After two years of waiting, Dan Blankenship and his partnership group have finally received a treasure trove licence, not that it's going to do them much good unless they move swiftly.

 The licence was one of five granted by the province late in July but the catch is that each licence expires on December 31, 2010. It's a window of opportunity for the group, but a minute one at best and it leaves the treasure hunters in a state of limbo about what the future holds for their operations after the deadline.

 As Mr. Blankenship said at the news, "They hold us up for two years and then they give us five months? After that who knows what they are meaning to do? I don't know if they know what it means."

 Just days before the province granted the licence, the government announced it was repealing the Treasure Trove Act, meaning these five licences are the last that will ever be granted by the province under that legislation. Any licences to be granted in the future will be under an amended act and will be for heritage purposes only, with all materials found becoming property of the province.

 As for Oak Island, which boasts one of the oldest and arguably one of the most famous treasure hunts in the world, the province also announced it would be governed under the new Oak Island Act, which the province hopes to table in the fall. At this point, however, no one knows exactly what that means. Understandably, all of this makes Mr. Blankenship a little apprehensive and the record shows when the government doesn't tell you everything, then it usually means the other shoe is about to fall.

 Despite making this announcement in July, the province claims it has no more information to give at this time about the changes or the impact it will have on Oak Island. So the question remains, why make the announcement at all if the details were not completely ironed out?

 "It's a little too early to go get into details like that," said Michael Noonan, communications director with the Department of Tourism, Culture and Heritage. "My understanding is the new legislation will deal specifically with the circumstances surrounding Oak Island."

 No wonder people become skeptical with government. It doesn't make sense to announce only half a plan. Surely government officials must realize that these are the types of actions that lead to more questions, suppositions and controversy. One would have thought that the government would have learned this lesson by now.

 The idea that there will be legislation specifically for the island is not necessarily a bad thing as far as we know, but the lack of details will only lead to further distrust among those who have a vested interest in this project, namely Mr. Blankenship and his partners.

 Mr. Blankenship, who has been searching for Oak Island's fabled treasure since 1965, says he does not take anything for granted and we suspect he has good reason to be cynical.

 The Treasure Trove Act was enacted in 1954 to govern treasure-hunting activities on Oak Island. Its scope was later expanded to cover licencing of salvage operations involving shipwrecks off Nova Scotia's coast. The creation of the Oak Island Act, according to a government media release, will ensure protection for the heritage resources in that area. What that means for Mr. Blankenship remains as much a mystery as the famed treasure itself.

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 The Friends of Oak Island Society, based in Western Shore, is a little more optimistic about the proposed Oak Island Act and have decided to await further details before deciding if they support the new legislation or not.

 The point is, chairwoman Carolyn Ekins says, even though the Oak Island Act details have yet to be established, the membership feels that the purpose of creating a unique act for the island will probably be to ensure that any new historical sites and archeological finds are preserved during the course of any treasure troving that takes place on the island.

 As long as the act ensures that historical sites and artifacts are preserved, it will be a positive thing although it remains to be seen whether the new Oak Island Act will restrict any treasure hunting on the island.

 Ideally, the legislation would be tabled in the fall, as expected, and approved before December 31, so that Mr. Blankenship and his partners can continue their searching without any disruption, but considering the delay the group has previously endured, we shouldn't expect much. However, maybe the government will surprise us all.

 - Vernon Oickle, Editor
   editorial@southshorenow.ca

posted on 09/07/10