Protecting Sable Island must be top priority

The following was published in The Chronicle Herald on Oct 22, 2011

Sable Island will soon become a national park.  Earlier this week, an agreement was signed between the federal and Nova Scotia governments that clears the way for legislation to be introduced to make the park official.  This is an important step for the protection of Sable Island and will result in the creation of the first new national park established in Nova Scotia in over a half-century.

Sable Island is a place where we need to minimize human impacts on the ecosystem.  That’s easier said than done.  Visitation to the island has been increasing in recent years, and many of these visits are for commercial enterprises. 

With these increasing demands, it is clear that environmental protection and conservation of ecological values are now far beyond the normal scope of the Canadian Coast Guard responsibilities.  The existing regulations governing the island are embedded in the Canada Shipping Act and are over a century old. A better management model is needed to look after the island, a model that has conservation as its primary goal.

This is where the national park comes in.  The National Parks Act requires national parks to be managed for ecological integrity first.  That means, by law, Parks Canada cannot allow activities that will damage wildlife or ecosystems in national parks.  It is the best tool that we have in this country, at the federal level, for protecting wild spaces.  A comprehensive, long-term, and enforceable conservation strategy for Sable Island is now finally within reach.

Challenges remain. National parks are also places where Parks Canada is required to provide visitor experiences and bring the story of each national park to all Canadians.  There will be pressure to increase visitation to Sable Island beyond the few hundred who currently visit there each year.

Parks Canada must be cautious about this, recognizing that a unique solution is needed for Sable Island.  Options exist.  Parks Canada can cap the number of visitors allowed each year, and limit when and where visitors can go on the island.  They can also focus visitor experiences primarily off-island, by developing a showcase pavilion or a well designed visitor interpretation centre on the mainland.  This will help tell Sable Island’s story to the Canadian public without focusing on physically travelling to the island itself.

In the coming months, as legislation is introduced to officially create the national park, attention will turn to the development of a park management plan.  This is where the details can be worked out on how best to ensure ecological integrity.

The valuable scientific research that has been conducted on the island must continue.  Many of these datasets go back decades, and provide important baselines for understanding how the island and its surroundings are changing over time.  The research station on Sable Island has been threatened with closure on more than one occasion.  With the national park designation, it is now Parks Canada’s responsibility to ensure the valuable scientific research on the island continues.

On the issue of oil and gas exploration, the federal and provincial governments have announced that they will amend the legislation associated with the Offshore Accord to ban drilling from the surface of the island out to one nautical mile.  This is an important step, but it should be expanded to include the sub-surface rights as well.  As it now stands, an oil company could set up a drilling rig beyond one nautical mile and drill horizontally to reach gas under Sable Island. This loophole needs to be closed. Governments and the oil companies have already come to agreement on surface rights, a similar agreement for subsurface rights would be very welcome.

Many of you have already let the government know how much you care about Sable Island. As Parks Canada develops the management plan your participation will once again be crucial.  We must take care of Sable for future generations so they too can wonder at its remoteness, its charm, and natural treasures.  The future for Sable Island is looking brighter.  Let’s ensure that continues.

Chris Miller, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society
Zoe Lucas, Sable Island Green Horse Society
Mark Butler, Ecology Action Centre