Roundup: Northern Pulp ‘disappointed’ in gov process, COVID update, South Shore libraries search for new boss after suspended CEO quits, driver charged with attempted murder

Pictou Harbour and the Northern Pulp mill. Photo: Advocate file

By Trevor J. Adams 16 March 2022 Share this story

Plus: New home, new language, new values, new job, new everything — an immigrant shares her story of an abrupt transition to life in Halifax

The owners of the Northern Pulp mill in Pictou County are unhappy with the terms of reference the province has provided as management works on their proposal to reopen the mill.

According to the province’s press release, the environmental assessment is required to have a description of the company’s planned project. It also has to “identify all potential environmental risks and impacts, and outline a plan to mitigate those risks and impacts.”

Northern Pulp management say that about 93 per cent of submissions received during the comment period “expressed support” for reopening the mill.

“We are disappointed to see that despite these submissions, the department has decided to ignore their own consultation,” says a statement from the company. “We agree that the final terms of reference should have clear standards and be led by an independent expert panel, and that these changes are necessary to ensure the public has confidence.”

The Pictou Advocate has more.

COVID update
The Houston government is now releasing weekly COVID-19 updates instead of the daily reports, making it harder to get an accurate picture of how the disease is affecting the province. So today, we zoom out and look at the global situation.

According to the World Health Organization, there were 1,413,309 confirmed new cases of COVID worldwide in the last 24 hours. Of those, 1,613 were in Canada, although given the lack of daily reports in many provinces, that number is likely much higher.

So far, COVID is known to have killed 6,047,653 people worldwide and 36,994 in Canada, including 379 in the last week.

Embattled library boss quits
South Shore Public Libraries continues to search for a new CEO and chief librarian, after the year-end resignation of Troy Myers.

The local library board placed Myers on leave from his $107,000 per year job last summer after Lauren Skabar (who unsuccessfully ran for the NDP in last year’s provincial election) levelled accusations of sexual harassment and assault in social media posts.

Myers denies the allegations, but hasn’t pursued a libel suit.

“There is still, in my opinion, an opportunity for legal action, which I’m looking into,” he says. “But at the same time it’s a long road and you kind of have to decide: do you want to turn a corner, or do you want to keep worrying about these things?”

Keith Corcoran reports for LighthouseNow.

Driver charged with attempted murder
Sixty-year-old Raylene Dewan from Antigonish faces several charges, including attempted murder, after police say a driver repeatedly rammed a man’s car on Cloverfield Road on March 9.

“The victim, a 55-year-old man, got into a second vehicle in an effort to leave the area, and the woman began ramming the vehicle he was driving,” says an RCMP press release. “Police learned that before this, the woman had been ramming her vehicle into the man’s truck parked at a home.”

Jake Boudrot has more for the Reporter.

Newcomer stories
When new immigrants reach Canada, it’s easy to think their journeys are complete.

But newcomers are caught between different lifestyles, entirely different values. During the initial weeks and months, many feel lost.

“My first five months in Canada was a nightmare,” recalls Sadaf Hakimi (name changed). “I came from Afghanistan, a country teeming with millions of people and open markets where I could shop for anything I wanted. Coming to Halifax was a big shock to me. The place was very small, and there were so few people. I stayed at home all alone with nothing to do and no one to talk to while my husband was away at work. Life was stagnant and uneventful. It was the unhappiest time of my life in Canada.” 

She tells Marianne Simon about it in the new issue of Unravel Halifax.

Note: The Roundup is taking a brief pause; look for the next edition on March 21.

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