Question Period Note: Dartmouth Cove Waterfront Access Project, Nova Scotia

• The conservation and protection of fish and fish habitat is a responsibility I take seriously.
• My department conducts regulatory reviews of works, undertakings and activities under the Fisheries Act, Species at Risk Act, and Aquatic Invasive Species Regulations.
• Our review considers a variety of factors including the scale of the project, the characteristics of the fish and fish habitat affected, and avoidance, mitigation, and offsetting measures.
• Any proposed infilling into waters considered to contain fish and fish habitat, such as Dartmouth Cove in Halifax Harbour, must comply with the Fisheries Act and the Species at Risk Act.
• We are currently reviewing the project authorization application for Dartmouth Cove to ensure it meets legislated requirements.
 

• Nova Scotia Limited (the proponent) is seeking to infill approximately 24,000 square meters within Dartmouth Cove, Nova Scotia, as part of the proposed Dartmouth Cove Waterfront Access Project.
• The project is being carried out with the primary objective of disposing acid-bearing material from a nearby hospital expansion and creating 14,038 square meters of new land.
• Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) has determined that the proposed infill would result in the harmful alteration, disruption, or destruction of fish habitat, and therefore requires an authorization under the Fisheries Act. Before issuance of an authorization, the proponent must apply all reasonable mitigation measures and must offset/counterbalance the impacts of the project on fish and fish habitat. In addition, the Department consults with the Mi’kmaq for projects occurring in Nova Scotia to consider potential adverse effects of regulatory decisions on the rights of Indigenous peoples.
• On April 29, 2024, at the end of the 90-day regulatory review period, DFO’s Minister decided not to approve the issuance of a Fisheries Act authorization and requested the Department continue consultations on the project. A notification letter was sent to the proponent, stopping the regulatory clock.
• Once consultations are officially concluded, the clock will restart and the Minister will have 90 days to make a regulatory decision.
• In April and May 2024, the Department responded to over 13 public inquiries on the project.
• Transport Canada, as the federal authority regulating the project, led Indigenous consultations with 13 First Nations in coordination with Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO). On April 8, 2024, Transport Canada issued approval under subsection 7(6) of the Canadian Navigable Waters Act.

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