Articles

Judicial review sought after Crown land removed from list of pending protected areas

The Canadian Press Staff
Published by Global News
Originally from The Canadian Press
August 18, 2020

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HALIFAX – The lawyer for a retired biologist and an environmental group is seeking judicial review of Nova Scotia’s decision to remove a section of Crown land along the province’s Eastern Shore from a list of pending protected areas.

Jamie Simpson said Tuesday his clients will make an initial appearance in Nova Scotia Supreme Court Sept. 23.

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By Save Owls Head, ago

Judge Grants Extension to Apply for Judicial Review into Owls Head Decision

Stuart Peddle
The Chronicle Herald
August 5, 2020

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HALIFAX, N.S. — A Nova Scotia Supreme Court judge has granted opponents of the province’s decision to delist Owls Head as a provincial park reserve an extension to file for a judicial review of the matter.

Justice Kevin Coady heard arguments from Jamie Simpson, the lawyer for Bob Bancroft and the Eastern Shore Forest Watch Association, on June 29. They were seeking permission to file their review application even though the six-month time limit to file after the decision was made had passed.

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By Save Owls Head, ago

N.S. Supreme Court Grants Environmentalists More Time to Appeal Cabinet Decision

Battle is over Owls Head, a 285-hectare piece of Crown land on Nova Scotia’s Eastern Shore

Blair Rhodes
CBC News
August 5, 2020

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In a decision released Wednesday, Nova Scotia Supreme Court Justice Kevin Coady granted Bancroft and the forest watch association more time to file their request for a judicial review.

“The Applicants have a reasonable excuse for the delay,” Justice Coady wrote.

Coady added that the applicants “will suffer prejudice if the extension is not granted” but the respondent “will suffer little prejudice” if it is.

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By Save Owls Head, ago

Once a leader in conservation, N.S. now falls behind, report finds

Nova Scotia was once considered to be a leader in Canada for the creation of new protected areas, but in a new report, the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) says that’s no longer the case.

“Owls Head is probably the most egregious example we have seen this year of the Nova Scotia government showing their disregard for our protected areas in this province,” she says. “Here is a coastal gem on the eastern shore, that has been recognized as a significant conservation site for decades, and the government was all too comfortable secretly delisting the site without consultation.”

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By Save Owls Head, ago

RICHARD BELL: Owls Head Dancing on the Head of a Pin

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Richard Bell
Eastern Shore Cooperator
July 13, 2020

At a hearing before Supreme Court Judge Kevin Coady on June 29, opponents of the province’s plan to destroy Owls Head Provincial Park learned that the fate of the 600-plus acres of coastal land may hinge on the narrowest of legal points

On December 18, 2019, CBC’s Michael Gorman wrote that through a Freedom of Information request, he had learned that the Cabinet, acting on a request from the Department of Lands and Forestry, had delisted Owls Head Provincial Park on March 13, 2019, but had hidden the decision from the public.

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By Save Owls Head, ago

Supreme Court mulls whether to review controversial Owls Head decision

Taryn Grant 
CBC News
Jun 29, 2020 6:52 PM AT 

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Before the province’s lawyer, Jack Townsend, delivered his arguments to the court, Coady asked him why an extension should be fought, if the review was worthwhile.

“Don’t you think it’s always best to decide issues such as this on the merits, rather than on the procedural obstacles that can pop up because of people dragging their feet or inadvertence or complacency or something of that nature?” Coady said.

Province says a review ‘would be a waste of time’

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By Save Owls Head, ago