Long Lake Provincial Park Association – Who are we and what do we do
May 9, 2018 by Mike Harvey with editing in 2025 by Martin Willison
At this time, the Long Lake Provincial Park Association (LLPPA) is a group of community minded volunteers who spend a lot of time caring for accessible trails and parking lots in Long Lake Provincial Park in Spryfield. The Association is made up of regular members, an executive board, and some committees dedicated to getting the job done.
Origin of the Association
Long Lake Provincial Park Association is a nonprofit community group that was formally registered through the Registry of Joint Stock Companies of Nova Scotia as a Society on June 7th 1987. The process of registration requires that all registered societies have defined objectives. In essence this, and the other legal requirements of registration, create the constitution of the Society. For LLPPA, the unique constitutional qualities of the Society are:
(a) to advocate and assist with the development of Long Lake Provincial Park in ways which serve the interests of local citizenry and communities, and
(b) to promote and assist with the protection and conservation of the natural resources of Long Lake Provincial Park so that they may continue to be enjoyed indefinitely and in all seasons.
LLPPA initially worked to draw attention to the existence of the park, which had been created in 1984 following receipt by Nova Scotia of the lands around Long Lake from the City of Halifax. Good working relationships were established by LLPPA with the authorities responsible for the park. In this way a foundation was created for various projects, such as trail repair from Spryfield to the old Umlah Farm (located in the centre of the park) and placement of a bridge across Beaverdam Brook. Other practical projects included mapping of park resources, surveying park users, and facilitating creation of the parking lot at the west end of Long Lake on land managed by Halifax Water on St. Margaret’s Bay Road.
The next phase of LLPPA work focused on creating a park management plan. While a plan of this sort is not required by law in Nova Scotia’s provincial parks, it is standard practice for Parks Canada. Students at Dalhousie University’s School for Resource and Environmental Studies (SRES) laid out a plan for how to make a park management plan for Long Lake park. LLPPA then carried out the process with support from both the Province of Nova Scotia and the Halifax Regional Municipality. The Long Lake Provincial Park Management Plan has been the guiding document for decisions about the park since 2008.
Getting started on the Lakeview Trail
The Spryfield Business Commission’s Bruce Holland was contacted by Councillor Steve Adams to act as a catalyst in improving access to Long Lake Provincial Park, which was something that local residents had been asking for. The Spryfield Business Commission led negotiations for the original Management Agreement (October 2015) with the help of MLA Brendan Maguire. Developers Polycorp and Atlantic Developments agreed to work with all parties to develop the Lakeview Trail system and its associated parking lot.
In 2014, Holland organized a meeting at Captain William Spry Community Centre at which there was approval of the trail development concept. LLPPA had existed since 1987 as an advocacy group (see above) and was revived after this meeting to become the management and operating organization for a specific section of the provincial park. Two of the original founders of LLPPA attended the meeting and agreed that the development of new trails was consistent with the legal mandate of LLPPA. This was in part because the new trails were designed to be consistent with the parks management plan that LLPPA had created by working with the authorities (see above).
LLPPA continues with its advocacy role for the whole of Long Lake Provincial Park and, through the process described above, has added the responsibility to manage a specific set of trails in a defined segment of the park.
The current situation
The segment of Long Lake Provincial Park that LLPPA is responsible for is bounded on the east side of Long Lake from the grassy area near the dam on Old Sambro Road, along Dunbrack Street to a point north of Witherod Lake, and then back to the lakeshore.
Map designed and created by Darren Talbot
Though this section of the park is cared for by LLPPA, the area remains under the control of the Department of Natural Resources and is fully subject to the rules governing Provincial Parks in Nova Scotia. These rules are set out in the Parks Act and in Regulations under the Parks Act. Some examples are: hunting and use of all-terrain vehicles are not permitted, dogs must be leashed, alcohol consumption is not permitted, fires and fireworks are not permitted, and camping is only allowed with permits.
Winter Use
As in all provincial parks in Nova Scotia, parking lots in the LLPPA section are closed during the winter months for insurance reasons. Many people still use provincial parks during the winter months despite closure of parking lots, but park users do so at their own risk.
Ongoing Concerns
Maintenance of this section of the park is done by volunteers. No regular funds are available to LLPPA from government departments except through grant applications. Halifax Regional Municipality is generally not in a position to assist except in some very specific instances. This is explained more fully in our section on park governance.
Weather events, particularly during winter, often create issues that need attention. Sections of trail get washed away and trees are blown down over the trail. These issues are generally addressed by volunteer work crews, and sometimes by spontaneous volunteers not known to the LLPPA. This kind of trail work tends to bring people together to solve problems in a positive and community-building manner.
Some other work is less rewarding. Garbage management is an example. Our garbage philosophy is described as “pack-in, pack-out”, meaning that park users should not expect to leave their garbage in the park but should take it away for disposal at home when they leave. We have found that garbage bins attract garbage rather than reduce it. We organize up to four park clean-ups each year to address the issue of wastes scattered about.
There is a Miller waste bin in the main parking lot and this is used for park wastes left by those who do not follow the leave-no-trace philosophy of park use. Wastes put in this bin are officially classed as “industrial waste” and there is a substantial fee for it to be hauled away. The fee is paid for by donations to LLPPA. Thus, when a person drives to the park and leaves household garbage by the bin (as happens sometimes) this is a direct cost to a volunteer who loves the park, it is not a cost to government.
Dog wastes are a specific problem that might benefit from a new approach. It is understandable that dog owners don’t want to carry bags of dog poop back home with them. If dog owners got together to address this problem it could be solved by those who create the problem rather than being addressed by others who do not own dogs (as is currently the case).
Lastly, we have had a problem with people putting garbage such as diapers and plastic bags in the pit toilet situated in the main parking lot. This is irresponsible and very costly. Septic systems have to be pumped out every now and then. The cost to pump out a contaminated septic tank is much greater and the job can take months to arrange. Please only use toilet paper in the toilet area. It is provided by LLPPA for park users convenience.
