The Halifax Chronicle Herald reports this morning that, “The province released its Water For Life: Nova Scotia’s Water Resource Management Strategy on Thursday. …But specifics, such as targets, regulations and penalties, won’t be coming down the pipe for years. ….Environment Minister Sterling Belliveau (announced) the 10-year plan at the Museum of Natural History in Halifax.”
“Dalhousie University researchers will get a $19,000 grant to create an inventory of Nova Scotia’s 46 primary watersheds, Belliveau said. The plan…also will require large water users, such as municipalities and industries, to come up with water conservation plans. …A water advisory committee will be established within six months that will begin working on…specifics, such as water-use limits for large users, said Jessica Paterson-MacDonald, the Environment Department’s water strategy co-ordinator.”
“Liberal environment critic Andrew Younger said there’s nothing new in the strategy. ‘There are no timelines, no money and no commitments through regulations or legislation,’ said Younger, who attended the announcement. ‘This is just an attempt to meet the Dec. 31 deadline imposed by legislation (Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act) to have a water strategy document done. They needed to have something done and I’m scared this will now just sit on the shelf and gather dust.'”
The Metro newspaper adds that, “The 30-page Water for Life document explains the importance of water in the province. There are 29 actions outlined including establishing an advisory committee, making big users of water make conservation plans, and monitoring watersheds.”
CBC adds that one immediate step outlined in the report is to, “undertake work to determine what impacts climate change will have on Nova Scotia’s water cycle.”
The Halifax Chronicle Herald article is at http://thechronicleherald.ca/NovaScotia/1217745.html. The Metro report is at http://www.metronews.ca/halifax/local/article/722520–liberals-throw-water-on-plan. The CBC article is at http://www.cbc.ca/canada/nova-scotia/story/2010/12/16/ns-water-resource-strategy.html.
The 30-page document can be read at http://www.gov.ns.ca/nse/water.strategy/docs/WaterStrategy_Water.Resources.Management.Strategy.pdf.
