Halifax’s Point Pleasant Park is considered one of
Nova Scotia’s most beautiful natural spaces
but I bet you didn’t know that it contains over 50 former quarries!

The quarries provided stone to build forts and walls in the Park. For example, slate from the Quarry Pond was used to help build the Martello Tower.

Today the provincial government requires that all new mines, quarries and pits post a reclamation bond – at least $2500 per acre used - and submit a rehabilitation plan that addresses key issues such as surface contouring, proper drainage and re-vegetation. This ensures that there is a proper plan in place, and funds available, to prepare former mines and quarries for their next use.

Reclamation is done on an ongoing basis as areas of mines and quarries are completed, which limits the size of the area in actual production, and ensures that environmental considerations are a daily concern for companies, not just an afterthought. Total reclamation of a site must be completed within a year of an operation ending.