A newly-formed citizens group vows to fight to the very end to prevent a ten-storey, concrete war memorial from being built in a national park in Cape Breton.

The proposed ‘Mother Canada,’ to be erected in Green Cove, N.S., has been a divisive topic from the beginning and now, the ‘no’ side is rallying the troops.

Veteran Valerie Bird pulls no punches when speaking about the proposed memorial.

“It's vulgar and ostentatious and doesn't do anything for veterans,” says Bird. “My late husband and I served ten years between us in World War II. We lost a lot of comrades and this does nothing to commemorate anyone.”

Bird is not the only one who feels this way. A citizens’ group called ‘Friends of Green Cove’ are opposed to the privately-funded project.

Among their concerns is a lack of an independent environmental assessment.

“There are very worrying signs that Parks Canada is not going to allow the public and independent experts the kind of input that is so desperately needed,” says Sean Howard, of Friends of Green Cove.

The group argues the memorial goes against Parks Canada's very mandate to protect natural rarities, like the unique geological features of the famed rocks at Green Cove.

“It's one of the places on this island where you can see two, three, 400 million years’ worth of history,” says assistant professor of geology Deanne van Rooyen.

The group admits this is a fight that will be difficult to win. They say, not only is the monument already rubber-stamped by Parks Canada, but it there also seems to be political will to move the project forward.

The project has received backing from the federal government and some locals believe it's a fitting way to honour Canada's war dead.

“I don't think this has been planned by Parks Canada. This is something that comes from much higher up. It comes from the prime minister's office,” says Aaron Schneider, of Friends of Green Cove.

The group says it will call for a two month extension on the June 5th deadline for public response to a draft impact analysis study.

“I can't guarantee we're going to win, but I can guarantee we're going to fight like hell,” says Howard.

The memorial is tentatively set to be unveiled by July 2017.

With files from CTV Atlantic's Ryan MacDonald