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Northern Pulp is in a polluting league of its own

A new study shows the mill's emissions of some air pollutants greatly exceeded federal reporting thresholds and were often much higher than other mills in Atlantic Canada.

April 11, 2022 By Joan Baxter 3 Comments

A new study shows that in spite of the many claims over the years that it was cleaning up its environmental act, and in spite of the $28 million it received in 2011 from the “green transformation program” of Conservative government of Stephen Harper to do so, when it came to air pollution, the Northern […]

Filed Under: Environment, Featured Tagged With: air emissions, Air Pollutant Emission Inventory, air pollutants, Atholville mill, Atlantic Canada, British Columbia Supreme Court, Campbellton, carcinogen, Clean Air Act, climate change, coarse particulate matter, Code of Practice for the Management of Air Emissions from Pulp and Paper Facilities, Codey Barnett, Dalhousie University, Daniel Rainham, Emma Hoffman, Environment and Climate Change Canada, fine particulate matter, Gianina Giacosa, green transformation program, greenhouse gases, Hervey Investment, industrial approval, Karla MacFarlance, National Pollutant Release Inventory (NPRI), New Brunswick, Northern Pulp, Nova Scotia Environment and Climate Change (NSECC), Paper Excellence, particulate matter, Pictou, Pictou West, Pollutants, pulp mills, Stephen Harper, sulphur dioxide, Tony Walker, Uruguay

Who benefits from Atlantic Gold’s Nova Scotia operations?

Firm with gold mines on the Eastern Shore pays no taxes and low wages to its employees while it gets large government subsidies and maximizes profits. Oh, and it will leave toxic mine tailings that will be with us forever.

June 21, 2021 By Joan Baxter 3 Comments

In mid-May, Laird Brownlie, head of external affairs for Australia’s St Barbara Ltd that acquired Atlantic Gold and its mining operations in Nova Scotia in 2019 for $722 million, sent out an email — a “special bulletin” — about the company’s proposed modifications at its Touquoy open pit gold mine in Moose River. Brownlie’s message […]

Filed Under: Featured, Investigation Tagged With: Atlantic Gold, Atlantic Mining NS, Australia, Barb Bryden, Brenna Reynolds, Burkina Faso, Charlier Parker, clay borrow pit, Cochrane Hill, corporate taxes, Craig Hudson, Darrell Dexter, DDV Gold, Deborah Bayer, Department of Energy and Mines (DEM), Dustin O’Leary, Earthworks, Eastern Shore, Ellen Moore, Environment Act, Environmental Approval, environmental charges, Environmental Impact Statement, Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act (ESTMA), Fifteen Mile Stream mine, Fisheries Act, FOIPOP, Frances Willick, Freedom of Information request, fuel taxes, gold mine, Highway 7, IAMGOLD, Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC), industrial approval, information session, James Wilt, Jennifer Henderson, Jim Millard, John Perkins, KPMG, Laird Browlie, land expropriation, Leonora mine, LinkedIn, Lloyd Hines, MacGregors Industrial Group, Mario Fortunato, Mi'kmaq, mine tailings, Mineral Resources Development Fund, Minerals Incentive Program, Moose River, Moose River Consolidated Project, Moose River Gold Mines Provincial Park, Moose River Road, Natural Resources Canada, NDP, net smelter royalty rate, net value royalty rate, Nova Scotia Environment (NSE), NS Power, open pit gold mine, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Paul Palmeter, Pieridae Energy, PNG Mineral Resources Authority, PowerPoint, proposed Beaver Dam mine, RCMP, Robert Grant, royalties, Sara Wallace, Sherbrooke, Simberi mine, St Barbara Ltd, St. Mary's River, Stantec, Steve Streatch, Sustainable Northern Nova Scotia (SuNNS), tailings management facility (TMF), taxes, The Narwhal, Touquoy mine, Transportation and Active Transit (TAT), United Nations Human Development Index, United Steelworkers union, waste rock storage area

Aurelius Minerals is still making false claims to potential investors about its Nova Scotia gold mine

Two months after the Halifax Examiner learned that Aurelius does not have "active and valid" environmental or industrial approval for the gold mine site on Eastern Shore, the company continues to say its site is "one of only two permitted gold mines and mills in the province."

