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Letter to The Honourable Gordon Wilson Nova Scotia Minister of Environment re Boat Harbour
The Honourable Gordon Wilson
Nova Scotia Minister of Environment
Barrington Tower
1894 Barrington Street, Suite 1800
P.O. Box 442
Halifax, NS
B3J 2P8
June 24, 2019
Via Email: Minister.environment@novascotia.ca
Dear Mr. Minister,
The Atlantic Chamber of Commerce has been asked by a strong majority of its 28 Nova Scotia chambers to convey our concerns regarding a speedy and equitable resolution to the controversy surrounding the closure of the Boat Harbour effluent facility. Recognizing that no regulatory or technological process is perfect, we are focused on working within the constraints of what is possible rather than how we arrived here.
We were encouraged by your appointment as Minister of the Environment in April, noting your familiarity with the forestry sector in Nova Scotia. We trust your background will inform a critical component of the process to achieving a reasoned solution, as the final decision must balance environmental realities and the future of the forestry sector in this province.
We wish to clearly and unequivocally state our position that Boat Harbour must be closed. We also submit that every effort must be made to allow the Northern Pulp Kraft mill to continue to operate. The economic fallout of a closure would be devastating to the communities in Pictou County, the forestry sector in general, and related businesses across the province.
With the closure of Boat Harbour slated for January 31, 2020, time is of the essence. We trust that both the government and Northern Pulp will work efficiently to address and adjudicate the outstanding environmental questions highlighted in the April 23 supplemental focus report requirements. And we urge officials to resist efforts by opponents to bring into question the reliability of scientific studies should the results not completely align with personal preferences.
The business community and industry stakeholders across the province are concerned about the immediate impacts of a plant closure, but also about the longer-term implications for business investment in the province. Nova Scotia must recognize and work toward a clean, sustainable economy but not at the expense of devastating a mainstay industry and the province’s economic future. Investment opportunities abound in other jurisdictions and we cannot afford to impose zero-impact pollution restrictions on our industries before the technology or alternative products actually exist.
In closing, we urge you to continue to protect both our province’s natural environment and our traditional resource-based industries. Our province, with its large rural population, cannot afford to lose these industries and jobs without a comprehensive and objective evaluation of what is best for all Nova Scotians.
Our members intend to continue to monitor this issue and work with government and industry to achieve a solution that protects the local environment and the future prosperity of our province.
Regards,
Glenn Davis
Vice-President, Policy
Atlantic Chamber of Commerce
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Business Truth & Reconciliation
The Atlantic Chamber of Commerce takes proactive steps to promote reconciliation and respect for Indigenous rights within the corporate sector. In response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Call to Action 92, the Chamber urges its members to embrace the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as a guiding framework.
Recognizing the importance of education, the Chamber encourages businesses to provide comprehensive training for management and staff on the history of Indigenous peoples, including the legacy of residential schools, Indigenous rights, and Aboriginal-Crown relations. Emphasizing intercultural competency, conflict resolution, and anti-racism, these efforts aim to foster a more inclusive and harmonious corporate environment rooted in mutual understanding and respect.
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