SYDNEY Do you own any islands in Catalone Lake, Cape Breton County? If so, youve got until next summer to let the provincial government know before it claims six of them for the Crown.

Property records show the islands have no known owner.

If Property Online shows it as owner unknown which means they have no record, no deeds, no wills, no documents to back up who owns it then lands revert back to the Crown, said Jody Nelson, with the Natural Resources Department.

Sometimes lands were granted 200, 250 years ago, and there were certain conditions that had to be met for the grant to be realized, he said.

If you were granted lands and never did anything with them, and never occupied them or never did any farming with them, never raised cattle on them, things like that, then after a certain amount of time, they would revert back to the Crown.

More often than not, these lands were never granted and theyre just sitting there and we never had our name attached to them is what happens, particularly with islands.

The provincial Land Services Branch has advertised its interest in the six islands for two weeks, and will run one more newspaper ad next week.

Eighteen months after the date lands with unknown owners are vested in the Crowns name in this case, July 26, 2016 unclaimed lands become provincial property.

At that point, the province is required to pay any back taxes to the municipality. Nelson said the taxes owing would be minimal, because the six parcels in Catalone Lake have an assessed value of $1,000 each and are classed as resource lands.

The province has no plans for the islands, he said, and under an agreement with Ducks Unlimited, because of their location and condition, the islands will be conserved in accordance with objectives of the North American Waterfowl Management Plan.

Original post:

Catalone islands owners urged to contact Nova Scotia government