Save Williams Lake! Dam Good News!
by: Cathy Vaughan
[Reprinted with permission from Chebucto News, November 2024]
Minister Kim Masland of Nova Scotia Department of Public Works announced that Build Nova Scotia will construct a new dam on Williams Lake and save this popular, well-loved, HRM lake.
“The community voiced its concerns about the aging Williams Lake dam, and we have listened. This is an investment in HRM and the safety of the community, and the health of the environment that will be a benefit now and for generations to come,” said Kim Masland, Minister of Public Works and Minister responsible for Build Nova Scotia at Williams Lake dam.
Minister Masland announced the good news to an enthusiastic crowd in the Shaw Wilderness Park, on 21 October. The old dam looks like a dam but doesn’t act like a dam. A modern, fully functioning dam will hold Williams Lake waters to safe recreational and environmentally healthy levels. This is dam good news!
“Build Nova Scotia is pleased to deliver on this important project for HRM and the Williams Lake community. We are committed to building a dam that meets the needs of today and safeguards the future by managing the water effectively and protecting the surround ecosystem,” said David Benoit, President, and CEO of Build Nova Scotia.
“Let the Williams Lake dam build begin!” said Margo Kerr of the Williams Lake Dam Association (WLDA) a Facebook site concerned with saving Williams Lake. Ms. Kerr said “Thanks to Minister Brendan Maguire for recognizing and promoting the benefits of replacing this dam for the community and the many ecosystems that Williams Lake supports. Also, thanks to Cathy Vaughan and Murray Coolican of Williams Lake Conservation Company for their years of dedication, contribution, and wisdom.”
Williams Lake Conservation Company (WLCC) is a volunteer environmental and conservation group established in 1968. The group took on the role of caretakers and stewards of Williams Lake and its watershed to repair the 200-year-old mud and rock, earth-berm dam with bags of quick-set cement. Their next repair was in 1974 when they paid for the addition of more stabilizing boulders and gabion rock-filled baskets to support the sides and back of the structure.
WLCC also took on the role of monitoring and recording the quality of the lake waters for about 45 years and also collected extensive data on lake levels for the past 23 years – valuable statistics and measurements needed for a competent new dam today.
In the early 2000s WLCC approached the local community and lake-side residents to fund an engineering study to assess the structural integrity of the failing dam and to find solutions to repair the leaky dam. These useful documents were recently reviewed by provincial government and used in the scope and design of this new dam – to control Williams Lake water levels, act like a proper dam and save Williams Lake.
WLCC’s president, Murray Coolican said, “This announcement is the result of years of advocacy work by WLCC, and more recently with the Williams Lake Dam Association, Minster Brendan Maguire, and other political representatives, and the HRM community who love this lake. We thank you all! We also appreciate Minister Masland’s efforts to make this decision and to the staff of Build Nova Scotia for their work to carefully plan the project. Once the dam is complete HRM has agreed to take on ownership of this community asset. Thanks go to the countless supporters of Williams Lake across HRM and beyond. We are celebrating!”
Williams Lake is not just a pretty lake! This popular urban lake is an all-season, multipurpose recreation centre, busy environmental science lab and a bustling wildlife community.
Williams Lake is a natural recreational centre! No memberships needed. No reservations for trails, picnic areas or fishing spots. The province stocks the lake with trout for sport fishing. City Recreation lifeguards supervise and offer swimming lessons at the public beach on Cunard Pond on the lake. HRM just supersized the Shaw Wilderness Park with an additional 46 hectares of forest on the undeveloped shoreline of Williams Lake. This all-season park gives you rugged backcountry hiking trails, bird watching, swimming, paddling, and skating. Through the four community entrances to Williams Lake you have access to your favourite outdoor activities all year.
Williams Lake acts like a complex biology science lab too! Williams Lake is an efficient multitasker which contributes to Earth’s complex water cycle while storing storm water and preventing flooding to neighbourhoods. Its lake waters act in tandem with its watershed to redirect and slow wildfires, while absorbing and storing carbon, as well as balancing temperatures from urban heat centres. For the rest of the day, Williams Lake works on regulating temperatures of its surrounding watershed by warming the air during the day and releasing it at night creating cooler breezes that can moderate local weather. Williams Lake continuously percolates and bubbles with a diversity of microscopic organisms 24/7! These are all important natural services which contribute to a healthier Earth in the face of human-caused climate change.
Williams Lake is a bustling wildlife “hood” for animals of all shapes, sizes and eating habits. Loads of four-legged critters inhabit the many wildlife corridors that criss-cross the huge watershed on this lake. Its waters are a well-used migration landing zone and a busy nesting site for many flocks of amazing birds. Small aquatic animals like frogs, turtles, snails, and insects use plants on the lake shore for protection for safe breeding areas. We just saved their hood.
Ecology Action Centre, Jillian Ramsay, Green Cities Officer says “As HRM continues to develop, protecting our urban wilderness is crucial. Community driven organizations like the Williams Lake Conservation Company and the Williams Lake Dam Association play vital roles in protecting this area. In addition to the numerous environmental benefits of maintaining a healthy watershed, Williams Lake provides recreational opportunities and promotes mental and physical well-being, easily accessible to the urban core. By educating ourselves about the overall importance of lakes and watersheds, we can help preserve these ecosystems for future generations.”
Emilia Trussell, 7 and her brother Lucas 10 were all shouts and yelps when they learned that the lake will be saved by a new dam. Emilia cheered for her friends that she sees in the lake, especially the otters, snapping turtles and catfish. Lucas just wants to swim. A new dam will fix all that!
Learn More:
Williams Lake Conservation Company – https://williamslakecc.org/
Williams Lake Dam Association – Facebook
Nature Conservancy of Canada – https://natureconservancy.ca/en/
Ecology Action Centre – https://ecologyaction.ca/