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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

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

Remembering Elly Danica

Morning File, Tuesday, March 15, 2022

March 15, 2022 By Philip Moscovitch 14 Comments

News 1. New life for old churches Pour yourself a hot beverage, sit back, and enjoy Suzanne Rent’s new feature, “New life for old churches.” When my kids were little, they were fascinated by the idea of living in a church. There are several old churches on our road, including one almost next door to […]

Filed Under: Featured, Morning File, Profiles Tagged With: avian flu, BC Supreme Court, Bill Spurr, bird feeders, Boat Harbour, churche, Claire Fraser, David Hewitt, Elizabeth Walsh, Elly Danica, Gerda Taro, incest, Joan Fraser, Kim Pittaway, manifesting, memoir, nicole brossard, Northern Pulp, Nova Scotia Environment and Climate Change, O'Regan's Automotive Group, Paper Excellence, Peter Gzowski, Philip Moscovitch, Robert Capa, Sean O'Regan, sexual assault, Stacy May Fowles, Suzanne Rent, Toufah Jallow, 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

Northern Pulp mill plans “best in class” or best in BS?

The Paper Excellence company that is part of the global corporate empire of the Widjaja family has submitted plans for the “transformation” of its hibernating pulp mill to the Nova Scotia government for approval, even as it sues the same government for hundreds of millions of dollars.

December 17, 2021 By Joan Baxter 3 Comments

Northern Pulp is claiming that the changes it’s proposing for its 54-year-old pulp mill in Pictou County will make it “best in class.” Even the blurb that appears on the Nova Scotia Environment and Climate Change page for the “mill transformation and effluent treatment facility project” includes the phrase “best in class.” And although Northern […]

Filed Under: Environment, Featured, Investigation Tagged With: 1057863 B.C. Ltd., 3243722 Nova Scotia Limited, 3253527 Nova Scotia Limited, A’se’K, Abercrombie Point, AP&P, Asia Pulp & Paper, Boat Harbour, British Columbia Supreme Court, British Virgin Islands, Bruce Chapman, Canso Chemicals, Catalyst Paper, climate change, climate crisis, Companies" Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA), Competition Bureau of Canada, Domtar, Eldorado Brasil Celulose pulp mill, Environmental Paper Network, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), France, Friends of the Northumberland Strait, FSC, Golden Agri Resources, Graham Kissack, greenhouse gases, Greenpeace, Hervey Investment BV, Inter-corporate Ownership index, Jill Graham Scanlan, Jim Ryan, Kamloops pulp mill, Karta Halten B.V., MacKenzie pulp mill, Maurice Chiasson, mercury, Northern Pulp, Northern Pulp Mill, Northern Pulp Nova Scotia, Northern Pulp Nova Scotia LP, Northern Pulp NS GP ULC, Northern Resources Nova Scotia Corporation, Northern Timber Nova Scotia Corporation, Northern Timber Nova Scotia LP, Northumberland Strait, Nova Scotia Envrionment and Climate Change, Olin Corporation, Paper Excellence, Paper Excellence Canada Holdings Corporation, Pictou, Pictou Harbour, Pictou Landing First Nation, Powell River pulp mill, pulp mill, Robert Grant, Scott Paper, Sinar Mas, Sinar Mas Group, Singapore, Statistics Canada, tax havens, Tax Justice Network, The Netherlands, Widjaja family

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

Wastewater from Northern Pulp’s hibernating paper mill is being discharged into the Bay of Fundy

September 7, 2021 By Joan Baxter 13 Comments

Wastewater from Northern Pulp’s mill is being discharged into the Bay of Fundy. Since July 2020 Northern Pulp has been shipping run-off and “landfill leachate” from its hibernating pulp mill site on Abercrombie Point in Pictou County to Colchester County’s municipal sewage treatment facility in Lower Truro, which discharges into the Bay of Fundy. Invoices […]

