Features Forestry Management Harvesting
N.S. protects 316 hectares of rare forest

Protected habitat includes large salt marshes, mud flats, rocky shores, white sand beaches and coastal forests, which are home to the provincially-endangered Nova Scotia mainland moose and federally-endangered piping plover. Nearby, there are four migratory bird sanctuaries which support thousands of overwintering waterfowl.

With the addition of these five properties, Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) has now protected approximately 647 hectares (1,600 acres) in Port Joli and more than 4,040 hectares (10,000 acres) in southwestern Nova Scotia.

Southwestern Nova Scotia is a priority area for NCC’s habitat conservation work due to the proximity of Thomas Raddall Provincial Park, Kejimikujik National Park, the Keji Seaside, and the Tobeatic Wilderness Area, which together support significant wildlife populations.

The Port Joli area conservation project was supported by funding from the Government of Canada through the Natural Areas Conservation Program, the Nova Scotia Crown Share Land Legacy Trust, and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service under the North American Wetlands Conservation Act, as well as many individual supporters.

A portion of this project was donated to the Nature Conservancy of Canada under the Government of Canada’s Ecological Gifts Program. This program provides enhanced tax incentives for individuals or corporations who donate ecologically significant land.

The Nature Conservancy of Canada has conserved more than 13,700 hectares (34,000 acres) in Nova Scotia. The Nature Conservancy of Canada is the nation’s leading land conservation organization, working to protect our most important natural areas and the species they sustain. Since 1962 NCC and its partners have helped to protect more than 1.1 million hectares (over 2.8 million acres), coast to coast. For more information visit www.natureconservancy.ca/ns 

The Natural Areas Conservation Program (NACP) of the Government of Canada is a unique public–private partnership, managed and directed by the Nature Conservancy of Canada. To this day, $345 million has been invested in the NACP by the Government of Canada towards the conservation of our natural heritage. Moreover, an additional $500 million in matching funds has been raised by NCC and its partners and invested in the program.

To learn more about the Ecological Gifts Program, please visit www.ec.gc.ca/pde-egp/