Letter to the Editor – Reader’s Corner
Contributed by Lindsay Lee
The Chronicle Herald
February 26, 2020
We Nova Scotians are losing access to our shores, as land the public has enjoyed for generations is sold to the highest bidder. Each time the provincial government sells the public’s coastal lands, it is also selling a crucial aspect of life in Nova Scotia.
Coastal ecosystems are severely underrepresented in Nova Scotia’s protected properties. International and Canadian targets both call for the conservation of 10 per cent of coastal areas by 2020. For Nova Scotians, the coast is often our backyard, our escape, our identity. And yet, only five per cent of our coastline is actually public and protected.
Our province also depends on the five per cent of the coastline that is publicly owned to provide vital habitats for wildlife and shorebirds, to protect endangered ecosystems, and to support our tourism industry. If only five per cent of our coast is public property now, what will remain for future generations? Will we still be Canada’s Ocean Playground if we lose our shores and coastal access?
Lindsay Lee
