The Province of Nova Scotia passed the Boat Harbour Act in 2015. The Act gave BC based Paper Excellence 5 years to stop releasing untreated wastewater from their pulp mill into Boat Harbour. The January 2020 deadline to stop using Boat Harbour is fast approaching and the company hasn’t even started construction of a new wastewater treatment plant. The company still needs to complete an environmental assessment for the new wastewater treatment plant, built it, test it, and commission it. The company has already admitted that they will need more time to build the plant and is currently lobbying the provincial government for an extension.

This pulp mill produces the same product as the pulp mill here in Kamloops. Anyone who’s flown over or driven by the mill on Mission Flats Road will notice the large settling ponds and wastewater treatment facilities. This type of mill uses a massive amount of water and cannot operate without the ability to release wastewater. Without a new plant or the ability to continue using Boat Harbour, Paper Excellence will need to shut down their mill. Closing the mill will have a ripple effect across the entire Nova Scotia forest industry and cost the company dearly.

What I want to know: where were the lawyers back in 2015? Did they advise this company of the risk of not acting to build a new wastewater treatment plant? Why did they wait so long to start the process to build a wastewater treatment plant?

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/national-pictou-mill-northern-pulp-1.5042502

Evan Drygas