Home / About PEI /

Environment

As a small island province, Prince Edward Island depends on the land and the sea as the basis for its three primary industries –farming, tourism and the fishery. The Island has a turbulent history when it comes to land ownership and from the moment property rights were seized from absentee landowners, Islanders have taken seriously issues surrounding land use and stewardship. All three industries are interdependent, and all contingent on a healthy environment where crops flourish, shellfish thrive and visitors reap the scenic benefits. The residents of PEI are aware that all this hangs in a delicate balance, and the provincial government and the community are taking measures to protect what they believe to be a special and magical place. The PEI Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Aquaculture is taking the lead in implementing a Sustainable Resource Policy aimed at protecting and enhancing the agricultural and forest resource lands. Some of the programs and legislation currently in place include:

Legislation relating to crop rotation and riparian buffer zones.

A new initiative, the PEI Food Trust, supports sustainable growing and harvesting practices.

Wildlife Habitat Improvement Program provides support to communities to enhance streams and forests

Young Environmentalist Program which annually hires students to work on stream enhancement, erosion control, etc.

Waste Watch which, through its recycling and composting program projects a 65% diversion of waste from disposal sites

Anti-littering laws that administer fines all the way up to $50,000

Annual Women's Institute Roadside Cleanup Day

Carbonated beverages sold only in refillable glass containers in PEI with a return/re-use rate of 98%

Island Nature Trust protects and manages natural areas through land aquisition, conservation, habitat restoration and education

Land use and land ownership controls such as limitations to land ownership by residents, corporations and non-residents; subdivision controls; and protection of endangered landscapes by the L.M. Montgomery Land Trust

Green Power Program which sells power generated at the North Cape wind power research farm

Information on these and other programs can be obtained from Island Information Services.