Fortress of Louisbourg reinforcing for invasion
Quay wall being raised one metre to protect site from sea
Fortress of Louisbourg officials are bracing for another invasion, but this time it isn’t the British — it’s the sea.
This week, Parks Canada began reinforcing the quay wall that protects the national historic site from the Atlantic Ocean.
“It’s a bit of a different battle but one no less important,” said David Ebert, strategic adviser for Parks Canada’s Cape Breton field unit.
Ebert said archeological evidence such as mooring rings that are now several feet underwater indicates the sea level has risen about a metre since the fortress was originally built in the 18th century. Increasingly intense and frequent storms have also taken a toll on the seawall barrier, which is about five feet high.
“Anytime we get a big storm, we’re certainly seeing the waves come over the quay wall, and often what happens is we get water that accumulates behind the wall, and we quite often find there’s some drainage issues,” he said. “So, one of the things the quay wall is meant to address is not only stopping the water from coming in to the site, but also better
draining what happens to come into the site.”
To better protect the fortress, the wall will be raised one metre, which Ebert said matches its original height. The ground behind the wall will be elevated correspondingly, so visitors shouldn’t spot the changes.
“Tourists coming to the site won’t notice any difference
in the viewscape — the view of the harbour and the town of Louisbourg will still be the same — but it will help us better protect the interior of the site.”
The quay wall is the second phase of a $9.2-million flood protection project at the Fortress of Louisbourg.
In March, the rehabilitation of a barrier beach was completed
after engineers added two protective stone structures, known as groynes, that extend from the shore into the water to prevent the beach from washing away. Rounded rocks were also spread along the shore and sediment was dredged away to prevent further erosion of the beach, which has receded more than 100 metres in the past 300
years.
The quay wall work is expected to take place in three sections over the course of the next several months. Work on the east end, which began this week following the end of the Celtic Colours International Festival, is expected to be complete in December. The west end portion is slated to take place from January to June, and the final stage in the middle section is scheduled to begin in September 2019 and be completed in March 2020.