Blue Mountain-Birch Cove Lakes Wilderness Area

[Dmajackson]

One thing I love about living in HRM is that you can be right downtown but never be more then an hour's drive from unspoiled forest. This hour is now being reduced to mere minutes (probably around 15 minutes from the boardwalk) by the proposed Blue Mountain-Birch Cove Lakes Wilderness Area off the Bi-Hi and Hwy 103. By Fall (2008) the provincial government is expecting to have the 3'350 acre urban area officially protected. Some quick facts:

Area: 1330 Hectares (3'350 Acres).
Location: bounded by Highway 102 & 103, proposed Highway 113, and Bayers Lake Business Park.
Reasons: Allows an urban wilderness area available to the public for recreational purposes (i.e. canoeing, cross-country skiing) allows for HRM to reduce its urban footprint as it grows, allows for Highway 113 to be constructed with area set aside for the proposed route, and it fits perfectly in with HRM's Regional Plan.
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[Spitfire75]

That's seriously the slowest website I've ever seen. Still trying to get the map.

Sounds like a good idea though, anything to slow down sprawl. Once the 102 and the area between the 102 and this area gets filled in, maybe they'll start building up instead of out.

[someone123]

This won't slow down sprawl at all. If anything, it might make it a little worse since people will be moving to areas that are a little farther away.

Even so, it's not a bad idea.

[Dmajackson]

For anyone with a slow download speed for this it stretches (with gaps) from Kearney Lake-Fraser Lake and from Hwy 113-Susies Lake (north side) with an extension down to the edge of Bayers Lake.

It may not stop urban sprawl but remember this will be attractive for people living nearby. This might encourage more growth in and around Clayton Park West, Bayers Lake and Timberlea area. Because of highway limitations this might force developers to go up instead of out in some areas. And Clayton already has the Parks of Bedford West (see thread) planned encouraging an extension of this greenspace. I think this may help densify this area a little bit more which is better then growing out like it is now.

[Dmajackson]

Has anyone heard anything about this recently? I've checked the government website and it hasn't been updated since July....

I'd really like to see this happen. It'll provide a kind of barrier for development outside of Halifax and hopefully encourage denser growth around it.

[Dmajackson]

The Coast had a very nice article about this park this week. It makes me want the city/province to protect this even more (if that was possible before).

Into the Wild - Coast Magazine

[Dmajackson]

Urban Wilderness Protected
Environment April 21, 2009 3:01 PM

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On the eve of Earth Day 2009, Nova Scotia can boast of a unique protected wilderness area located just minutes from the downtown core of its capital city.

Government announced in 2007 that Blue Mountain Birch Cove Lakes Wilderness Area would be designated a protected area after extensive consultation with the public, interest groups and the municipality. That work is complete and the designation is now final.

"This new wilderness area demonstrates government's priority to protect the environment," said David Morse, Minister of Environment. "We are committed to protecting 12 per cent of our land mass so Nova Scotia will remain an environmentally healthy and sustainable place for people to live, work, play, and visit."

Blue Mountain Birch Cove Lakes Wilderness Area is a place for hiking, paddling, and swimming just a short distance from Halifax Regional Municipality's urban population. It lies between Highway 103 and the Bicentennial Highway, adjacent to the Bayers Lake Business Park. It is on 1,312 hectares (about 3,242 acres) of Crown land; about three quarters the size of the Halifax peninsula.

Community and environmental groups requested the area be designated. Its protection was also promoted by individual Nova Scotians, such as Bob and Wendy McDonald who do nature surveys and lead public hikes through the area.

"On behalf of any and all Nova Scotians who like exploring our wilderness areas as much as we do, we are thrilled this near-urban getaway to nature is now protected forever," said Bob McDonald, a nature enthusiast based in Halifax. "What a great tribute to this week's Earth Day."

The new protected area will benefit those interested in outdoor recreation, tourism, research and education, biodiversity conservation, and watershed protection. Protecting trees, which help clean the air of carbon, also slows climate change.

Community groups, recreation and environmental interests have advocated for protecting this wilderness for more than a decade.

The wilderness area supports municipal plans to establish a regional park, as stated in HRM's regional planning strategy.

