You won’t be able to go birdwatching anymore… At least, that was one of the spurious claims that the Concerned Private Landowners Coalition publicized last month. The “coalition” (a smokescreen started by Forests Nova Scotia) stoked fears that the Biodiversity Act would prevent recreational pursuits, including snowshoeing, hiking, and birdwatching. Birdwatching? Yes, you read that right.

Well, bird-lovers should be concerned, but not for the reasons that Forests Nova Scotia has suggested. It’s biodiversity loss that’s the real threat – to both birds and those that love them.

There are 2.5 billion fewer migratory birds in North America today than there were in 1970. Even once-common species, like the evening grosbeak, are declining at unprecedented rates. 

We are enabling this crisis: one nest at a time.

The Department of Lands and Forestry tells us that there are 62 migratory species that spend time in Nova Scotia. What the Department doesn’t advertise is that forestry operations during peak nesting season have a severe and lasting impact on both native and migratory bird populations.

In theory, the Migratory Birds Convention Act should protect these birds, their nests, and their eggs from intentional or inadvertent harm. But Nova Scotia refuses to implement a “silent season.” 

In our woods, forestry activities continue unabated, resulting in “incidental take.” That’s a clinical term for all of the nests, eggs, birds, and fledgelings that are destroyed by forestry operations during nesting season.

A 2013 study estimated that forestry operations in our province destroy up to 160,000 nests each year.

It’s illegal. And it’s our collective responsibility to do better. It’s past time for Premier Rankin to implement a silent season. 

These species are worthy of protection for their own sake. But imagine: what would spring be like without the return of the endangered Canada warbler? Without American robins searching for worms to take back to the nest? Without the sweet songs of the hermit thrush?

Birds are widely recognized as indicators of overall ecosystem health. What does our disregard for their well being say about us as stewards of the environment? Maybe it’s a warning that we should stop walking on eggshells when it comes to the forestry industry.

Lindsay Lee

See also: Gretchen Fitzgerald: Cut, cut, cut – On clearcutting and the Migratory Birds Convention Act

The post Letter: Walking on eggshells – Migratory birds and the forestry industry appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.

Concerns about government accountability are tempering public excitement about the province’s new protected areas announcement. 

Environmental organizations are rightly applauding the government’s stated intention to formally protect 20 properties. Expanding our network of protected areas is a necessary step to preserve valuable ecosystems, maintain habitat connectivity, and protect endangered species.

But the government has failed to protect something important: public trust. 

That’s why an overwhelming majority of the comments online reference one particular park… a park that wasn’t even included in the government’s announcement. When the Cabinet secretly delisted Owls Head Provincial Park, it not only jeopardized the park’s valuable ecosystems, it also jeopardized the public’s faith in our government.

We’ve since learned that nearly half of what we consider provincial parks aren’t legally protected parks at all. In June 2020, the Chronicle Herald reported, “Of 206 provincial parks in Nova Scotia, 102 are awaiting official designation.”

When we include wilderness areas and nature reserves, the number of properties waiting for formal protection jumps to almost 200. Like Owls Head Provincial Park, each of those sites was selected for its high conservation value. The fact that they have the same vulnerable status that Owls Head Provincial Park had before it was secretly delisted is causing concern across the province.

The government is proudly proclaiming itself to be a “leader in land protection.” But a loss of faith in the process has left many Nova Scotians underwhelmed and unconvinced. Our elected officials need to re-evaluate Owls Head Provincial Park before it permanently corrodes confidence in our government.

Owls Head Provincial Park had been slated for formal protection after decades of public consultations, dating back to the 1970s. In contrast, the government secretly removed it from Our Parks and Protected Areas Plan with absolutely no consultation (or notification).

Now, Nova Scotians are understandably confused as to why public engagement is necessary when enhancing – but not diminishing – a site’s protected status. That doesn’t mean that public consultation isn’t worthwhile. On the contrary, it means that every Nova Scotian should participate. The government of Nova Scotia needs to be reminded of how valuable the voices of its citizens truly are.

Nova Scotians are invited to provide their comments on the proposed provincial park, and wilderness area lands.

Check out the Save Owls Head website. 

See also: Open letter to Premier Iain Rankin: Please stop the sale and formally protect Owls Head Provincial Park

The post Letter: Owls Head Provincial Park – It’s a matter of protecting public trust appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.

