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Northern Pulp says it is ‘insolvent’ and can’t pay its pension obligations, but it’s got plenty of cash to bankroll legal assaults on Nova Scotia’s government and laws

April 20, 2022 By Joan Baxter 2 Comments

At the end of this month, Northern Pulp and six of its affiliates will be back in the British Columbia Supreme Court, and odds are they will ask for and get yet another extension ⁠— the seventh to date ⁠— of the creditor relief they’ve been afforded under the federal Companies Creditor Arrangement Act. Northern […]

Filed Under: Commentary, Environment, Featured, Province House Tagged With: Asia Pulp & Paper (APP), BC Supreme Court, Biodiversity Act, Boat Harbour, Boat Harbour Act, boycott, British Columbia Supreme Court, Bruce Chapman, China, Companies Creditor Arrangement Act (CCAA), court monitor, creditor protection, creditor relief, Dartmouth East, default, Emera, environmental assessment, Ernst & Young, Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC), France, Friends of a New Northern Pulp, Greenpeace, Hervey Investment B.V., Hong Kong, insolvent, John Hamm, judicial review, Justice Shelley Fitzpatrick, lawsuit, Mattell, Maurice Chiasson, mediation, Netherlands, Northern Pulp, Northern Pulp Nova Scotia Corporation, Nova Scotia Environment and Climate Change, Nova Scotia government, Nova Scotia Law Amendments Committee, Nova Scotia Power, Nova Scotia Superintendent of Pensions, nova scotia supreme court, NS Supreme Court, Pacific Harbour Resources Limited, Paper Excellence, Paper Excellence B.V., Paper Excellence Canada Holdings, Paper Excellence Corporation, Pictou, PR campaign, Public Affairs Atlantic, public relations, pulp mill, Robert Grant, Rodney MacDonald, Saint Gaudens, Sasha Irving, Shanghai, Sinar Mas Group, Statistics Canada’s Inter-corporate Ownership, Tarascon, tax haven, Terms of Reference, Thomas Cromwell, Tim Houston, Timothy Halman, Widjaja family

Well-behaved women are rarely quoted properly

Morning File, Tuesday, April 5, 2022

April 5, 2022 By Philip Moscovitch 3 Comments

News 1.  Forced mediation with Northern Pulp Joan Baxter continues to follow the story of Northern Pulp and its parent company, Paper Excellence Canada, as they try to seek restitution for being forced to shut their Pictou County pulp mill. To recap: The mill did not provide a satisfactory plan to deal with effluent from […]

Filed Under: Featured, Morning File, Women Tagged With: affordable housing, African Heritage Month, Black Artists Network of Nova Scotia, Black Cultural Society of PEI, Black hair, Black History Month, Boat Harbour, Boat Harbour Act, COVID-19 pandemic, Dalhousie University College of Pharmacy, David Woods, El Jones, Gary Weekes, Habitat for Humanity, Hervey Investment B.V., Hyacinth Simpson, Jamaica Daily Gleaner, Jennifer Isenor, Joan Baxter, Justice Shelley Fitzpatrick, Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, Matthew Byard, Maurice Chiasson, Nature (journal), New Brunswick Black Artists Alliance, Northern Pulp, Paper Excellence, pharmacists, pharmacy, Podcasts, Robert Grant, Sarah Marshall, Spryfield, Stephen McNeil, Sweden, Tamara Steele, Thandi McCarthy, Thomas Cromwell, You're Wrong About, Yvette d'Entremont, Zane Woodford

Northern Pulp and its wealthy owners seem intent on taking Nova Scotians to the cleaners

But the Pictou pulp mill has had plenty of Nova Scotian accomplices helping them fleece the province.

