SHERBROOKE — Despite uncertainty around federal conservation funding, the St. Mary’s River Association is heading into the new year “cautiously optimistic,” with several major initiatives underway aimed at protecting the river and restoring its salmon population.
That’s according to St. Mary’s River Association (SMRA) president Scott Beaver, who spoke with The Journal recently about past successes and hopes for one of Guysborough County’s most iconic and storied watercourses.
“We sure hope our federal government doesn’t cut programs or manpower that could adversely affect our habitat work, genetic diverse stock enhancement program or the Ecologically Significant Areas (ESA) candidacy work,” he said.
As the association nears completing a new five-year strategic plan, Beaver noted that the organization’s core priorities remain salmon recovery, increasing membership, supporting the federal Ecologically Significant Areas (ESA) process, continued use of the interpretive centre as a tourism anchor, and reviving the No Open Pit Excavation (NOPE) campaign, which has already begun.
Looking ahead to 2026, Beaver said the SMRA will “continue working on our salmon recovery program and the aspects that fall under that, which are habitat restoration, access issues, and stock enhancement with a strong focus on genetic integrity,” adding the association “will be watching closely to see what the federal government decides to cut back on in their budgeting here in the new year.”
He noted, for example, that 2026 will be the final year of the Aquatic Ecosystems Restoration Fund, a four-year federal program supporting the restoration of coastal and inland aquatic environments. Among the projects SMRA plans under the program this year will be completing work at Harrisons Pool, addressing several smaller sites and collecting data, including temperature, flow and pH levels.
Work will also continue at the Willowdale restoration site on the East River St. Mary’s, where techniques such as armour rock placement and boulder groupings are being used alongside natural methods, including root wads to create fish cover. An extensive tree-planting project has been completed at the site, with approximately 700 native trees newly sown.
“I’m very excited about the cold water refugia project at this site where we are partnering with the Nova Scotia Salmon Association (NSSA),” Beaver said, referring to their joint program to restore cool patches of river water that are particularly conducive to salmon spawning and migration. “It’s a neat project and our team hopes to expand similar initiatives if it proves successful,” he added.
Beyond habitat restoration and salmon recovery, Beaver said the association has also been looking at the broader economic role protected and conserved areas can play in rural communities.
As part of that work, the SMRA commissioned a study examining whether rural communities near protected areas have been able to leverage their natural assets to generate economic benefits. The association raised funds to hire a student to write a paper titled Economic Benefits of Protected and Conserved Areas to Canadian Rural Communities.
“Rural towns located near protected areas have the potential to thrive and experience significant economic success,” Beaver said.
The paper, authored by Perrin Gillis, examined 19 rural communities across Canada and ranked them based on economic performance. The top five communities identified were Midland, Ont.; Dauphin, Man.; Revelstoke, B.C.; Amherst, N.S.; and Shawinigan, Que. Each is located near long-established protected areas that attract consistent visitor traffic and contribute to long-term branding and identity.
In the paper, Gillis noted that rural communities with populations of fewer than 30,000 people face a range of challenges, including declining and aging populations, labour shortages, poorly maintained infrastructure, dependence on urban centres and economic stagnation. He added that these challenges are often compounded by climate change and the remoteness of many rural areas.
Gillis also wrote that examining the success stories of rural communities situated near or within protected areas offers an opportunity to assess potential economic benefits. Protected and conserved areas in Canada are designated ecological regions intended to preserve biodiversity for present and future generations by mitigating the impacts of human activities, while also providing enhanced ecosystem services.
Although it is possible for a rural town near protected areas to thrive, Beaver said transforming any community into the next Revelstoke or Midland would take significant effort, careful planning, strategic branding and difficult decisions.
Beaver also noted the association remains watchful when it comes to resource development proposals that could affect the river and surrounding watershed.
“At any mine site all water at the site needs to be captured and treated by the company before release,” he said, adding that blasting, extraction and trucking along public roads would still occur and that mine-related employment is temporary. “All mine sites have a limited life,” he said.
Despite that vigilance, Beaver said the association’s focus remains firmly on building a sustainable future for the river and the communities around it.
“Although cautiously moving into 2026, I am convinced that our river’s broader community have really stepped up and are totally engaged,” he said. “With the right approach, towns and villages like ours can build sustainable futures that balance economic growth with environmental stewardship.”
