Four people charged following protest outside Dartmouth housing development
Four people are facing obstruction charges after they were arrested at a protest over construction near the Eisner Cove Wetland in Dartmouth, N.S., Tuesday morning.
Halifax Regional Police responded to reports of a planned demonstration in the area of Mount Hope Avenue, near Highway 111, around 7:30 a.m.
The protesters were speaking out against a housing development being built in the area.
Demonstrators allegedly tried to stop a tree harvester from being delivered to the site by laying or standing in front of the machine.
Police say they were on scene “to ensure public safety for everyone in the area,” and arrested four people when they allegedly tried to obstruct the officers.
Police also allege one woman assaulted an officer while she was being arrested.
A 45-year-old man, a 41-year-old man, a 27-year-old man and a 57-year-old woman have each been charged with one count of obstruction. The woman also faces charges of assaulting an officer.
They are all due to appear in Dartmouth provincial court.
The protesters says the wetland is a possible home to at-risk species, such as wood turtles, black ash trees and bats, and is calling for the housing development to be built in another part of the city.
“We want the provincial government to exchange other land that is more suitable for development, which there are plenty of in HRM, for this very ecologically important piece of land, so this development can go on, but not here,” said protester Tara Lapointe. “We want this land to be given back to the public and preserve it for future generations “
Nova Scotia-born actor Elliot Page posted on Instagram that he was at the protest, identifying one of the arrested protesters as Darlene Gilbert, a Mi'kmaw elder.
Last month, the Nova Scotia Department of Environment told CTV News the work won't disturb a large enough portion of wetland to meet the criteria for an environmental assessment, and that it has no evidence there are endangered species in the area.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.