Sydney Harbour (Nova Scotia)

Sydney Harbour[1] is the 10-mile long Y-shaped inlet of the Atlantic, oriented southwest-northeast on the northeast shore of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. At its upper reaches, the harbour forks to form 2 arms, the Northwest Arm and the South Arm. The South Arm is fed upstream by the Sydney River.

Sydney Harbour
Sydney Harbour aerial view looking towards the north-east. The RMS Queen Mary 2 lies in the harbour.
Sydney Harbour Sydney Harbour in Nova Scotia
Location	Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia
Coordinates	46°13′12″N 60°12′20″W
Type	Bay
Part of	Spanish Bay
River sources	Sydney River
Ocean/sea sources	Gulf of Saint Lawrence, Atlantic ocean
Basin countries	Canada
Settlements	Cape Breton Regional Municipality From west to east: Westmount Sydney River Sydney Whitney Pier
Website	www.sydneyport.ca
References	Geographical Names of Canada - Sydney Harbour

Sydney Harbour is the maritime hub for the Cape Breton Regional Municipality. The South Arm affords year-round ice-free deep-water anchorage for large ships, including cruise ships.[2]

The harbour's east shore formerly held a coke (fuel) and steel mill belonging to the Sydney Steel Corporation, operating from 1901-2001 with peak production from 1960-1980. Muggah Creek, near the steel mill, transported material (including polychlorinated biphenyl)[3] into the Sydney Harbour, resulting in the area around the mouth of the creek to have some of the most contaminated marine sediment known (as of 2003).[4]

The harbour underwent major dredging in 2011, clearing the channel to 17-meter depth and making it accessible to large container ships.[5][6] Five port facilities currently operate on the shores of Sydney Harbour: the International Coal Pier, Nova Scotia Lands, Sydney Marine Terminal, Sydport Industrial Park (Edwardsville) and Marine Atlantic (North Sydney). The sixth, the new container terminal, NOVAPORTE™ Mega-Terminal, is being planned for Edwardsville.[7][8]