and the state of Nova Scotia’s threatened species altogether, he says. On his Facebook page he talks about his support for the water protectors fighting Alton Gas.
Continue reading “After three weeks of camping out, lone protester told to leave Grand Parade”
It’s mind-boggling trying to think of where to begin in response to Bill Black’s Jan. 2 column on Iain Rankin and his bid for the provincial Liberal leadership.
Therefore, I will limit myself to the quoted statement that Mr. Rankin doesn’t see any reason why an environmentally sensitive golf course couldn’t be built at Owls Head. He refers to the “local support” for said golf course.
Continue reading “LTE: Rankin Off Course by Karen Schlick”I read with interest and, I must admit, alarm your article regarding the Owls Head proposal. Juxtaposing this development with the major concerns around the Town Point Consulting (TPC) project in Antigonish Harbour, it appears clear that a pattern is emerging.
In both instances, developers proceeded with projects harmful to the environment, without adequate prior public notification or consultation, but with the full knowledge of the Department of Lands and Forestry. In the case of (TPC), the company laid pipes in the harbour without required permits. In the case of Owls Head, Lands and Forestry Minister Iain Rankin delisted 285 hectares of protected Crown property and then entered into very private negotiations with the Gilbert family to purchase this land with a view to building two or three 18-hole golf courses.