What Alberta can learn from Nova Scotia about land-use planning

CPAWS press release

As the Government of Alberta is preparing the South Saskatchewan Regional Plan (SSRP) we can look for inspiration to other provinces that are on the forefront of land use planning and environmental protection in Canada.

Last week the Nova Scotia government announced that it will protect huge swaths of the province for conservation.  In total, approximately a quarter million hectares of land will be added to the parks and protected areas system in Nova Scotia.  This will raise the current level of protection from 9.4% to 13% immediately, and then to nearly 14% over the next few years as new protected sites are added. Although protected areas cover 12.4% of Alberta’s land base, only 4.2% is protected as provincial protected areas and the remaining 8.2% is in long established national parks.   This percentage of protected land is still below internationally accepted targets for conservation of biodiversity.


“Alberta has had a free-ride on meeting protected areas targets because of our Rocky Mountain national parks,” says Katie Morrison, Conservation Director with the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society – Southern Alberta chapter (CPAWS – Southern Alberta). “Alberta has struggled internationally with its environmental record, and is falling behind other provinces when it comes to protected areas. With the South Saskatchewan Regional Plan, the Government of Alberta has a real opportunity to be an environmental leader in Canada and internationally despite other environmental challenges in the province.”

Nova Scotia’s conservation success is something Alberta can learn from.  Not only were the right sites protected to conserve some of the most important wilderness areas, but a meaningful process was used to identify the areas and to engage the public and stakeholders in the discussions.

“There are some really important sites in the grasslands, foothills and mountains of Southern Alberta that we can legally protect under the South Saskatchewan Regional Plan including: the Castle Special Place, the Livingstone Range, the Porcupine Hills, and the Ghost Watershed” adds Morrison “We congratulate Nova Scotia on this important step.  It’s time Alberta showed the kind of leadership we expect and take bold actions in conservation.”

Just last month, CPAWS released its National Report examining the status of parks and protected areas in Canada for 2013.  Full protection of the Castle Special Place in the SSRP was identified as a “Beacon of Hope” for new protected areas across Canada.