April 4, 2022 By Joan Baxter 3 Comments

On April 1, in the British Columbia Supreme Court, Justice Shelley Fitzpatrick issued an order that forces Nova Scotia into a “mediation” process in the BC court, where Northern Pulp and six related companies have been enjoying creditor protection since June 2020. The process will be handled by a “court appointed” monitor that Northern Pulp […]

Filed Under: Commentary, Featured Tagged With: Asia Pulp and Paper (APP), BC Premier John Horgan, Bernie Miller, Biodiversity Act, Boat Harbour Act, Brazil, British Columbia Supreme Court, Bruce Chapman, Catalyst Paper, Companies" Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA), Competition Bureau of Canada, creditor protection, Darrell Dexter, default, deforestation, Domtar, Eldorado Brazil Celulose, environmental assessment, environmental assessment report, GI Smith, Hervey Investment B.V., Indemnity Agreement, Jackson Widjaja, John Hamm, John Savage, Justice Shelley Fitzpatrick, Kamloops, Kirby McVicar, lawsuit, Maurice Chiasson, mediation process, Netherlands, Northern Pulp, Nova Scotia, Nova Scotia Environment and Climate Change (NSECC), Nova Scotia Pension Benefits Act, Nova Scotia Superintendent of Pensions, nova scotia supreme court, Ontario, Paper Excellence, Paper Excellence Canada Holdings Corporation, Paper Excellence Group, Pensions, Pictou County, Public Affairs Atlantic, pulp mill, Quebec, Robert Grant, Robert Stanfield, Rodney MacDonald, Sasha Irving, Sinar Mas Group, statment of claims, Stephen McNeil, tax haven, Unifor, Widjaja family

Northern Pulp has a new set of “friends”

But the “friends” look familiar, and the “new” Northern Pulp sure looks a lot like the same old Northern Pulp.

March 9, 2022 By Joan Baxter 4 Comments

This is how the “Friends of a New Northern Pulp” describe themselves on their website: We are Nova Scotians who care deeply about our province, our forests, and our communities. We are the 36,000 Nova Scotians who own small and large woodlots. So, just one line in and the BS begins. The wording of the […]

Filed Under: Commentary, Environment, Featured Tagged With: Andy MacGregor, Asia Pulp and Paper, Boat Harbour Act, British Columbia Supreme Court, Bruce Chapman, CBC, Chief Andrea Paul, Claire Simonon, Curmae Limited, Domtar, Earle Miller, ecological forestry, Ecology Action Centre, effluent treatment, Elmsdale Lumber, environmental assessment, Fibre Excellence, Forest Nova Scotia, forestry industry, forestry sector, Forestry Transition Team, France, Friends of a New Northern Pulp, Friends of the Northumberland Strait (FONS), Great Northern TImber, Healthy Forest Coalition, Hervey Investment BV, Iris Communications, John Hamm, Les Flamants Roses du Trébon, Linda Pannozzo, low-grade wood, Mike Lancaster, Northern Pulp, Northumberland Strait, Nova Scotia Environment and Climate Change, Paper Excellence, Paper Excellence Canada Holdings, Paul Withers, pellets, Peter Oram, Peter Spicer, Pictou County, Pictou Landing First Nation, PR campaign, pulp effluent, pulp mill, Ray Plourde, Robin Wilbder, Ryan Scott, Sinar Mas, Statistics Canada, Stephen McNeil, Tarascon, tax haven, The Netherlands, Widjaja family, wood chips, woodlot owners

Woo and sue: Northern Pulp’s strategy in Nova Scotia

Colchester County Mayor Christine Blair accuses the Halifax Examiner of publishing "misinformation" about the county's wastewater agreement with Northern Pulp, but won't tell us what we supposedly got wrong.

October 31, 2021 By Joan Baxter 2 Comments

Item number 15 on the agenda of last week’s council meeting of the Municipality of the County of Colchester County was “Northern Pulp Misinformation.” Four hours into the meeting, held on Zoom, the item finally made the floor. The municipality’s director of public works, Michelle Boudreau, told Council she had put together a “Frequently Asked […]