Filed Under: Environment, Featured, News Tagged With: Abercrombie Point, allnovascotia, asbestos, Bay of Fundy, BC Supreme Court, bismuth, Boat Harbour, Bruce Chapman, Canso Chemicals, Central Colchester Wastewater Treatment Facility, Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), creditor protection, Don Cameron, FOIPOP, Fracking, hydraulic fracturing, industrial wastewater, landfill, leachate, Lower Truro, Maurice Rees, mercury, Michelle Boudreau, MIchelle Newell, municipal sewage treatment, Municipality of the County of Colchester, Northern Pulp, Nova Scotia Environment and Climate Change, Paper Excellence, Paper Excellence Holdings Corporation, Pictou County, Scott Fraser, The Shoreline Journal, Tom Taggart, treatment, trichloroethane, wastewater, Widjaja family

Paper Excellence’s very big deal

Northern Pulp’s parent company is set to acquire the North American pulp and paper giant Domtar. While the acquisition is getting very little media attention in Canada, around the world many people are worried about it — for many good reasons.

July 26, 2021 By Joan Baxter 8 Comments

It is a Very Big Deal. At 10am on Thursday, July 29, at a special virtual meeting, shareholders of Domtar, a giant in the North American pulp and paper industry, will vote on whether to accept the sale of all the corporation’s issued and outstanding shares of common stock to Paper Excellence for US$55.50 per […]

Filed Under: Environment, Featured, News Tagged With: Alberta Wilderness Association, Asia Pulp & Paper (APP), Bloomberg, Brazil, British Columbia, BusinessWire, Catalyst Paper, CBC, China, CO2 emissions, Competition Bureau of Canada, COVID-19, creditor protection, Crofton, David Suzuki Foundation, default, deforestation, Domtar, Dryden, Eco-Business, Environmental Paper Network, Espanola, eucalyptus, Euromoney, Europe, forest fires, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), France, FSC certification, Global Forest Coalition, greenhouse gas emissions, Halper Sadeh LLP, Indonesia, Joshua Martin, Kalimantan, Kamloops, land grabbing, MacKenzie, Michael Gorman, Montral, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), North America, Northern Pulp, Northern Softwood Bleached Kraft pulp, Northern Timber Nova Scotia Corporation, Ogan Komering Ilir (OKI), OKI pulp mill, Ontario, Paper Excellence, Paper Excellence Brazil, Paper Excellence Canada, Paper Excellence Canada Holdings Corporation, peat fires, Port Alberni, Powell River, pulp and paper industry, pulp and paper mills, Quebec, Restore Our Earth, Reuters, Sara Webb, Saskatchewan, Sierra Club, Sinar Mas, Sinar Mas Group, South America, South Carolina, Stand Earth Canada, state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Sumatra, Supreme Court of British Columbia, Widjaja family, wildlife habitat, Windsor, WWF

Paper Excellence holds a media show and piles on the PR

Northern Pulp’s owner is working on a $350 million “complete transformation” for the mill in Pictou County, but doesn’t say whether any of that money will be public, or why Nova Scotians should trust them.

July 16, 2021 By Joan Baxter 7 Comments

On the morning of July 15, Iris Communications’ Sean Lewis sent out a press release on behalf of Paper Excellence. It was chockablock with carefully calibrated and curated PR, informing us that Northern Pulp’s 54-year-old pulp mill in Pictou County was set to become “a “best-in-class operation” and “one of the world’s cleanest, most environmentally […]

Filed Under: Environment, Featured, News Tagged With: AP&P, Asia Pulp & Paper, Boat Harbour, CBC, Chief Andrea Paul, Class I, Class II, clearcutting, Companies" Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA), Dale Paterson, Darrell Dexter, Domtar, Effluent Treatment Facility, Eldorado Brasil Celulose, environmental assessment, Environmental Liaison Committee, Fibre Excellence, forestry, France, Graham Kissack, herbicide, Iris Communications, Lahey report, Mi'kmaq, Michael Gorman, no pipe, Northern Pulp, Nova Scotia, Nova Scotia Environment, Paper Excellence, Paper Excellence B.V., Paper Excellence Canada Holdings Corporation, Pictou, Pictou County, Pictou Harbour, Pictou Landing First Nation, pulp mill, Sean Lewis, Sinar Mas, Supreme Court of British Columbia, 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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