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Cumberland County
The public land base in Cumberland County is highly variable. The southern half of the county is sparsely populated and showcases some large and impressive tracts of public land. They include undisturbed barrens, wetlands, conifer-dominated forests, and miles of undeveloped coastline and rivers. The north has a long history of human settlement, so Crown lands are limited to smaller scattered parcels. Many of these parcels contain salmon spawning streams, sensitive wetlands, and patches of old forest. Despite an impressive roster of public wildlands in Cumberland County, few prospects have ever cracked Nova Scotia's protected areas line up. Just one percent of the county is protected, compared to 8.2% for Nova Scotia as a whole. Even by the Province's own measuring stick, the County is short a number of protected sites. The dearth of protected areas prompted the Cumberland County River Enhancement Association (CCREA) and the Ecology Action Centre to prepare a preliminary review of where additional Crown lands in the county could be protected. In 2001, CCREA sent the results to Premier John Hamm and urged him to afford protection to several thousand hectares of ecologically significant public land. Proposed Chignecto Wilderness AreaThe centerpiece of the Cumberland County wilderness proposal is the proposed Chignecto Wilderness Area south of Amherst (see below). Other Crown lands recommended for protection include two stretches of undeveloped coastline on Chignecto Bay, the Tantramar Marshes, a couple pockets of forest adjacent to existing protected areas, and various properties believed to contain old forests, important salmon habitat, sensitive wetlands, or other special features. Just about all the sites suggested for protection are at least partially representative of landscapes not yet accounted for in the provincial protected areas network.
Size and LocationThe proposed Chignecto Wilderness Area captures the bulk of Crown lands in and around the Chignecto Game Sanctuary - roughly 25,000 hectares. Projected boundaries roughly overlap the sanctuary, but extend west into Tompkin Plain and north to Harrison Lake and the Maccan River. Several other smaller Crown land blocks in the area should be studied for potential protection. 
Natural DescriptionThe new Wilderness Area would spread across the Chignecto Ridged Plain, a flat and soggy landscape that currently represents a big hole in the provincial protected areas network. There are no protected wildlands here despite an abundance of public land. We find here that nature has woven together an intricate pattern of conifer forests, bogs, ridges, hummocks, and barrens. Road density is low compared to surrounding lands. The absence of roads is good for area-sensitive wildlife; moose (recently listed as endangered by the provincial government) and bear are among the wildlife that find refuge here. In addition the Maccan River at its northeastern extent, three other major waterways - Kelley River, Shulie River, and River Hebert - cut across the proposed Wilderness Area from south to north. All told, the Wilderness Area would protect more than 50km of wild river: remote, untamed, and beckoning for the adventurous. Simply put, Chignecto is the best remaining wilderness in the county. Because a long history of forest management has altered parts of the sanctuary*, our boundaries should be seen as flexible where they overlap with lands that have been substantially manipulated. This doesn't mean that less than pristine forests should be written off - some can be restored and protected. The important thing is that the configuration of the Chignecto Wilderness Area safeguards the values described above. In any event, the bulk of the public land base here merits protection and needs to off limits for forest harvesting and road construction until the future status of these lands is resolved. 
The CCREA's submission to the Premier also recommended other potential protected areas. The complete list is summarized below. * Despite its name, the Chignecto Game Sanctuary is not off limits for forest harvesting or road building. Several portions of the sanctuary, particularly in the western half, have been clearcut in recent years. Older plantations exist elsewhere. Sanctuary rules only ban hunting and trapping - but not clearcutting, road building, mining, etc. Proposed protected site highlights
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© Nova Scotia Public Lands Coalition, Ecology Action Centre, 2006 |
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