Stewardship Association of Municipalities

Harbour Grace

SAM Member Since: July 2023

Area Protected: 387 acres

Located on the western side of Conception Bay on the Avalon Peninsula with a population of 2700, and noted as one of the oldest towns in North America, is the municipality of Harbour Grace. Two main rivers (Bannerman and Harbour Grace Brook) drain into Harbour Grace and the long harbour stretches from Rolling Cove in the southeast to Cookroom Cove on the northeast. Despite the long-standing influence of humans in the area, being founded in 1517, Harbour Grace maintains impressive and intact wildlife habitat; the Harbour Grace estuary, rivers and bog wetland complexes, rocky coastline and other important habitats contribute to the biodiversity and beauty of the area

Conservation Areas

The Town of Harbour Grace has identified three Conservation Areas within their planning boundaries: Harbour Grace Estuary, Pirates Path Coastline, and Bannerman Lake, which is approximately 387 acres (156 hectares) of land.

The municipality of Harbour Grace is in the Maritimes Barrens Ecoregion, in the Northeastern Barrens Subregion. This region is characterized by barren ecosystems, interspersed with peatland and forest. Most of the geological composition of the Maritimes Barrens Ecoregion is ground moraine coupled with glacial erratic, while wetland ecosystems are dispersed throughout the area, comprised of hundreds of ponds, mixed with slope bogs, basin bogs, and fens. Forests in the ecoregion are dominated by species types like the typical Balsam fir (Abies balsamea), followed by Black spruce (Picea mariana) and some White birch (Betula papyrifera). In the riparian area, alders (Alnus incana) are common, while in peatland ecosystems, Sheep laurel (Kalmia angustifolia), rhodora (Rhododendron canadense), Crowberry (Empetrum nigrum) and Low-Bush blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium) are abundant. Harbour Grace contains significant wildlife populations, including several waterfowl, shorebird, songbird, and mammal, as well as healthy intact riparian and aquatic environments. These areas have been conserved to maintain the integrity of some of the most significant wildlife habitat within the municipal boundaries of Harbour Grace.