Province releases details of shoreline protection order

The province has provided more information about a ministerial order signed two months ago thatlimitscoastal development on P.E.I. until a formal policy can be drawn up.

As of Dec. 1, permits related to new development in the coastal buffer zone were stopped. Since the environmental protection order was signed, some permitting has begun based on the factors outlined in the order.

Some development is still allowed with a permit, including:

• Critical infrastructure repair and protection.
• Repair to existing erosion control structures damaged by post-tropical storm Fiona.
• Provincial or federal erosion control structures required for the protection of public infrastructure.
• Projects that receive a provincial environmental impact assessment approval.

The province is working with the School of Climate Change and Adaptation at UPEI to develop a new coastal zone policy. That work will include developing recommendations on a short-term policy to allow acceptable shoreline activity and remove the moratorium put in place until the long-term shoreline policy is finalized.

The long-term policy will include:

• Guidance on materials and techniques used by, and the credentials and training required for, installers.
• Different practices that may be required in unique areas (i.e., zoning based on different shoreline characteristics).
• Guidance on how nature-based solutions (i.e., living shorelines) can be integrated and encouraged.
• Clarity on the purpose of the buffer zone for different areas (i.e., in-shore vs. external shore).
• Analysis of the impact of the recommendations on the current projects by the provincial government and current policies and permitting process.

"I am committed to finding a way forward to protect our coast while maintaining the natural look and feel of the shores we grew up with," EnvironmentMinister Steven Myers said in a newsrelease Wednesday.

"Our new coastal development policy will be rooted in the best available science and local expertise, so our province is prepared to face the long-term impacts of climate change."