Region of Queens councillors want to try to find a way to resurrect the Coastal Protection Act. (File photo by Talla Corkum)

Region of Queens councillors want to work with other neighbouring municipalities to pressure the province to resurrect the Coastal Protection Act and possibly to come up with their own version.

The Nova Scotia government under Tim Houston killed the long-dormant Coastal Protection Act in February. Supporters of that legislation said it would beef up safeguards for coastal areas around Nova Scotia.

Instead, the province said it would pass that responsibility onto municipalities to come up with their own bylaws to protect the coast from development, climate change and other threats. It offered to create sample bylaws that municipalities could adapt.

But many municipalities say they don’t have the resources to enforce such wide-ranging rules.

District 3 Coun. Courtney Wentzell said he heard from a lot of residents during the municipal election campaign who were concerned about coastal protection. And he said it was clear from the recent provincial election that the province has no interest in taking it on.

He said he wants the Region of Queens to discuss banding together with other regions like the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg to come up with a common set of rules.

“Some of you might have witnessed the leadership debates where the government is not backing down on coastal protection, they’re leaving it to municipalities,” Wentzell said.

“The answers that I heard was that there is going to be assistance in the form of money or manpower to help municipalities create their own (bylaws). I think that’s the reality we’re dealing with. And I do think coastal protection is a big, big item with us. We all heard it on the campaign trail.”

The issue came up at a recent meeting of the Nova Scotia Federation of Municipalities.

NSFM President Pam Mood, who is also the mayor of Yarmouth, called on the re-elected Houston government to institute provincewide rules and enforcement.

Mayor Scott Christian said working with the federation to pressure the province is a good first step.

“The NSFM is an augmented voice, so it’s a lot stronger. If we join forces with the NSFM and say we need resources and support to enact an effective approach to the Coastal Protection Act. It’s an avenue we can explore to be supported throughout it. It’s not the entirety of the picture, but it’s an important first step.”

Queens councillors decided to write a letter of support to the federation, and to meet with other municipal politicians to come up with ways to enhance coastal protections.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Brian and Cathie Mourre live in Eagle Head. (Rick Conrad photo)

Nova Scotia’s coastline now has even less protection after the province announced Monday that the Coastal Protection Act is dead, some Queens County residents say.

Tim Halman, Nova Scotia’s minister of environment and climate change, announced the government would not proclaim the long-delayed act, effectively killing it.

The legislation was passed with all-party support in 2019. Instead, Halman introduced plans, tools and other legislation that would have property owners, municipalities and the province share responsibility for protecting coastal property.

He said the government wants to empower coastal property owners to make informed decisions. As part of that, the government introduced a new online coastal hazard map that shows projected sea levels, storm surges and flooding potential to the year 2100. 

Residents who have been waiting for stronger coastal protections were disappointed, but not surprised. Len Michalik lives in Eagle Head.

“I was somewhere between disappointed and vindicated in my thoughts that wow this is really where they’re going with this,” Michalik said. 

“They’ve kicked this can so far down the road that it’s in the ditch and unrecoverable. They promised they were in full support of this when in opposition. … And ever since they’ve come into power, they’ve done seemingly everything they can to make themselves look good while pushing it to the side.”

Michalik is part of the group Protecting Eagle Head Beach. 

It was formed in June 2022 when former Halifax mayor Peter Kelly bought a property on Eagle Head Beach and immediately blocked the road through the property which people used as one way onto the beach. The community was also upset that he was damaging the beach and wetlands on the property.

Despite many appeals to and meetings with Environment and Natural Resources officials, as well as with Queens MLA and Public Works Minister Kim Masland and her staff, the development was allowed to go ahead.

Cathie Mourre lives in Eagle Head. She is also a member of Protecting Eagle Head Beach. She said the Tories could have committed to enforcing current environment protections and making them stronger with the new act.

 “But instead they took the easy way out and put it in our hands. We’re not experts, we don’t know how to protect the coastline.”

Mourre said she’s worried that more of that job will now fall to smaller municipalities like Queens, who have limited resources.

“And the thing is Nova Scotia is a coastal province. So what happens in the municipality of Queens isn’t necessarily the same that’s going to happen in the municipality of Lunenburg. So we have two coastlines butting up against one another and we’ve got two different sets of rules, well that’s crazy.

“The municipality had bylaws set out and we know they didn’t follow them. The Environment (department) has tons of rules. They didn’t follow their own rules.”

