Community Easements Act Enhances Access, Op-ed

NOTE: The following is an op-ed piece from Natural Resources Minister Charlie Parker.

Nova Scotians share a beautiful province. It is a big part of what makes this a great place to live and work. We are surrounded by natural beauty in our coastlines, our lakes, our woods.

Nova Scotians want access to this land, for a variety of reasons. Many have longstanding traditions of hunting, fishing, recreation, tourism and forestry.

Last week, the government delivered on a promise to enhance access to our province. It introduced a new legislative tool called the Community Easements Act to empower community groups, municipalities and the Mi'kmaq to preserve access to lands traditionally used for community purposes.

By paying landowners for the right to control how the land is used, a community easement can allow groups to preserve things like agricultural land, community access to places of interest, working forests, scenic views, wetlands and woodlots. These easements may also be used to conserve lands with cultural significance, or archaeological or palaeontological sites.

An easement lays out specific conditions about land use, and those conditions remain attached to the property in the future, even if the land is sold.

We made a commitment to preserve our land when we took office in 2009. Government has delivered on that commitment by dedicating $25 million toward acquiring land from Bowater and $75 million for large land purchases. The province has already secured 40,000 acres in support of wilderness protection, heritage conservation, tourism, recreation, community use, fishing, hunting and potential Mi'kmaq uses.

Last week, we extended that commitment, further preserving Nova Scotians' access to, and enjoyment of, our province's natural beauty. For generations to come. This is another example of how the province is making life better for Nova Scotia families, in every region of our great province.