NS Power gets Fisheries Act approval for Ruth Falls dam refurbishment project

The Ruth Falls dam in Sheet Harbour, N.S., is pictured. (Source: Nova Scotia Power website)

Five years after making its initial application, Nova Scotia Power has received Fisheries Act authorization for its Ruth Falls dam refurbishment project, but it will need to resubmit a request to the provincial energy board to secure necessary funds for the work.

The utility is seeking approval for an extra $8.2 million for the dam project in Sheet Harbour through an overspending application, but last week the Nova Scotia Energy Board ruled it would hold off on that request until Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) provided a Fisheries Act authorization.

The written decision from the board noted that Nova Scotia Power applied for the authorization in December 2019, but received a response in March 2020 that outlined “significant additional work required based on DFO’s conclusion that the proposed activities were likely to harm fish and fish habitat.”

The utility made further submissions from August 2020 to September 2023. It made its most recent submission last February.

According to the Government of Canada website, the Ruth Falls dam project received the necessary Fisheries Act authorization on June 17.

“A drawdown of the Ruth Falls Headpond, approximately 18 feet below minimum operating level, will begin on or after July 21, 2025, with no upstream fish passage until the reservoir is rewatered by April 1, 2026,” the website reads. “The 9-month project will permanently impact about 60 m² of fish habitat and temporarily disrupt 1.15 km² due to the drawdown.”

Following the approval, the utility can now submit an amended authorization to overspend application to the energy board.

Nova Scotia Power says the dam upgrades include:

• building a new steel walkway platform along the length of the dam
• improving the upstream fishway
• resurfacing the concrete spillway surface
• replacing 30 stoplog bays with seven rubber dam sections

The project is expected to add 50 years to the dam, which was built in 1925.

In its original application to the Nova Scotia Energy Board, the utility said the project – which was originally earmarked for $7.2 million – is now expected to cost $15.4 million. It cited the issues obtaining the environmental permits and the extended construction timeline as reasons for the added costs.

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