HALIFAX — A group of landowners in eastern Nova Scotia is speaking out for the first time about their opposition to an ambitious plan to build North America’s first coastal refuge for whales retired from theme parks.

But their complaints about the way the project won approval from the province stand in sharp contrast to the views of two other landowners who insist the project has won broad support beyond their tiny, oceanside hamlet.

Last week, the Nova Scotia government issued a cabinet order granting the U.S.-based Whale Sanctuary Project a 20-year lease for 83 hectares of Crown lands and coastal waters at Wine Harbour, N.S., a move that marked a step forward for the much-delayed, privately funded project.

The project attracted international attention this month when owners of the shu

See Full Page