May 22, 2021 By Joan Baxter 1 Comment

Misinformation about the status of Aurelius Mineral’s Aureus East property on the Eastern Shore is still being circulated by the company and financial publications, even after Nova Scotia Environment confirmed, once again, there have been “no changes” in the company’s permits. Aurelius CEO Mark Ashcroft sees it differently, but we’ll get to that.First, some background. […]

Filed Under: Environment, Featured, News Tagged With: Alistair Ford, Atlantic Gold, Aurelius Minerals Inc., Aureus Gold, Barbara MacLean, British Columbia Securities Commission, David Harrison, Dufferin gold mine, Dufferin Resources, environmental assessment, gerald McConnell, Giles Gwinnet, gold, gold mining, industrial approval, Mark Ashcroft, National Instrument 43-101, Nova Scotia Environment and Climate Change, Nova Scotia Securities Commission, Proactive Investors, Resource Capital Gold Corp., Sean Mason, Sprott Resource Lending, Steve Darling, Touquoy mine

Atlantic Gold’s imaginary conservation land

In 2008, Atlantic Gold was given provincial approval for the gigantic Touquoy open pit gold mine with the condition that within 4 years the company buy and give the province nearby land for conservation purposes. 13 years later, that condition is still unmet, and the province is making no real effort to enforce it.

May 20, 2021 By Joan Baxter 2 Comments

Atlantic Gold has just announced that in “late spring/early summer 2021” it will be undertaking a new Class 1 Environmental Assessment for modifications to its open pit Touquoy gold mine in Moose River. Among other things, the company wants to expand its waste rock storage area that is already sky-high, prepare to store tailings in […]

Filed Under: Environment, Featured, Investigation, News Tagged With: Atlantic Gold, Atlantic Mining NS Corp, Auditor General, Australian, Barbara MacLean, Barbara Markovits, Beaver Dam, Beck Gilbert, Bob Bancroft, Cabot Cliffs, Cabot Links, Canadian Environmental Assessment Act 2012, CBC, Chuck Porter, Cochrane Hill gold mine, Community LIaison Committee, conservation land, DDV Gold, Department of lands and Forestry, Department of Natural Resources, Dustin O’Leary, East Coast Environmental Law Association (ECELAW), Eastern Shore Forest Watch Association, Environment Act, Environmental Approval, environmental assessment, environmental charges, Extractive Sector Transparency Measures Act (ESTMA), Fifteen Mile Stream mine, FOIPOP, Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, Freedom of Information request, golf courses, Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM), Iain Rankin, Impact Assessment Agency of Canada, industrial approval, Jamie Simpson, Jennifer Henderson, judicial review, Juniper Law, Keith Irving, Laird Brownlie, Lighthouse Links Development Company, Michael Gorman, Michael Pickup, Moose River Consolidated Project, Moose River gold mine, Nature Conservancy of Canada, Nova Scotia Environment, Nova Scotia Environment and Climate Change, Nova Scotia Environment and Labour, Nova Scotia Nature Trust, Owls Head, Owls Head Park, proposed Beaver Dam mine, Provincial Court in Dartmouth, Rachel Boomer, Save Owls Head Provincial Park, St Barbara Ltd, Supreme Court Justice Christa Brothers, Terms and Conditions, Tim Bousquet, Touquoy mine

Tall tales about Nova Scotia gold: investors should beware of Aurelius Minerals’ spin job

Aurelius Minerals bought the old Dufferin Gold Mine, and Aurelius is now telling potential investors the site "is permitted" and ready for mining. But a provincial permit was issued to the previous company nearly 27 years ago, and even that expired in 2017. No application has been made to transfer the permit to the new owner, and it likely wouldn't meet modern environmental standards in any event.

March 17, 2021 By Joan Baxter 2 Comments

“Aurelius Minerals could end up following in the footsteps of Atlantic Gold, by proving up a multi-million ounce gold resource in Nova Scotia,” boasts the headline of a March 9 feature by Alastair Ford in the online Proactive Investors publication. The article begins: “We see the opportunity for a couple of million ounces of gold,” […]

Filed Under: Environment, Featured, News Tagged With: Atlantic Gold, Atlantic Mining NS, Aurelius Minerals Inc., Aureus East, Aureus Gold, Barbara MacLean, Cochrane Hill gold mine, Dufferin Gold Project, Dufferin Resources, environmental assessment, Fifteen Mile Stream mine, gerald McConnell, gold mine, Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC), industrial approval, Mark Ashcroft, Nova Scotia Environment, Proactive Investors, proposed Beaver Dam mine, Resource Capital Gold Corp., Sprott Resource Lending

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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Recent posts

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  • After the mass murders of April 2020, Truro police chief Dave MacNeil stood up to RCMP “fixers” May 13, 2022
  • Halifax residents rally to save Dalhousie-owned Edward Street home from demolition May 12, 2022
  • Walking through the stories of the volunteers of the North End Services Canteen May 12, 2022

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