Dear Friends of the Backlands,
This is such good news for our mission to protect the Backlands. As you will read below, the Nova Scotia Nature Trust has a campaign to protect 17 acres of treasured land near Purcells Pond. The Pond is a special place for quiet reflection, swimming and watching wildlife.
In order for this dream to become reality, we need to ask our supporters to generously donate now to the Nova Scotia Nature Trust and specify the Purcells Cove Backlands Campaign. Here is the link to the page for donation https://nsnt.ca/campaigns/purcells-cove/ . Please ask your friends and family to go to this webpage, scroll down and click the button that says HELP SAVE PURCELLS COVE WITH A GIFT TO TWICE THE WILD . Any size donation is welcome.
Thank you once again for supporting the protection of the Backlands.
| Kathleen Hall WLCC Director Backlands Coalition Chair |
Martha Leary WLCC Director Backlands Coalition member |
From NS Nature Trust:
Help connect our beloved Backlands by March 31st.
The Purcells Cove Backlands are an oasis of calm in the heart of Halifax. Although they are surrounded by residential and urban developments, they are a relatively intact urban wilderness. Beloved for their publicly accessible opportunities for human well-being, including hiking, swimming, and other recreational activities, the Backlands are also ecologically valuable, hosting unique ecosystems and habitat for many sensitive species.
The Nature Trust currently protects four neighbouring properties in this area, and now we have the opportunity to link them together.
The 17-acre property we are working to secure will allow us to link together trails and re-establish the trail to Purcells Pond, bringing a longtime wish for easier public access to our other conservation lands to fruition.
This new property harbours globally rare Jack Pine/Broom Crowberry Barrens, as well as open woodlands, upland forests, forested wetlands, and open peatlands. The open barren and fire-disturbed habitats provide nesting opportunities for Common Nighthawk, which is known to breed in the area, and which is designated as a species of Special Concern under the federal Species at Risk Act and as Threatened under the Nova Scotia Endangered Species Act.
The Purcells Cove Backlands represent a long and successful collaboration for conservation. In addition to the Nature Trust’s protected lands, others are protected by the Nature Conservancy of Canada, Halifax Regional Municipality (Shaw Wilderness Park), and the MacIntosh Run Watershed Association. Community partners like the Backlands Coalition play an essential role in caring for this precious urban wilderness.
Building more connection in this area benefits everyone who uses and loves this unique landscape. Will you help us reach our target?