Offshore Wind Potential in Nova Scotia: Summary Report and Analysis of Rural Community Feedback

Offshore wind (OSW) remains an untapped renewable energy resource in Nova Scotia. Tapping into OSW will require support from and cooperation between communities, governments, local industries, and OSW proponents.

In 2022, Net Zero Atlantic (NZA) began Capacity Building for the Sustainable and Inclusive Development of Nova Scotia’s Offshore Wind Resource — a project developed to build local capacity in Nova Scotian communities for meaningful participation in discussions regarding development in Nova Scotia’s offshore environments. Specifically, the project focuses on building capacity in rural and Mi’kmaw communities to ensure an inclusive as well as sustainable approach to OSW development in Nova Scotia.

The Cape Breton Partnership partnered with Net Zero Atlantic to coordinate, present, and engage with attendees for all sessions held in Unama’ki – Cape Breton throughout this process.

The approach to this project is based on two-way knowledge sharing between communities and Nova Scotia-based organizations, collecting and compiling community insight and local knowledge, and building capacity through dialogue and information exchange. The purpose of this report is to provide a summary and analysis of comments, questions, and concerns about offshore wind in Nova Scotia collected during rural community sessions from September to December 2024.

Please note that this report focuses on findings from sessions conducted with rural communities across Nova Scotia. A summary of Mi’kmaw and rural community feedback is provided in our What We Heard report developed by Net Zero Atlantic and our partner organizations, the Confederacy of Mainland Mi’kmaq and the Unama’ki Institute of Natural Resources.