Lack of consent stalls plans for North Americas first whale sanctuary in Nova Scotia – Halifax [Video]

An ambitious plan in Nova Scotia to build North America’s first coastal refuge for captive whales may have hit a dead end.

Documents obtained by The Canadian Press reveal the non-profit Whale Sanctuary Project (WSP) has yet to secure approval from all five owners of property adjacent to where the group plans to build a huge, floating net enclosure for belugas and orcas retired from marine theme parks.

The documents, obtained through the province’s freedom of information law, state that the U.S.-based group won’t be granted a Crown lease for 81 hectares of land and water near Wine Harbour, N.S., unless the landowners grant unanimous consent.

Executive director Charles Vinick said Tuesday the $20-million project on Nova Scotia’s eastern shore — announced five years ago and supported by private donations — could be derailed.

“Conceivably, a person could stop the project from happening, even with the amount of support it has throughout the rest of the communities,” Vinick said in an interview …