N.S. Liberals promise coastal law, face criticism for lax approach to polluters

HALIFAX — Nova Scotia’s eroding coast and forest clearcuts emerged as election issues Monday as the Liberals promised new studies and laws, while the Tory leader said existing environmental rules are gathering dust.

Premier Stephen McNeil held a news conference in front of a Halifax’s Chocolate Lake to announce he’ll bring in a Coastal Protection Act as part of his government’s response to climate change — as the rising Atlantic Ocean gradually sweeps away parts of the seashore.

“This act will help to protect against and plan for coastal erosion. We can do a better job of encouraging development in the appropriate places outside of flood plains and away from eroding areas,” he said, adding his government would work with all stakeholders and public to develop the bill.

“By having provincial policies and legislation in place, we will protect people and infrastructure from rising seas, more intense storms and climate change,” he said.

McNeil also said the province would extend the moratorium on hydraulic fracking and re-announced a pledge made in the recent budget to appoint an independent review of forestry practices.

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However, the Progressive Conservatives said there’s reason to suspect McNeil’s commitment to bringing in significant legal reform after his government showed limited willingness to enforce existing rules.

Leader Jamie Baillie pointed to the issue of water contamination in the Halifax-area community of Harrietsfield, saying the Liberals didn’t remediate the problem or penalize the recycling company that residents said caused the pollution.

“I think one of the most frustrating things that Nova Scotians see is the lack of enforcement and compliance of the environmental laws that we have now,” he said during his morning news conference.

Meanwhile, NDP Leader Gary Burrill said in an interview that the New Democrats would plan to fulfill a goal to reduce clearcutting by 50 per cent — as laid out in the previous government’s natural resource strategy.

“If they (the Liberals) wish to do something serious about forestry sustainability in Nova Scotia, they should undo their abandonment of the clearcut reduction targets,” he said.

However, he declined to provide the specifics of how quickly a New Democrat government would roll out the tougher rules on harvesting if elected.

Burrill also argues an environment bill of rights would have prevented the circumstances that leads to groundwater pollution in Harrietsfield, by guaranteeing citizens’ ability to access clean water.

McNeil said the fines available for punishing a polluter for contaminating water were minimal under the NDP, and his government has increased them.

However, he didn’t comment on whether the Nova Scotia Environment Department will forward the Harrietsfield file to the public prosecution service for action against the company involved.

The Ecology Action Centre, the province’s leading environmental group, welcomed the Liberal promise to bring in a Coastal Protection Act and a Biodiversity Act, particularly provisions that said it and other groups will be consulted.

However, Mark Butler, the director of the centre, said it’s hard to say much about the merits of the new laws without specifics.

The Ecology Action Centre has already noted that a three-year provincial task force concluded forestry practices are poor and regulatory change is needed, including a 50 per cent reduction in clearcutting in the current harvest.

A federally prepared national forestry database put the amount of clearcutting at the end of 2015 as almost 90 per cent of the harvest.

During the news conference, McNeil said he has to balance the needs of industry with people concerned about the amount of harvesting on Crown lands.

“There are many who will say to you that the definition of clearcut is not that clear … There are many in the industry who believe … that practice is used if the forest is dead, to get that fibre out of the way,” he said.

“We need an independent analysis of that,” said McNeil, who said the independent analysis should be done by September.

Michael Tutton, The Canadian Press