Prior to cancellation of their franchise, CRM Group assessed the potential heritage resource impacts associated with the development of Sempra Atlantic’s gas distribution system throughout Nova Scotia. The system was to include the installation of approximately 1,200 km of high pressure steel line and 7,000 km of medium to low pressure plastic line.

The heritage component of Sempra’s environmental work followed a staged approach to the assessment, monitoring and mitigation of construction related impacts to features of archaeological and cultural significance. The initial stage represented the application of an archaeological potential model developed by CRM Group for Sempra Atlantic Gas. The model identified areas of high, medium and low archaeological potential within various service areas across the province.

Following application of the model, the results were subjected to field verification to evaluate the accuracy and sensitivity of the model. Areas of high archaeological potential were subjected to monitoring by archaeologists during construction. The discovery of significant archaeological resources triggered a range of mitigation strategies designed to minimize the overall impact to the resource.