Point Aconi, Nova Scotia
Encyclopedia
Point Aconi is a rural community in Nova Scotia
at the northeastern tip of Boularderie Island
. It derives its name from the headland
of the same name, Point Aconi
.
Point Aconi is located in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality
and fronts the Cabot Strait
along the northeastern shore of Boularderie Island.
As such, the area around Point Aconi has been commercially mined since the early 19th century, first by the General Mining Association (GMA), then by the Nova Scotia Steel and Coal Company (SCOTIA) and later the British Empire Steel Corporation (BESCO) and its successors, the Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation
(DOSCO) and the federal Crown corporation Cape Breton Development Corporation
(DEVCO).
Point Aconi was home to the last underground coal mine in operation in Nova Scotia, the Prince Colliery, which was opened by DEVCO during the global energy crisis in the early 1970s. A limited access road, Highway 162
, was constructed from the Trans-Canada Highway
Highway 105
to the south in order to relieve local roads of traffic congestion during shift changes at the mine, as well as from dump trucks hauling the coal.
The then-provincial Crown corporation Nova Scotia Power Corp.
constructed the Point Aconi Generating Station
adjacent to the mine in the early 1990s to take advantage of the readily available fuel source.
The Prince mine was closed in November 2001, ending underground mining in Nova Scotia. However, the Point Aconi GS continues to operate as it is the most modern thermal generating station in Nova Scotia and provides lower emissions than older plants of a similar size.
Several proposals have been made in recent years to strip mine remaining coal
deposits near the surface in the Point Aconi area. However, this proposal has met with strong community opposition, citing fears of contamination and changes to groundwater supplies, as well as industrial nuisance through deteriorated air quality and noise which would lead to lower property values.
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
at the northeastern tip of Boularderie Island
Boularderie Island
Boularderie Island is an island separating the Cabot Strait from Bras d'Or Lake on the eastern coast of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. It takes its name from Louis-Simon le Poupet de la Boularderie, who was granted the area as a concession from the King of France.At 40 km long and...
. It derives its name from the headland
Headland
A headland is a point of land, usually high and often with a sheer drop, that extends out into a body of water.Headland can also refer to:*Headlands and bays*headLand, an Australian television series...
of the same name, Point Aconi
Point Aconi
Point Aconi can refer to several things:* Point Aconi, Nova Scotia, a community on Boularderie Island.* Point Aconi Generating Station, a power plant in the same community....
.
Point Aconi is located in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality
Cape Breton Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia
Cape Breton Regional Municipality often shortened to simply CBRM, is a regional municipality in Nova Scotia's Cape Breton County.According to the 2006 Census of Canada, the population within the Cape Breton Regional Municipality is 102,250...
and fronts the Cabot Strait
Cabot Strait
Cabot Strait is a strait in eastern Canada approximately 110 kilometres wide between Cape Ray, Newfoundland and Cape North, Cape Breton Island. It is the widest of the three outlets for the Gulf of Saint Lawrence into the Atlantic Ocean, the others being the Strait of Belle Isle and Strait of Canso...
along the northeastern shore of Boularderie Island.
Coal mining
The region sits over the northern end of the Sydney Coal Field, a large coal field which extends at an angle under the Cabot Strait. Specifically, the Point Aconi area is home to the Hub coal seam of the Sydney Mines Formation (Upper Carboniferous).As such, the area around Point Aconi has been commercially mined since the early 19th century, first by the General Mining Association (GMA), then by the Nova Scotia Steel and Coal Company (SCOTIA) and later the British Empire Steel Corporation (BESCO) and its successors, the Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation
Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation
The Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation was a Canadian coal mining and steel manufacturing company.Incorporated in 1928 and operational in 1930, DOSCO was predated by the British Empire Steel Corporation which was a merger of the Dominion Coal Company, the Dominion Iron and Steel Company and the...
(DOSCO) and the federal Crown corporation Cape Breton Development Corporation
Cape Breton Development Corporation
The Cape Breton Development Corporation, or DEVCO, was a Canadian federal government Crown corporation. It ceased operation on December 31, 2009, after being amalgamated with Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation ....
(DEVCO).
Point Aconi was home to the last underground coal mine in operation in Nova Scotia, the Prince Colliery, which was opened by DEVCO during the global energy crisis in the early 1970s. A limited access road, Highway 162
Nova Scotia Highway 162
Highway 162 is a two-lane controlled access highway on Boularderie Island in Nova Scotia, Canada.Highway 162 was constructed in the late 1970s to link Highway 105 in Bras d'Or to the now-closed Prince Mine at Point Aconi....
, was constructed from the Trans-Canada Highway
Trans-Canada Highway
The Trans-Canada Highway is a federal-provincial highway system that joins the ten provinces of Canada. It is, along with the Trans-Siberian Highway and Australia's Highway 1, one of the world's longest national highways, with the main route spanning 8,030 km...
Highway 105
Nova Scotia Highway 105
Highway 105 in Nova Scotia represents the Cape Breton Island leg of the Trans-Canada Highway. It runs from the junction just east of the Canso Causeway in Port Hastings to the Marine Atlantic ferry terminal in North Sydney, representing a distance of ....
to the south in order to relieve local roads of traffic congestion during shift changes at the mine, as well as from dump trucks hauling the coal.
The then-provincial Crown corporation Nova Scotia Power Corp.
Nova Scotia Power
Nova Scotia Power Inc. is a power generating and delivery company in Nova Scotia. It is privately owned by Emera and regulated by the provincial government via the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board .-History:...
constructed the Point Aconi Generating Station
Point Aconi Generating Station
The Point Aconi Generating Station is a 165 MW Canadian electrical generating station located in the community of Point Aconi, Nova Scotia, a rural community in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality. A thermal generating station, the Point Aconi Generating Station is owned and operated by Nova...
adjacent to the mine in the early 1990s to take advantage of the readily available fuel source.
The Prince mine was closed in November 2001, ending underground mining in Nova Scotia. However, the Point Aconi GS continues to operate as it is the most modern thermal generating station in Nova Scotia and provides lower emissions than older plants of a similar size.
Several proposals have been made in recent years to strip mine remaining coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
deposits near the surface in the Point Aconi area. However, this proposal has met with strong community opposition, citing fears of contamination and changes to groundwater supplies, as well as industrial nuisance through deteriorated air quality and noise which would lead to lower property values.