N.S. announces $2.4 million for community-led climate change projects

The Bluenose Coastal Action Foundation is working to build a living shoreline in the South Shore of Nova Scotia. (Source: Bluenose Coastal Action Foundation)

The government of Nova Scotia announced $2.4 million in funding for several community-led climate action projects on Thursday.

The funding will support research projects and efforts to reduce carbon emissions and improve shoreline ecosystems, according to a news release from the Nova Scotia government.

“These projects - many of which involve best practices in using nature-based solutions - show exactly the kind of community-led, all-hands-on-deck action that is needed to make our communities and ecosystems more resilient to climate change,” said MLA Timothy Halman in the release.

The government says the $2.4 million comes from the first round of funding from the Sustainable Communities Challenge Fund, which was created in October 2021 to help people in Nova Scotia respond to climate change. The money will be divided between seven projects:

• $770,604 for the Bluenose Coastal Action Foundation to support its work to build a living shoreline in the community
• $349,980 to the Friends of the DesBrisay Museum in Bridgewater to make the museum more energy efficient and better protect it from flooding
• $348,810 to Bonny Lea Farm in Chester for Phase 1 of a multi-phased project to install heat pumps, which will reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 162 tonnes per year
• $301,162 to Waterfront Baddeck to design and build a living shoreline
• $267,400 to Kingsburg Coastal Conservancy Association in Kingsburg, Lunenburg County for research on the carbon storage capacity of the Shaubac wetlands and assessing the carbon storage capacity of other wetlands
• $238,098 to TransCoastal Adaptations: Centre for Nature-Based Solutions at Saint Mary's University for training homeowners in the Town of Pictou and the municipalities of West Hants and Barrington on how to use nature-based solutions to protect their shorelines
• $181,722 to the Confederacy of Mainland Mi'kmaq Aquatic Resources and Fisheries Management for research on conserving and enhancing cold-water habitats for fish and other species

"Communities across the province continue to experience the effects of climate change, such as extreme weather events. These projects will build resilience in communities and natural habitats, make community infrastructure energy efficient, give us carbon storage research and demonstrate the power and effectiveness of locally led action on tackling climate change,” said Juanita Spencer, CEO of the Nova Scotia Federation of Municipalities, in the release.

“We are pleased to support these homegrown solutions which will play a role in shaping a more sustainable future for all."

According to the release, the Sustainable Communities Challenge Fund is available to:

• municipalities
• non-profit and community organizations
• post-secondary institutions
• Mi'kmaw communities

"We as Mi'kmaq People have always prided our organizational principles towards Etuaptmumk. This funding that will preserve and enhance cold-water refugia in Nova Scotia watersheds, will help conserve native aquatic species and promote the ongoing climate change resiliency with the important guidance and collaboration of our Mi'kmaq communities and our youth,” said Angeline Gillis, executive director of the Confederacy of Mainland Mi'kmaq, in the release.

“This will foster adaptive capacity within the watershed to buffer impacts of climate change while enhancing aquatic biodiversity. Once again, we are closer to our goal of protecting and conserving our waters for the next seven generations."

In September, the program was extended until 2028 and topped up with an additional $15.4 million.

For more Nova Scotia news visit our dedicated provincial page.