Region of Queens Mayor Darlene Norman joined 11 other municipalities last year calling on the government to enact the new legislation. 

She said that while she is disappointed, the region’s municipal planning strategy and land use bylaw, passed in 2022, has some of the strongest protections in the province.

She said she’s more concerned with neighbouring municipalities like Shelburne or the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg having minimal or weaker protections. The Coastal Protection Act would have levelled the playing field across the province.

Mourre says she believes property owners should be able to build on their own land. But they should be forced to follow the rules.

In the meantime, she says she wants a moratorium on coastal development. 

“And permitting on a beach is totally different than permitting in a subdivision,” she says.

“So when this permitting along the coastline happens, (staff) should be getting out from behind their desks and they should be going and looking at the piece of land that people want ot develop. It’s as simple as that.”

Michalik says he’d like to see the municipality resurrect and integrate the Coastal Protection Act into its own bylaws.

“However, I have my doubts that that will happen. We don’t have the resources or the manpower to actually do the investigation, do the research and do all the enforcement on it. I hope for the best but I fear the worst.”

Both Michalik and Mourre said, however, that maybe this will spur more people to pressure governments to do more to protect Nova Scotia’s coastline.

“We’re also in danger of having our licence plate motto which is known across the country and around the world, Canada’s Ocean Playground, is going to become the playground for those who can afford it. 

“The rest of us are going to have to stay in our designated areas and keep quiet.”

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

Eagle Head Beach construction. Photo Ed Halverson

Residents around Eagle Head Beach are sounding the alarm about the ecological impacts of a new house being built just off the dunes.

Since construction began earlier this month access to the beach has been cut off by construction equipment.

A group of beach users has formed a Facebook page called Protecting Eagle Head Beach to share information and raise awareness of the changes being made to the natural environment.

One of the Administrators of the page Talla Corkum says they’re hoping to see more concrete action taken to save the beach.

“Making sure all the permits are there, even seeing if there’s a way we can get a stop-work order.”

Corkum says the group is not only concerned about the changes to the environment but also the loss of access to the beach.

She says the large trucks coming and going are destroying the road and once the new house is built it will essentially become a driveway barring people from accessing the beach from the Eagle Head wharf side.

“Trying to prove the right of way and regain the right of way onto the beach. Especially now with the ruts that have created these big puddles, we have now lost access, walking access, to the beach from the side on Eagle Head Wharf Rd,” said Corkum. “Unless you wear boots up to your knees you can’t really get down there anymore.”

Heavy equipment blocks the road to Eagle Head Beach. Photo Ed Halverson

Region of Queens Mayor Darlene Norman spoke with officials at the provincial public works department and learned the road was previously recognized but that may not be enough to prove the existing road is public.

“They believe there was and I know it shows on a church map from 1886 but as we all know, beaches are constantly moving and sand beaches are constantly moving back,” said Norman.

In 2019 the province passed the Coastal Protection Act to help ensure that new development happens high enough and back far enough to be safe from coastal flooding and erosion as well as preventing unnecessary interference with Nova Scotia’s coast.

The act is now waiting on regulations to be drafted before it will be enforced.

A spokesperson for the Department of Environment and Climate Change says this a huge piece of work that requires extensive collaboration, in additional to the consultations that’s already been completed.

Government anticipates the new regulations will be ready in 2023.

Corkum says if the Coastal Protection Act had been in place, none of this would have happened.

She says the group will press on with letter writing campaigns and contacting elected representatives, department officials and environmental groups in the hopes of getting someone to put a stop to the development before too much of the property is permanently altered.

However, she fears what happened to Eagle Head Beach may end up being a warning for other coastal areas in Nova Scotia.

“From this point now, we’re realizing that there might not be so much capabilities of saving Eagle Head Beach. Now we are more just using this as grounds to help other coastal areas in Nova Scotia. To try and make our voices heard. Maybe get the bill moving faster. Maybe even, another community will learn from us and we can help them. Just generally trying to protect the coast, especially now considering when you drive down the highway it says Queens Coast and there’s a lot of issues around the coast,” said Corkum. “I know that if we are the ones to make our voices heard it might prevent other people from in-filling, knowing where the community stands.”

Reported by Ed Halverson 
E-mail: edhalversonnews@gmail.com
Twitter: @edwardhalverson

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