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Blue Mountain-Birch Cove Lakes to be Saved!

October 30, 2007

After eight years of compaigning by members of the Public Lands coalition, Blue Mountain-Birch Coves Lakes has been announced by the province as a “Candidate Wilderness Area”. It will now proceed through the legislated requirements of a socio-economic study and a public review before formal designation within the year.

"This is the single most important thing that the province could have done to protect the ecology of the Blue Mountain – Birch Cove Lakes area", says Chris Miller, Wilderness Conservation Coordinator for the Nova Scotia Chapter of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS). "This designation will help safeguard this important and cherished spot for generations of Nova Scotians to come, making Halifax an even more desirable place to live, work and play."

"I am supportive of Government in having such foresight in preserving a beautiful space so close to the city," adds Bob McDonald of the Halifax Field Naturalists who along with his .

In all, 1,350 hectares (3,350 acres), just a stone's throw from downtown Halifax, will be spared from development. The land is located between Highway 103 and the Bicentennial Highway, adjacent to the Bayers Lake Business Park.

The wilderness area designation will protect numerous interconnected, undeveloped lakes and wetlands; rugged woodlands with old red oak and red spruce stands; and a rare arctic-alpine plant called Mountain Sandwort. It will also help protect exceptional outdoor education and wilderness recreation opportunities such as hiking, swimming, cross-country skiing, canoeing and angling.

This incredible feat is in no small part thanks to the unrelenting efforts of the Birch Cove Lakes Wilderness Society, the Halifax Field Naturalists, Canoe Kayak Nova Scotia, the Halifax North West Trails Association, the Ecology Action Centre, CPAWS-NS, and other coalition members.

Nova Scotians have reason to celebrate. Once it is designated this protected area will be one of the largest urban parks in Canada, almost 20 times the size of Point Pleasant Park, and three times the size of Stanley Park of Vancouver fame.

And it boasts a dazzling array of natural features including a chain of 18 lakes, more than 50 different wetlands, several stands of old growth white pine forest and rare artic-alpine plants. The area also contains habitat for the endangered mainland moose and more than 150 species of birds.

Blue Mountain-Birch Cover Wildnerness Area also offers hiking trails, canoe routes and stunning views, including the highest point of land in Metro.

The Public Lands coalition is also pleased that Halifax Regional Municipality has pledged to purchase the land around Suzie's and Quarry Lakes, offering the opportunity to extend this new protected area.

While this momentous achievement gives us much to celebrate, there is still more work to do. Blue Mountain-Birch Cove is one of 19 conservation hot-spots identified by the Public Lands Coalition. Three of them have been saved so far (Eigg Mountain-James River, Gully Lake, and now Blue Mountain-Birch Cove Lakes), leaving 16 more to protect.