Lindsay Lee wrote the following letter following the call to action by Jacob Fillmore, the young man camped out on Grand Parade Square to protest the government’s lack of action on climate change.

Friday December 18, 2020

To whom it may concern,

As we grapple with the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss, proper environmental stewardship is more important than ever. Unfortunately, responsible action on vital environmental issues is conspicuously absent in Nova Scotia.

I had never before thought of myself as an activist. However, I understand the escalating threats of climate change and biodiversity loss. I recognize that urgent action is needed. I expect our government to make well-researched decisions that reflect the best available science. If trusting in science makes one an activist, then I will wear that label with pride.

“The current rate of extinction of species is estimated at 100 to 1,000 times higher than natural background rates,” according to the Centre for Biological Diversity. Around one million animal and plant species are threatened with extinction, more than ever before in human history. Many of these species may go extinct within decades. And yet, this government is doing nothing to mitigate these threats. The science is clear; it’s the political will that is lacking.

Lands and Forestry’s “chronic and systemic failure” to satisfy its legal obligations under the Endangered Species Act has been detrimental to many of our native wildlife species. This is of great concern to many Nova Scotians and should be a priority to our politicians.

Jacob Fillmore is currently camping in Grand Parade to protest this government’s continued inaction on important environmental issues. Please understand that Jacob’s concerns echo my own. This is not just one man; this is a movement.

I fully support Jacob’s environmental platform and his quest to generate positive environmental change. While it may seem extreme to camp out in a snowstorm or spend weeks on end at a forest encampment, the Department of Lands and Forestry resolutely ignores all letters, emails, phone calls, petitions, and requests for meetings. Our own government is refusing to engage in meaningful dialogue with concerned citizens, and that is unacceptable.

Consequential decisions made by a responsible government should never be based on the whims of industry leaders. It is time to shake off the yoke of industry and represent the people of Nova Scotia.

An increasing number of Nova Scotians are exasperated by the lack of environmental action. Together, we are telling you that this era of autocratic governance and environmental degradation must end.

Natural climate solutions are an integral part of our future. Yet the government is allowing ecosystem services to be squandered, all so it can cling to an outdated economic model.

Water has recently joined gold, oil, and other commodities traded on Wall Street, “highlighting worries that the life-sustaining natural resource may become scarce across the world.” (Bloomberg) The Bank of Canada has warned that climate change will have a profound impact on the economy. Financial institutions around the world agree that substantial damage will occur in the absence of strong climate action. Our provincial government needs to consider the projected future disruptions as well as the devastating global impacts that we’re already seeing.

This is especially pertinent in a coastal province like Nova Scotia. Coastal and marine ecosystems are “among the most productive yet highly threatened systems in the world.” (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment: Marine and Coastal Ecosystems & Human Well-being). Indeed, coastal areas are home to key species and habitats. But coastal provinces like Nova Scotia are at an increased risk of climate-driven sea-level rise, more frequent (and more intense) storms, warming ocean temperatures, ocean acidification, and more.

We can no longer afford to view the well being of the natural world as disparate from our own. Our entire existence – our entire planet – depends on biodiversity. And yet, the provincial government’s continued mismanagement of our natural resources is exacerbating the biodiversity and climate crises.

I’m calling on you to take swift and meaningful action on the following issues:

• · Halt even-aged cutting
• · Protect species at risk without delay
• · Cancel the Alton Gas storage facility
• · Legally protect Owls Head Provincial Park

I would appreciate a response with your position on each of the aforementioned environmental issues. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Lindsay Lee

See also: Letter: The clock is ticking – Lands and Forestry must address its “chronic and systemic failure” to protect mainland moose

With a special thanks to our generous donors who make publication of the Nova Scotia Advocate possible.

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The post Letter to the province : This era of autocratic governance and environmental degradation must end appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.

KJIPUKTUK (Halifax) – Lands and Forestry’s systemic failure to satisfy its legal obligations under the Endangered Species Act has been detrimental to the mainland moose population. Now, the species is teetering on the brink of local extinction. 

It is worth noting that the mainland moose is a different subspecies from the moose in Cape Breton, which was actually introduced from Alberta. The mainland moose was identified as provincially endangered back in 2003, when there were approximately 1,000 remaining. But a 2019 study deduced that there were likely fewer than 100 mainland moose in Nova Scotia.