Filed Under: Commentary, Environment, Featured Tagged With: Andy MacGregor, Bay of Fundy, Boat Harbour Act, British Columbia Supreme Court, Canadian Institute of Forestry, Central Colchester Wastewater Treatment Facility, Companies" Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA), Earle Miller, Elmsdale Lumber, FOIPOP, Forest Nova Scotia, Forest Products Association of Nova Scotia, Friends of a New Northern Pulp, litigation, Maurice Chiasson, Maurice Rees, Mayor Christine Blair, Michelle Boudreau, Municipality of the County of Colchester, Northern Pulp, Paper Excellence, Peter Spicer, Phillip Redden, Registered Professional Foresters Association of Nova Scotia, Robert Grant, Robin Wilber, Ryan Scott, SaltWire, Scott Fraser, The Shoreline Journal, wastewater, Widjaja family

Northern Pulp is demanding it be given “more than $100 million” from the province

October 20, 2021 By Joan Baxter 3 Comments

Northern Pulp — a Paper Excellence company that belongs ultimately to the billionaire corporate empire of the Widjaja family of Indonesia — is giving the Nova Scotia government two months notice that it intends to start legal proceedings to get “more than $100 million” from the province, which it claims represents the losses it has […]

Filed Under: Commentary, Environment, Featured Tagged With: Asia Pulp and Paper, Boat Harbour, Boat Harbour Act, British Columbia Supreme Court, Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCA), Darrell Dexter, Domtar, Jean-Francois Guillot, John Hamm, John Savage government, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Northern Pulp, Paper Excellence, Pictou County, Pictou Landing First Nation, premier John Savage, Premier Tim Houston, Sinar Mas, Stephen McNeil, Tim Houston, Widjaja family

What are Paper Excellence’s real plans for Northern Pulp?

This week two men presented the company’s plans for a “complete transformation” of the the mill at a special Pictou Town Council meeting. They faced persistent questions and made some telling comments that do not bode well for Nova Scotia.

July 21, 2021 By Joan Baxter 10 Comments

Paper Excellence is on a desperate charm offensive in Nova Scotia, trying to build “trust,” get support to refit and re-open its Pictou County Northern Pulp mill, make people believe that the company has somehow transformed itself overnight, and convince us all to forget its many egregious environmental, social, and political transgressions and bullying tactics. […]

Filed Under: Environment, Featured Tagged With: A’se’K, Biodiversity Act, Boat Harbour, Boat Harbour Act, Bowater lands, British Columbia, Caribou Harbour, Chief Andrea Paul, COunty of Pictou Council, creditor protection, Crown land, Cumberland Forestry Advisory Committee, Dale Paterson, Darrell Dexter, Duff Montgomerie, Effluent Treatment Facility, Environmental Liaison Committee, Forest Nova Scotia, GI Smith, Graham Kissack, Jerry Dias, Jim Ryan, Ken Swain, Melinda MacKenzie, Nadine LeBlanc, NDP government, Northern Pulp, Northern pulp creditor protection, Nova Scotia Lands, Paper Excellence, Pedro Chang, pension plan, Pensions, Pictou, Pictou Harbour, Pictou Landing First Nation (PLFN), Pictou Town Council, pipeline, pulp effluent, pulp mill, Resolute Forest Products, Robert Stanfield, Scott Maritimes Limited Agreement Act, Stellarton Town Council, Stephen McNeil, Supreme Court of British Columbia, Unifor, Wagner Forest Management, Wentworth Valley, WestFor Management, Westville Town Council

The province issues tough new orders to Northern Pulp

January 31, 2020 By Joan Baxter 2 Comments

Wednesday afternoon at 3:59 PM an email landed in my inbox. It was from Nova Scotia Environment and it was short, even terse: Environment Minister Gordon Wilson has issued a ministerial order to govern how Northern Pulp must conduct its orderly shutdown of the mill, today, Jan. 29. The ministerial order and terms and conditions […]

Filed Under: Environment, Featured, Province House Tagged With: Boat Harbour Act, Boat Harbour Effluent Treatment Facility (BHETF), Brian Hebert, Environment Minister Gordon Wilson, Northern Pulp, Northern Pulp effluent, Pictou Landing First Nation (PLFN), Premier Stephen McNeil, Rachel Boomer, William Palmer

“The province has in effect decided that it is not going to fully enforce the Boat Harbour Act”

Northern Pulp is "winterizing" its mill, which means that while waste from the pulping process will not flow into Boat Harbour after Jan. 31, wastewater from the mill's power boiler will, at least until April 30. Premier Stephen McNeil says this plan will help speed up the cleanup of Boat Harbour; Pictou Landing First Nations Chief Andrea Paul says she is "very frustrated."

