Some Windsor, N.S., residents say a two-year-old decision to close the gates of an aboiteau and keep Lake Pisiquid filled with water is unnecessary and causing other problems.
Prior to the closure, the open gates caused the lake to drain. This was done by way of a Department of Fisheries and Oceans order to restore the Avon River to a natural river state to allow fish to pass through.
But in June 2023, the province declared a state of emergency and ordered the gates closed so that the water supply would be maximized in the event it was needed for firefighting. The order came at a time when there were large wildfires in the province.
“The firefighting protection for Windsor, this is an illusion,” said fisherman Darren Porter, who’s part of scientific teams conducting work on the river.
He also previously attempted to get a judicial review of the province’s emergency order, but was unsuccessful. The judge called the province’s reasoning “rational, logical and justified.”
When the lake was drained this past spring to allow for regular aboiteau maintenance, the Confederacy of Mainland Mi’kmaq extended a river boat ramp to allow scientists access to the water.
“If I can put my boat in … to do the studies, fire trucks can back down [the ramp],” said Porter. “So the logical case for needing that dry hydrant is no longer logical, because we have this ramp right to the channel, and we have access to water at all times.”
A dry hydrant is a non-pressurized pipe that connects to a water source. In this case, the dry hydrant is connected to the lake.
The Municipality of West Hants is planning for a future with or without that water.
CAO Mark Phillips said the municipality is building a water storage tank and combining the former water utilities of Windsor and Falmouth to accommodate a growing population, as well as improve firefighting capabilities.
“If the water is in the lake, obviously that gives us greater capacity,” he said. “But if water is not in the lake, then we need to be in a position to make sure our community is safe and confident in our fire service.”
Phillips anticipates those projects will be completed this construction season. He said the community is patiently waiting for a final decision on aboiteau design.
Some Windsor residents are not feeling so patient though.
David Hunter owns an antique shop on the Windsor waterfront. He likes the lake, but also enjoyed watching the tides when Windsor fronted on a river.
Ultimately, he doesn’t much care what the outcome is, as long as there’s a resolution.
But he’s concerned about the ongoing safety risk posed by unfinished work on Highway 101, which can’t be completed until a new aboiteau design is approved — and he’s losing faith in the process.
“Either open the gate or get the damn thing closed off,” said Hunter. “Fix that highway. I can’t believe that they can’t come up with an idea on this, whether it’s a lake or a river.”
Amanda Dunfield said there’s another safety concern stemming from the lake. She has lived in a low-lying part of Windsor since 2020. She estimates her home has flooded about 20 times since then — and she attributes that partly to water levels at Lake Pisiquid.
When it rains heavily, stormwater and sewage back up in Windsor’s overburdened sewer system, filling her home and yard with wastewater.
Dunfield holds the Municipality of West Hants most responsible. Her parents, who own her house, have sued the municipality for negligence and nuisance, for allegedly failing to improperly design, install and maintain its stormwater system.
“I’ve been told three quarters of my home [needs to] be completely gutted,” said Dunfield. “Who’s paying for that? I can’t pay for it. I’m a single parent.”
The municipality did not respond to a request for comment about the lawsuit.
Dunfield said the outflow point for Windsor’s combined sewer system is in downtown Windsor. When that outflow point is submerged by high lake levels, it can’t function properly, causing wastewater to back up into the town.
Public meeting
At a March public meeting on the stormwater system, employees for CBCL Engineering — which has been conducting a study of the stormwater system — described this problem. In response to a question about lake levels, a CBCL staffer said, “That’s one of the biggest issues with that area now, is the potential for the water to be high and then it can’t drain at all.”
CBCL did not reply to an interview request from CBC News.
Dunfield said this is concerning, given that Windsor is not at as much year-round risk from wildfires as it is from combined sewer overflows.
She said that if the province can replace the lake with two water tankers, as they did when the lake was drained in May, why is the lake water needed?
Dunfield’s lawyer, Richard Norman of Cox & Palmer, will be looking at the question of provincial responsibility in the lawsuit.
“It’s certainly open to the municipality to look to the province and say, ‘You’re part of the problem and you should be involved as well,'” he said.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the Emergency Management Department said water tankers would not be sufficient in the event of another devastating wildfire season, and that “the current municipal system is inadequate for wildfires, larger or multiple fires.”
Access-to-information records
Records obtained through an access-to-information request shed light on the timing of the province first imposing the state of emergency on June 1, 2023, which has been continuously renewed for two weeks ever since then.
In a series of 2023 emails, Jamie Juteau, who was the Windsor fire chief, wrote to the area MLA saying firefighters could not draw water from the lake using a dry hydrant in downtown Windsor because of the lake’s depth. His email did not specifically mention safety issues.
Deputy housing minister Paul LaFleche then forwarded that email to the premier’s chief of staff, saying, “Let’s use it.”
The state of emergency was declared later that day, thus closing the aboiteau’s gates and filling the lake with water.
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