The province of Nova Scotia has issued a directive under the Emergency Management Act “prohibiting protesters from blockading or disrupting traffic on any road, street or highway in Nova Scotia.”
“The new directive follows a similar one issued January 28 banning protesters from organizing a blockade of Highway 104 at the Nova Scotia-New Brunswick border in support of the 2022 Freedom Convoy and the Atlantic Hold the Line event,” said a release from the province, issued at 7 p.m. Friday evening.
According to the directive, as of Feb. 4, “all persons are prohibited from stopping, parking, or operating a vehicle or putting any item in such a manner as to create or contribute to a partial or complete blockade of the normal flow of vehicle traffic on a road, street or highway in the Province.”
This applies to municipal roads, streets and highways.
It said the prohibition does not apply to provincial or municipal workers, or the vehicles used while doing sanctioned highway maintenance and repairs, or to law enforcement officers who are on duty.
People and corporations could be fined for failing to comply with the directive, which will remain in place for the duration of the province’s state of emergency, which was first declared in March 2020.
Fines will range from $3,000 to $10,000 for individuals and between $20,000 and $100,000 for corporations.
The release noted that the previous directive, banning blockades on Highway 104 at the New Brunswick border, remains in effect.