Rural areas of N.S. faring better with COVID-19, hope to see loosening of pandemic restrictions

SYDNEY, N.S. -- New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island have begun to release plans for easing restrictions that were put in place to limit the spread of COVID-19.

Nova Scotia has not, even though most of the province's 935 cases are in Halifax.

Rural areas are faring much better and Cape Breton Regional Municipality Mayor Cecil Clarke is calling on the province to release more in-depth numbers.

It's been more than a month since residents were able to access the landfill in Sydney, N.S. On Tuesday, the city opened the gates to the public.

"Yesterday was the first day we were open to the public in about five or six weeks and it was extremely busy," said Francis Campbell, CBRM's solid waste manager.

With just 50 cases of COVID-19 in the eastern zone, the CBRM felt comfortable lifting some restrictions, while still following guidelines outlined by the province.

"The only change that we've made is controlling the amount of vehicles on the site at any given time," Campbell said. "So, there's not a lot of crowding at different locations on the sites. If we do get busy, residents may experience getting into the site."

New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island have already announced plans to ease restrictions -- including opening golf courses.

While rural Nova Scotia numbers remain low, the Halifax area continues to climb.

"The sacrifices our citizens have been making are proving to show positive outcomes," Clarke said.

Clarke is calling on the province's chief medical officer of health to release more in-depth figures, when it comes to COVID-19 cases in rural parts of the province.

"All the way along we've been asking for more information as it relates to cases in our municipality and not identifying where people live, but looking at patterns that they would have human contact on the community spread portion," Clarke said.

Wednesday marked the fourth straight day that there were no new cases in the eastern zone, which includes Cape Breton Island. But Clarke says he will continue to take directives from the province, 

"When it comes to recreational facilities, those will only be lifted and changed when we have direction from the province," Clarke said.

For now though, it looks like most restrictions will remain in place for Nova Scotia as the province continues to control COVID-19.

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  It's been more than a month since residents were able to access the landfill in Sydney. On Tuesday, the city opened the gates to the public.