Nova Scotia Woods Closed to Travel

A provincewide ban on travel in Nova Scotia woods has been ordered by Natural Resources Minister Kennie MacAskill. The ban takes effect at noon today, Monday, Aug. 10, 1998, and will remain in place until further notice.

"Closing the woods is necessary because of the high to extreme fire hazard that has developed over the past few weeks," Mr. MacAskill said. "A ban on open fires went into effect on July 31. Conditions continue to be dry and are not expected to improve over the next few days, so we must take action to prevent further outbreaks of forest fires."

The ban on woods travel means people are not permitted to enter the woods to travel, camp, fish, picnic or pick berries unless they are on their own property or have obtained a travel permit from a local Natural Resources office. People may fish on lakes or large rivers provided they can reach them directly from public roads and boat launches.

It is also OK for landowners to work on their woodlots, but they are advised to be extremely cautious.

Permits are not required by people travelling to and from cottages, provided that access through a wooded area is by a public highway or private road.

Permission may also be given to people who need to use roads on Crown land to reach cottages or camps, provided the roads are suitable for vehicular travel and are not under lease.

It is important to note that provincial parks are not closed, but travel through undeveloped forests is restricted.

If in doubt, members of the public are advised to contact their local Natural Resources office, which may issue travel permits for legitimate purposes.

"Many of the fires have been relatively small, but they are hard to put out because everything is so dry," said Mr. MacAskill.

Since the ban on open fires went into effect, 30 forest fires burning almost three hectares (seven acres) have been fought by Department of Natural Resources crews and volunteer fire departments across the province.

"Our woods are tinder-dry and I urge people to respect the ban on woods travel and understand why it is so important to protect our forest environment," Mr. MacAskill said. "I also want to commend Natural Resources firefighting crews and volunteer firefighters for the excellent job they are doing under difficult circumstances. Their efforts are very much appreciated."