Economic driver or eco-threat? The conundrum of Halifax’s cruise ships

ENVIRONMENT

Economic driver or eco-threat? The conundrum of Halifax’s cruise ships

It’s the Tuesday after the first two cruise ships of 2023 have arrived at Halifax’s Pier 20—and for a brief spell, the waterfront is quiet. Waves lap. A seagull drifts in the breeze above the Emigrant statue, a french fry’s toss from where nearly 3,700 cruise ship travellers aboard the Norwegian Dawn and Zaandam filtered through the Halifax Seaport on Saturday and Monday. This weekend, another 370 cruise passengers are expected to arrive.

For Holly Davy, marketing manager at the Bertossi Group, which owns and operates The Bicycle Thief on the Halifax Waterfront, the arrival is a welcome one.

“[We’re] kind of the first stop once they get off the ships,” Davy says, speaking with The Coast.

That enthusiasm isn’t uncommon. According to the Halifax Port Authority, which oversees the arrival of just under 200 cruise ships a year, those ships—and the roughly 325,000 tourists on them—account for roughly $136 million flowing into the HRM every year.

But the industry’s hulking impact is felt in more ways than one: Critics argue cruise ships are not only more carbon-polluting than any other standard form of travel, they’re also an active threat to our oceans. And while other countries have taken strides to mitigate the industry’s effects, Canada’s lax environmental laws are bringing the issue closer to home.

Need to know

🌤 Today's weather: Partly cloudy with a high of 15C and a low of 1C.

🖌️ Sharpen your pencils! I See You is a hybrid drawing session/performance by Lara Lewis presented by Mayworks Kjipuktuk/Halifax where audience members draw the performer.*

🚧 Rocky Lake Drive from Duke to Cobequid Road will be closed starting today at 5am until Apr. 29 at 10pm.

💜 Wholetherapy has expanded. Now accepting new clients both in-person and online, with no waitlist. Book an initial appointment today.*

🚨 The Great Outdoors Comedy Festival is coming to Halifax this August! More announcements coming soon, click here.*

*Sponsored Post

TOGETHER WITH HOT MONDY

Listen to Hot Mondy’s Best Laid Plans now!

Halifax band Hot Mondy makes music for people who want to listen to albums cover-to-cover. Those who connect with artists that take risks, and those who embrace the new and the unexpected.

The group's newest compelling release, Best Laid Plans is out now. Featuring some of Canada's finest talents including Jah’mila, Christina Martin, Buck Elliot, Loel Campbell (touring drummer of Billy Talent, Wintersleep), Kim Dunn (Matt Anderson and Jimmy Rankin), Drew Jurecka (Grammy winner, Dua Lipa), Kwento, and Travis Flint. Only available via Bandcamp, and select retailers, there are a total of 11 tracks.

The production is otherworldly with strings, horn sections, country, folk, rock, and everything but the kitchen sink. Exploring concepts of time, human nature, mental health, and more!

On The Coast

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH SS ATLANTIC HERITAGE INTERPRETATION CENTRE

SS Atlantic presents 150th Anniversary Gala

$20 Early Bird tickets are still on sale for the SS Atlantic 150th Anniversary Gala at the Canadian Museum of Immigration on May 12. Join them for an evening of storytelling and entertainment to remember the little-known history of Nova Scotia's worst shipwreck.

All the info and early bird tickets here.

In other news

📑 A new expert report released this week could bring major change to people with disabilities living in Nova Scotia. The report suggests moving away from adult residential centres and rehabilitation centres in order to remove “discriminatory treatment” within the community.

🏒 The Halifax Mooseheads spoke to Global News about how they’re feeling ahead of Saturday’s game one in the team’s semi-final series against Sherbrooke Phoenix.

⚽️ The Halifax Wanderers play their home opener this Saturday, Apr. 29 against Vancouver FC. If you’d like to attend and support, tickets are still available here.

❤️ Colleen Jones’ final story with CBC is a personal one that highlights the life of her aunt who received her degree from Dalhousie at the age of 92. Watch it here.

🎥 Nova Scotia filmed TV series Sullivan’s Crossing has been picked up by The CW network and will begin airing in the United States.

🧑‍🏫 According to a new teachers union survey, 87% of educators think violence has increased in Nova Scotia schools since 2018 with over 90% of them stating they’ve experienced instances of violence first-hand.

THEATRE

Shakespeare By The Sea announces 30th summer season

When curtain time finally arrives for Shakespeare By The Sea’s opening night performance of Romeo and Juliet (one of two shows that comprise the veteran theatre company’s 2023 summer season, which is also its 30th), associate artistic director and play director Drew Douris-O'Hara will be ready, primed, equipped, toes already waiting behind the metaphorical start line:

“I think I've probably seen 30 productions of Romeo and Juliet in the last decade. It's my favourite. I think it's Shakespeare's most exciting play. I think that it's the play that has stayed with us in the cultural zeitgeist. More than any other play ever written, really,” he says, speaking with The Coast along with SBTS managing artistic director Jesse MacLean. Douris-O’Hara even has lines from the play inscribed on his wedding band.

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