It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Burkhard Plache, a long time member, board member and since 2017, President of the Halifax Field Naturalists.
He was a pillar of the Halifax naturalist community and will be sorely missed by his wife Ingrid and all of us who knew him.
There will be a Service of Remembrance and Thanksgiving on Sep 28, 2022.
Please see his obituary for details: https://www.dartmouthfuneralhome.ca/obituary/burkhard-plache
Monthly Meeting – From Coast to Coast to Coast – Thursday, September 1, 2022
Building climate resiliency through marine protected areas. In this talk, Dalhousie University/Ocean Frontier Institute’s marine biologist Boris Worm explains the scientific rationale for using marine protected areas to foster resilient ocean ecosystems; these areas can withstand the impacts of climate change and therefore better help to secure fragile biodiversity and a reliable seafood supply at the same time. He will discuss case studies from Canada’s three coasts as well as international ones, and present new results of a 5-year research project on climate-smart protected area planning
The meeting will be at 7:30 PM in the auditorium of the Museum of Natural History.
Southdale site on Aug 15, 2022. Trees had been cleareddown to the wetland. From p 6 of Letter
Click on image for larger version
An invitation from Shape Our City Halifax has just been issued to “to share your feedback on the draft policies, development agreement and submitted plans” related to the Southdale Future Growth Node which includes the ‘Eisner Cove Wetland’.
Feedback is to be submitted via simple one-box form by Monday September 19, 2022.
The “draft policies, development agreement and submitted plans” can be accessed via this webpage: Case 23820: Southdale Future Growth Node Planning Process
Tree-clearing at the Southdale site began in early August, so it’s not clear what decisions about the development yet to be taken might be modified by public input.
As readers are probably aware, there have been some hitches along the way in the form of growing protests, appeals, and an industrial site incident.
Continue reading
The Celebration of Nature is our big annual event, a talk and hike series as well as our AGM, and it always falls on the last weekend in May. Pre-COVID when the event took place entirely in-person, we would rotate locations around the province and a local NatureNS member group would host the event. This year, we’re running a hybrid event, where the talks and AGM are virtual and the hikes/outings are in-person and take place all around the province.
Rhodora coming into full bloom in Eisner’s Cove Wetland on May 29, 2017.
The Protect Eisner Wetland folks are holding a rally on Saturday Apr 9, 2022 1-3 pm by the block of land that includes the Eisner Wetland in Dartmouth.
The surrounding, steeply sloping forested upland is one of 9 priority areas in HRM identified by the province for accelerated development, with only 10% or less conserved as greenspace. A causeway would be built across the wetland, which is expected to remain intact!
The upland includes well developed mixed and coniferous forests, with patches of mixed-multi-aged forest/old growth. Both areas store a lot of carbon, and host almost entirely native species.
The whole area is an important stepping stone for connectivity of wildlife across the urban landscape. It is highly treasured by local residents – and bird watchers and and other naturalists from all over the Halifax area.
Please come to the rally as possible and/or otherwise support the efforts to retain as much of this area as possible in its present state. Continue reading
Notice of this event just received.
Blue Mountain-Birch Cove Lakes (BMBCL) Comprehensive Study
Wednesday, April 13th, 2022, from 7:00 – 9:00 PM
Registration for the virtual meeting, which will take place on the Microsoft Teams platform, can be accessed by clicking this link. Continue reading
About a masterpiece of writing and photography in the Dec 2021 issue of Rural Delivery, that wonderful magazine about life in rural NS produced by Dirk van Loon & Co. that’s been with us for over 40 years, Zack Metcalfe commented
“I spent much of 2021 working on this article, reading books on the natural history and evolution of the world’s whales, and chasing these wonderful creatures throughout the St Lawrence Estuary. The article published in December, and is finally online! All photos are my own. See if you can spot my favourite.”
“In few places on Earth have the forces of geology, hydrology and biology conspired more successfully to attract the whale nation”…. read More!
Thx. ZM. Thx RD.
