Nova Scotia premier Tim Houston has announced “shovels in the ground” on the Chignecto Isthmus, which is at increasing risk of flooding due to rising sea levels and increasing extreme weather events.
Construction is expected to begin this week on a four-metre-high, 500-metre-long berm behind a section of dyke that runs along the La Planche river outside of Amherst. The earth barrier would provide back up for a section of weaker dykes and protect farmland from flooding.
Local MLA Elizabeth Smith McCrossin says her initial reaction to news of the project in her constituency was positive. “I was really pleased to see something finally happening and actually getting shovels in the ground,” said Smith-McCrossin. However, the MLA also said she was “surprised at how little is actually going to get done.”
The Nova Scotia government says the project is not part of the larger isthmus resiliency project that includes New Brunswick and which remains in negotiations.