Wilderness protection designation prohibits urban development, forestry, mining and other activities that may impact the ecology of the area.

Study and consultation for designating the area included a socioeconomic analysis, a public consultation, and consultation with Mi'kmaq First Nations.

The new wilderness area is part of progress toward meeting the government's commitment to protect 12 per cent of Nova Scotia's land base by 2015, as stated in the Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act

[-Harlington-]

i was in the area this past week with my dad and thought id post some pictures, just some of the ones i toke there are a lot:





























now thats alot of forrest
























clayton park, and developing part near washmill underpass:



bayers lake looming in the distance, dun dun dun.......

[fenwick16]

These are fantastic images.

[-Harlington-]

thanks,
its a fantastic area and so close to the city, not many people even know about it.

[Dmajackson]

Really nice photos Harlington

I've always wanted to explore that area but I just haven't made it out yet.

[hfx_chris]

I think I know where I'm going for my next hike.

[Grav]

This is a beautiful area. Ive gone there a few times exploring and its nice to know that it is going to be protected. its a shame how many wilderness area's have been turned into cookie cutter neighborhoods. The developers try to justify themselves by incorporating "green space" into the development when really its just a square of grass with a squiggly sidewalk going through the middle. In all reality thats just a slight step up from a parking lot.

My only concern is where this is becoming a protected area, garbage cans, outhouses and unsightly signs with silly trail names might start popping up around this beautiful unspoiled forest. There is nothing more miserable than a smelly garbage can buzzing with hornets along what would be a perfect trail or a sign blocking a nice view.

[someone123]

I hate the term "greenspace" and dislike how people think that it is good for the environment. It's not good to leave chunks of torn-up forest mixed in with suburban development -- it is much better for the environment to have dense development and then leave more forest untouched on the edge of the city.

I think the greenspace-free arrangement would also be better for people because it would mean more walking to amenities close by, better transit, and a shorter trip out to real wilderness. Not everybody would be surrounded by trees but that isn't a viable development pattern in a city.

[worldlyhaligonian]

Originally Posted by someone123

I hate the term "greenspace" and dislike how people think that it is good for the environment. It's not good to leave chunks of torn-up forest mixed in with suburban development -- it is much better for the environment to have dense development and then leave more forest untouched on the edge of the city.

I think the greenspace-free arrangement would also be better for people because it would mean more walking to amenities close by, better transit, and a shorter trip out to real wilderness. Not everybody would be surrounded by trees but that isn't a viable development pattern in a city.

So true... and the people that are supposedly "pro environment" ruin the little bits of land by all driving in their SUVs, bringing the dogs, mountain bikes, etc.

[-Harlington-]

Was up by Bayers Lake today so i thought id stop by here
This is from the trail coming from behind Kent :

[Dmajackson]

Proposed park’s neighbours get feisty
October 4, 2012 - 7:02pm BY BRUCE ERSKINE BUSINESS REPORTER

The Blue Mountain Birch Cove Lakes area is at the centre of a dispute over property rights in the Halifax region. (IRWIN BARRETT)
Some prominent Nova Scotia landowners think Halifax Regional Municipality staff are trampling on their property rights.

In a recent letter to Coun. Barry Dalrymple, chairman of the municipality’s environmental and sustainability standing committee, Halifax lawyer Rob Grant took exception to a staff report recommending the committee approve a conceptual plan for the Blue Mountain Birch Cove Lakes Regional Park

...

Read More: thechronicleherald.ca

Halifax can't even get proper greenspace without a fight

[Dmajackson]

The Government of Nova Scotia has finalized its goal to protect 12% of Nova Scotia's landmass. Expansion of Birch Cove - Blue Mountain to the north of the Highway 113 corridor is included as a wilderness area.

For Metro Halifax there is Blue Mountain - Birch Cove Wilderness Area North Expansion, Sackville River Nature Reserve, Sackville Lakes Provincial Park, Pockwock Wilderness Area, and Rawdon River Nature Reserve.

http://www.gov.ns.ca/parksandprotectedareas/

http://www.gov.ns.ca/parksandprotect...teractive-map/