Mar 15, 2022:
(Event Announcement)
Three Nova Scotia Nature Writers
“Join three nature writers of contemporary Nova Scotia / Mi’kma’ki—Harry Thurston, Søren Bondrup-Nielsen, and Brian Bartlett—as they read passages from their newest published books and have an informal discussion about putting passion for nature into words. Attendees will then be welcome to offer observations and ask questions”
Rhodora in flower at Eisner’s Cove Wetland. View more about the site
From Susan Van Iderstine:
“I am writing on behalf of the Friends of Eisner Cove Wetland, a group of citizens headed by Bill Zebedee. We are dedicated to the preservation of the wetland and its protective forest belt, situated in Dartmouth, and we are very concerned about a large residential development proposal currently in planning for the wetland site. We are asking for your help and support.
“The property including and surrounding the wetland and its watercourse was once owned by the Province. It was sold a few years ago to private ownership. In 2021 the owner, A. J. LeGrow Holdings, partnered with Clayton Development and Zzap Consulting to propose a mixed residential neighbourhood, including single and multiple family dwellings and two apartment buildings, as well as an elevated access roadway that will cross directly over the wetland. The site is referred to by the city as the Southdale Future Growth Node. The planning process has been initiated and was approved by Halifax City Council on January 11, 2022. You can find information about the proposal here: https://www.shapeyourcityhalifax.ca/southdale-planning Continue reading
View
Panel calls for $2.5 billion in ocean geoengineering research
by Warren Cornwall in Science, Dec 8, 2021
In the fight against climate change, humanity owes the ocean a big thank you. It has already absorbed nearly one-third of the carbon emissions from human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels.
But many researchers think the ocean can shoulder even more of the burden, with technologies that would enhance its natural ability to suck carbon from the air and store it for centuries. But to better understand how such strategies might change the ocean—or whether they would even work—funders will need to pour as much as $2.5 billion into research over the next decade, a U.S. panel of leading ocean scientists recommended today.
Related:
A Research Strategy for Ocean-based Carbon Dioxide Removal and Sequestration
US National Academy of Sciences 360 pages. Available gratis as PDF
Pit and Mound topography in Old Growth
hemlock/yellow birch forest by Sandy Lake
(Bedford, NS).
Comments on the proposed Old Growth Forest Policy submitted on Dec 8, 2021 on behalf of the Halifax Field Naturalists and the Nova Scotia Wild Flora Society
by
David Patriquin, Prof of Biology, Dalhousie University (retired), Member of the Conservation Committee of the Halifax Field Naturalists, Member of the Board of the Nova Scotia Wild Flora Society.
Context
A draft “Old-Growth Forest Policy for Nova Scotia” was released by the Nova Scotia government on Nov 9, 2021 with a general invitation to Nova Scotians to give their feedback on proposed updates to the policy by Dec 8, 2021.
The short version follows. Read the Full Submission
Comment 1: The draft Nova Scotia Old Growth Forest Policy is weak on conservation of old forest species
Recommendation 1: Define an Old Growth stand as follows
An Old Growth stand is any forest stand (polygon) or circumscribed area of 0.5 ha and greater with 20% or more of the basal area greater than or equal to 100 years of age.
Comment 2: The goal of including a minimum of 8% of Crown land in each ecodistrict in the Old Forest Policy Layer is arbitrary and insufficient to properly conserve Old Growth Forests and associated species dependent on old forests. Continue reading
It is with heavy hearts that we heard this past week of the passing of Bob McDonald.
Bob and Wendy, his always present spouse, partner, campaigner, have contributed so much to HFN, Halifax and the province over the years, it really cannot be summarized in a few words. They were awarded our Colin Stewart Conservation Award in 2009 in recognition of those contributions, which only continued up until Bob’s untimely passing.
Our hearts are with Wendy and all of the family. Thank you for sharing truly wonderful and gentle man with so many of us.
Please view the Obituary on the JA Snow website
Visitation will be held at J.A. Snow’s Funeral Home, 339 Lacewood Drive Thursday, November 25, 2-4 and 6-8 PM, with a Celebration of Life on Friday, November 26 at 2 PM. Proof of vaccination and masking protocol are required. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Bob’s memory to the Nova Scotia Nature Trust (nsnt.ca/) the QE2 Foundation (https://qe2foundation.ca/) or the Dr. Bob MSVU Scholarship (https://www.msvu.ca/). Online condolences may be made at: www.jasnowfuneralhome.com
