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Benjamin Shingler
Telegraph-Journal

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FREDERICTON - One of Atlantic Canada's great natural treasures will be preserved for years to come.

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The Musquash River winds through salt marshes near its mouth on the Bay of Fundy southwest of Saint John. Seven parcels of land in Musquash Harbour are now protected areas.

Seven parcels of land on Musquash Harbour, located just southwest of Saint John on the Bay of Fundy, have been designated the first privately-owned protected area in the province.

Its salt marshes, coastal headlands, cobble beaches, bogs and mudflats make it one of the most diverse ecological areas in the region.

The Nature Conservancy of Canada, with the help of private donors and the provincial government, owns 811 hectares that make up the protected natural area. An additional 400 hectares will eventually fall under the same designation.

Linda Stephenson, the conservancy’s Atlantic regional vice-president, said the arrangement with the provincial government to recognize the privately owned lands is the first of its kind in Canada.

"I think this is such a forward initiative on behalf of the province," she said at a news conference in Fredericton on Wednesday. "This provides added protection to the private lands."

Musquash Harbour has been designated a "class two" protected area, which means it cannot be used for forest harvesting, mining, or for commercial and industrial uses. The area can be used for some recreational activities, as well as for educational and scientific purposes.

Wally Stiles, Minister of Natural Resources, said the newly-protected land will connect with pre-existing conservation areas, including the federally-protected Musquash Marine Protected Area just downstream, and the provincially-protected Loch Alva upstream from the land.

Stiles stressed the importance of preserving the area's unique fauna and flora.

"It's one of the last remaining marshlands of its kind," he said.

The W. Garfield Weston Foundation donated more than $1 million to the project, while J.D. Irving, Limited, The Sir James Dunn Foundation and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service each donated more than $100,000.

The province gave $1.5 million to the National Conservation Council in August to increase its programs in the province.

The conservancy began working in the area in 2000, when threats to the estuary were identified. More than 10 kilometres of new trails now traverse the area, offering hikers potential views of harbour seals sunning themselves on rock ledges and some of the 290 species of birds sighted in the area.

Earlier this fall, the provincial government created more than 30 new protected natural areas, severely restricting activities allowed on the land. There are now a total of 61 protected areas in the province.