Province Puts Shovels in Ground to Protect Chignecto Isthmus

NOTE: The following is a statement from Premier Tim Houston.

In the coming days, shovels will be in the ground to protect people living in the Amherst area from severe weather events and ensure that an important national trade corridor remains open.

Our government knows how important the Chignecto Isthmus is to Nova Scotians and Canadians. If it were to fail, it would seriously impact the whole country.

While we wait for the federal government to live up to their responsibilities, we will construct a new 500-metre-long and four-metre-high soil barrier, known as a berm, along the LaPlanche River. The berm will provide backup for an aging and eroding dyke and help protect homes, businesses, the Trans-Canada Highway and rail lines from flooding in the event of a significant storm.

This work needs to be done now. We know Nova Scotians are worried, and we are taking action to protect them.

But the work we are doing is only a start. We need more. While we put contingency plans in place like this berm, we need the federal government to acknowledge the national importance of the Chignecto Isthmus and take the climate change threats we face seriously.

I am again calling on Liberal MPs to show leadership on this crucial issue, fully fund the project and do what is right for Nova Scotians.