Project Update as of July 2025

The Boat Harbour Project Team has been working with Pictou Landing First Nation to set up a joint committee to begin the process of identifying and assessing the feasibility of an alternative to the existing approved containment cell, pursuant to Condition 9 of the January 2025 Federal Environmental Impact Assessment Decision.

In February 2025, Pictou Landing First Nation applied for Judicial Review of the Federal Minister’s Environmental Impact Assessment Decision, with the objective of quashing the Project’s environmental approval and sending the Project back for re-decision. Pictou Landing First Nation objects to the use of the existing approved containment cell for permanent storage of Boat Harbour waste and believes that Condition 9 does not go far enough to ensure the waste does not permanently remain in the existing approved containment cell.

The Judicial Review process is not expected to conclude before January 2026, at the earliest. Once the outcome of the Judicial Review is known, the Boat Harbour Project Team will be better able to predict next steps and timelines. Stakeholders will be updated when there is more certainty. The Province remains committed to cleaning up Boat Harbour.

Project Update as of January 2025

Build Nova Scotia has been entrusted by Nova Scotia’s Minister of Public Works to project manage the planning and implementation of remedial activities at Boat Harbour.

Boat Harbour, known in Mi’qmaw as A’sek, was a natural tidal estuary. It was a saltwater habitat spread over about 142 hectares (350 acres). The estuary was connected to the Northumberland Strait by a narrow passage just east of the Pictou Landing First Nation community.

It became polluted with the construction of a pulp and paper waste effluent treatment facility that began operation in 1967 and closed on January 31, 2020.

On January 24, 2025, federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault approved Build Nova Scotia’s Boat Harbour Remediation Project, with conditions. That decision was informed by the conclusions of the Environmental Assessment Report prepared by the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada.

The decision states that the project is not likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012 (CEAA 2012) when mitigation measures are taken into account.

It also states the proposed remediation of Boat Harbour was subject to a robust federal review that included both Indigenous Knowledge and scientific evidence.

The Boat Harbour Remediation Project is based on vertically expanding the existing approved containment cell, disposing the dredged sludge from Boat Harbour and nearby lands in the cell, and encasing it in a safe and secure manner.

A Condition on Alternative Sites

A condition on alternative sites requires the province, with Pictou Landing First Nation, to identify and assess the feasibility of an alternative to the exiting approved containment cell for the permanent storage of Boat Harbour waste.

Following remediation, the Province will monitor and maintain it in perpetuity.

Build Nova Scotia is committed to keeping Pictou Landing First Nation and other stakeholders fully informed throughout the life of this project.

Project Update as of May 2024

Change of Proponent Name

We wish to advise that effective December 1, 2022, Nova Scotia Lands Inc. became Build Nova Scotia. Accordingly, Build Nova Scotia is now the proponent for the Boat Harbour Remediation Project.

The Boat Harbour Remediation Project plans, the Project Environmental Impact Statement and all aspects of the environmental assessment process being managed by the proponent are not affected by this change. The contacts for the Boat Harbour Remediation Project remain the same.

Environmental Impact Assessment

The Federal Environmental Impact Assessment for the Boat Harbour Remediation Project remains ongoing. The Project is being assessed under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act of 2012 (CEAA 2012), which was in effect when we started the environmental assessment process in April 2019. 

The Proponent has been providing timely responses to Information Requirements (IRs). Five separate sets of IRs (totaling 105) have been received and responded to.  The Information Requirements and the responses are posted on the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC) website. 

 IAAC is expected to render an EA decision in mid to late 2024.

Procurement

The federal impact assessment must conclude with the issuance of an approval before any tender packages related to the project can be released.  At this time, we have no certainty as to when the process may be wrapped up. 

 We still expect that there will be two principal procurements for the Project.

  1. The Construction Management Oversight Services Tender Package, will be released in advance of the Remediation Construction Tender Package.

  2. The Remediation Construction Tender Package is intended to be one tender package for all related works.

Thank you for your continued interest in the project.