January 21, 2020 By Jennifer Henderson and Joan Baxter 1 Comment

Premier Stephen McNeil made himself available to take questions from reporters about the future of the Northern Pulp mill and Boat Harbour at 12:30 today, less than an hour after Pictou Landing First Nation issued a press release stating that PLFN “has not agreed to allow Northern Pulp to keep using the Boat Harbour treatment […]

Filed Under: Environment, Featured, News, Province House Tagged With: Boat Harbour Act, Brian Hebert, Chief Andrea Paul, Northern Pulp closure, Paper Excellence Canada, Pictou Landing First Nation (PLFN), Premier Stephen McNeil

Northern Pulp, past and future: It ain’t over till it’s over

January 10, 2020 By Joan Baxter Leave a Comment

On December 20, 2019 Premier Stephen McNeil announced that the province would be respecting the Boat Harbour Act, and that Northern Pulp would have to stop pumping its effluent into the Boat Harbour treatment facility on January 31, 2020. Without the use of Boat Harbour, the Northern Pulp mill in Pictou County would have no […]

Filed Under: Commentary, Environment, Featured, News, Province House Tagged With: Adam McInnis, Atlas Holdings, Blue Wolf Capita, Boat Harbour Act, Brian Baarda, Brian Hebert, Chief Andrea Paul, Elmsdale Lumber, Graham Kissack, hot idle, Kathy Cloutier, Kelliann Dean, Minister Gordon Wilson, MP Peter MacKay, Northern Pulp closure, Northern Pulp loans, Northern Resources Nova Scotia Corporation, Northern Timber, Paper Excellence, Pictou Landing First Nation (PLFN), Premier Darrell Dexter, Premier John Hamm, Premier Stephen McNeil, Robin Wilber, Widjaja family

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PRICED OUT

A collage of various housing options in HRM, including co-ops, apartment buildings, shelters, and tents
PRICED OUT is the Examiner’s investigative reporting project focused on the housing crisis.

You can learn about the project, including how we’re asking readers to direct our reporting, our published articles, and what we’re working on, on the PRICED OUT homepage.

2020 mass murders

Nine images illustrating the locations, maps, and memorials of the mass shootings

All of the Halifax Examiner’s reporting on the mass murders of April 18/19, 2020, and recent articles on the Mass Casualty Commission and newly-released documents.

Updated regularly.

Uncover: Dead Wrong

In 1995, Brenda Way was brutally murdered behind a Dartmouth apartment building. In 1999, Glen Assoun was found guilty of the murder. He served 17 years in prison, but steadfastly maintained his innocence. In 2019, Glen Assoun was fully exonerated.

Halifax Examiner founder and investigative journalist Tim Bousquet has followed the story of Glen Assoun's wrongful conviction for over five years. Now, Bousquet tells that story as host of Season 7 of the CBC podcast series Uncover: Dead Wrong.

Click here to go to listen to the podcast, or search for CBC Uncover on Apple podcasts, Spotify, or any other podcast aggregator.

The Tideline, with Tara Thorne

Two young white women, one with dark hair and one blonde, smile at the camera on a sunny spring day.

Episode 79 of The Tideline, with Tara Thorne, is published.

Grace McNutt and Linnea Swinimer are the Minute Women, two Haligonians who host a podcast of the same name about Canadian history as seen through a lens of Heritage Minutes (minutewomenpodcast.ca). In a lively celebration of the show’s second birthday, they stop by to reveal how curling brought them together in podcast — and now BFF — form, their favourite Minutes, that time they thought Jean Chretien was dead, and the impact their show has had. Plus music from brand-new ECMA winners Hillsburn and Zamani.

Listen to the episode here.

Check out some of the past episodes here.

Subscribe to the podcast to get episodes automatically downloaded to your device — there’s a great instructional article here. Email Suzanne for help.

You can reach Tara here.

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