We need your help as we identify new protected areas in Nova Scotia. Here are a few things you can do.

Be part of the process

• Learn more
• Share your knowledge and engage others to take part
• Trust the process – everyone has a voice, and every voice is important
• Tell us what is important to you and why
• Ask questions – staff are here to help

In June we asked groups and organizations to let us know by August 1 if they were interested in being involved in the 2011 land review step. August 1 was not a submission deadline, but was chosen to help coordinate meeting planning. If you represent a group or organization, and are not sure at this point whether a meeting is required, you can contact us whenever you have made that decision by calling (902) 424-2117, or emailing protectedareas@gov.ns.ca. After August 1, we will begin setting up meetings with interested groups and organizations.

Your group may be offered a one-on-one meeting with staff, or invited to attend a session with other groups having similar interests. Regional workshops will be set up for municipal governments and Mi’kmaq communities. At each meeting, we will provide detailed maps (including GIS files if needed). Staff will be able to answer your questions, and provide additional details on the 12 percent process or individual sites.

As an individual, you can also provide written comment during the 2011 lands review step. First, review the information about individual lands. Please be sure to reference the appropriate name and number of the land parcel in your submission.

To share your thoughts, fill out an online form, email your comments to protectedareas@gov.ns.ca, or send your comments by mail to:

Nova Scotia Environment, Protected Areas Branch
Box 442, 5151 Terminal Road, Halifax, NS B3J 2P8

To accommodate the level of public response and the scheduling of meetings with groups and organizations, the comment period has been extended from December 1, 2011 to February 10, 2012.

In 2012, a draft protected areas plan will be released for broad provincial consultation.

Take a long view

• Focus on what can be gained - for you (and your grandchildren), your communities, your region, and the province
• Protection is for today and the future… think about the province we want to see in 100 or more years

There are other things you can do to support land protection in Nova Scotia.

• If you are a private landowner you may want to protect your own land. There are many options to do this. Contact the Protected Areas branch of Nova Scotia Environment or a private land trust to find out more.
• A very rewarding action can be to join or support a private land trust such as the Nova Scotia Nature Trust or the Nature Conservancy of Canada.
• Get involved in other discussions about land use and conservation. Protected areas are only one way we care for our land and environment.

More information

If you want to receive updated information on the 12 per cent process, please add your name to the Protected Areas e-mail list by contacting us at protectedareas@gov.ns.ca or (902) 424-2117.

Find more detailed and up-to-date information on protected areas and the 12 per cent process at www.gov.ns.ca/nse/protectedareas.

You can also reach us at:

Eastern
Nova Scotia Environment, Protected Areas and Wetlands Branch
Box 714 295 Charlotte Street Sydney NS B1P 6H7
Phone: (902) 563-2100

Main
Nova Scotia Environment, Protected Areas and Wetlands Branch
Box 442 5151 Terminal Road Halifax NS B3J 2P8
Phone: (902) 424-2117