Worldwide, the sixth mass extinction is ongoing, with current extinction rates estimated to be 100 to 1,000 times higher than natural background rates. The World Wildlife Fund states, “Wildlife populations in Canada are in serious and significant decline. Even more surprising, the numbers for at-risk species, those protected by law, are just as bad – if not worse.”

We can no longer afford to view the well being of the natural world as disparate from our own. Our entire planet depends on biodiversity, yet the continued mismanagement of our natural resources exacerbates the biodiversity crisis. Nova Scotians don’t want our mainland moose to be the next casualty of the biodiversity crisis – or more precisely – a casualty of the Department of Lands and Forestry. 

Nova Scotia’s Endangered Species Act prohibits “destroying, disturbing or interfering with a specific dwelling place or area occupied, or habitually occupied, by one or more individuals or populations of the species.” And yet, Richard Amero came forward with concerns about commercial forestry on moose habitat. Amero provided photos of moose tracks and a moose and calf in the connective forest between the Tobeatic and Silver River Wilderness Areas. Lands and Forestry has since made the ludicrous statement that department staff “are aware of the presence of mainland moose in this area but the cutting sites were selected with the moose’s protection in mind.”

Roads built for forestry operations fragment mainland moose habitat and further endanger the moose by exposing them to poachers and to white-tailed deer, which can carry brain worm (moose sickness). Lands and Forestry’s own website confirms that mainland moose habitats “appear to be the most isolated areas with poor access.” Yet Lands and Forestry is disrupting our moose by allowing more logging roads in remote moose habitat.

Last year, Nova Scotians were so troubled by Lands and Forestry’s dereliction of duty under the Endangered Species Act that they took the department to court. This past May, Justice Brothers of the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia found “a chronic and systemic failure” to implement action required under the Act. 

Our mainland moose was one of the representative species in that court case. After being instructed to take positive action, why is the Department of Lands and Forestry seemingly contravening its own laws when it comes to habitat fragmentation and our mainland moose? 

While the government acts like it’s business as usual, concerned citizens continue to speak out. One such individual is respected wildlife biologist Bob Bancroft, who was an applicant in the Endangered Species Case. Upon learning of the imminent clear-cutting, members of Extinction Rebellion Nova Scotia quickly set up an occupation on Crown Land in hopes of protecting this endangered species. Multiple groups, such as The Healthy Forest Coalition and Stop Spraying and Clear-Cutting Nova Scotia, are calling for the department to protect this relatively unfragmented habitat from industrial forestry activity.

See also: News brief: Mainland moose habitat in Digby County occupied to protect it from clearcutting

Nova Scotia’s moose need healthy, contiguous, and biodiverse forests to thrive, not more clear-cuts. Clear-cut terrain is already over-represented in our province, which means that moose won’t have adequate shelter from sun in summer or wind and snow in winter. 

Once again, Lands and Forestry’s own website admits that the loss of mature forests can be detrimental to moose, which need “various age forest communities to provide food, shelter, security and connectivity of these various habitat components.” Unsustainable forestry practices are unacceptable in light of the biodiversity and climate crises. I have to wonder why our allegedly Liberal government is not only permitting – but encouraging – this fragmentation of habitat. 

It’s time for Lands and Forestry to listen to the orders of Justice Brothers. It’s time for them to listen to public feedback. It’s for time for them to listen to science. If you agree, please email the Minister of Lands and Forestry (mindnr@novascotia.ca).

Citizens should not have to sue their government or occupy clear-cutting sites. But Nova Scotians will continue to fight for what is right for our environment and our province. 

As Justice Brothers quoted in her ruling, “UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.”

See also: Mike Lancaster on Lands and Forestry and protecting the mainland moose: “Something is not working, that much is clear”

Lindsay Lee is an ordinary citizen who has become increasingly concerned by Nova Scotia’s mismanagement of public resources. She’s passionate about biodiversity, coastal protection, and utilizing natural climate solutions to mitigate the climate crisis. 

With a special thanks to our generous donors who make publication of the Nova Scotia Advocate possible.

Subscribe to the Nova Scotia Advocate weekly digest and never miss an article again. It’s free!

The post Letter: The clock is ticking – Lands and Forestry must address its “chronic and systemic failure” to protect mainland moose appeared first on Nova Scotia Advocate.