As of early 2025:

• Only 13.7% of Nova Scotia is officially protected.

• That’s just a 0.7% increase in four years.

• A 15% interim goal is due by March 2026, which means protecting ~72,000 hectares in the next year.

• To reach the full 20%, the province must protect an additional ~300,000 hectares by 2030.

Much of that land will need to come from unprotected Crown forests, wetlands, and habitat corridors, many of which are under immediate threat from logging, mining, and development.

Nova Scotia’s protected areas include:

• Wilderness Areas (e.g., proposed Chain Lakes Wilderness Area)

• Nature Reserves

• Provincial and National Parks

• Land Trust–protected private lands

• Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas (IPCAs)

Newer categories like Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures (OECMs) are also being developed to recognize lands that aren’t officially parks but still support biodiversity.

From the Wabanaki Forest to endangered wetlands, Nova Scotia is home to some of the most ecologically important landscapes in Canada—but they are rapidly vanishing. Land protection helps:

• Preserve biodiversity, including habitat for endangered species

• Safeguard drinking water

• Store carbon and reduce the impacts of floods, wildfires, and extreme heat

• Create space for Mi’kmaq-led conservation and reconciliation

• Support sustainable recreation and ecotourism

Places like the Chain Lakes Wilderness Area are exactly the kind of landscapes the province must protect to reach its 2030 goals.

Despite public support and available federal funding, progress has been sluggish. Some of the reasons include:

• Ongoing logging and resource development in candidate protection areas

• Lack of interim protection for proposed Wilderness Areas

• Delays in processing already-identified sites

• Inadequate incentives for private land conservation

• The need for stronger co-leadership with Mi’kmaq communities

To meet its 2030 goal, Nova Scotia must:

• Formally designate all proposed wilderness areas, starting with Chain Lakes

• Place interim protections on candidate lands to halt logging and mining

• Expand partnerships with Mi’kmaq Nations and support IPCAs

• Incentivize private landowners to conserve carbon-rich and ecologically significant areas

• Deliver on its own Collaborative Protected Areas Strategy, released in 2023