Almost 70% of Nova Scotia is owned privately. With so much land in private hands, the role of individual landowners in protecting our natural areas is extremely important. Protected Areas Branch supports private land conservation in many ways, such as:
- purchasing lands to assist with conservation and health benefits.
Nova Scotia Environment Land Acquisitions List 2013
(PDF:91k)
Map of Nova Scotia Environment Land Acquisitions 2013 (PDF:4.8mb)
Fancy Cove Lands – Aylesford Lake (PDF:2.2mb) - conducting studies of selected sites and sharing inventory information with private landowners and other interested parties;
- working in the development of legislation and programs to facilitate private land protection;
- providing information and assistance to landowners and land conservation organizations, such as the Protecting Private Land brochure (PDF:3.7mb)
- working directly with landowners to protect their significant natural areas through designation under the Wilderness Areas Protection Act or the Special Places Protection Act;
- working as a member of the provincial Private Land Conservation Enhancements (PLaCEs) Committee to identify barriers and disincentives to private land conservation in Nova Scotia and make recommendations on how to improve the climate for private land conservation initiatives;
- working with the Nature Conservancy of Canada in various programs, including the Campaign for Conservation - a partnership formed in November 2000 to preserve ecological and natural areas in the province;
- working in partnership with the Nova Scotia Nature Trust on a variety of conservation projects aimed at securing ecologically significant areas on private land.
Several provincial statutes enable private land protection. They include the following: