New projects aim to restore damaged ecosystems
Funding part of penalty resulting from Northern Pulp effluent leak
Two local projects will receive funding from the federal government through the Environmental Damages Fund, as part of a $225,000 fine imposed on Northern Pulp for an effluent leak in 2014.
The Pictou County Rivers Association will receive $25,000 for fish habitat restoration in the West River watershed, while the Confederacy of Mainland Mi’kmaq/Mi’kmaw Conservation Group
Funding will be given $28,139 for Barney’s River Atlantic salmon monitoring and habitat restoration.
The Environmental Damages Fund makes sure that courtawarded penalties for environmental violations are used for projects that restore or improve the environment in areas where damage has occurred.
Catherine McKenna, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, said the government is committed to protecting and restoring Canada’s natural and cultural legacy.
“By funding projects through the Environmental Damages Fund, we can make sure that court penalties from environmental offences are invested primarily in project activities related to the original environmental damage. The fund also allows us to tap into the expertise of dedicated and knowledgeable local organizations, which yields the best results for Canadian ecosystems.”
The Environmental Damages Fund follows the polluter pays principle to help ensure that those who cause environmental damage take responsibility for their actions.
The Pictou County Rivers Association project focuses on restoration activities for Six Mile Brook, a tributary of the West River. The project’s goal is to improve the stream system by reducing the amount of aggregate material that enters it.
The Confederacy of Mainland Mi’kmaq/Mi’kmaw Conservation Group funding will improve the Barney’s River tributary in the Pictou Landing First Nation by removing illegally dumped waste, installing 10 fish habitat improvement structures, and
installing a 30-metre-long gabion wall. Baffles and a chute will also be installed inside a culvert to help fish migrate. A monitoring program will help determine the effect of the river restoration work and guide the direction of future work to be done within the Barney’s River watershed.
In March 2016, Northern Pulp was ordered to pay $225,000 for a Fisheries Act offence that took place in June 2014, relating to a pipeline break that spilled more than 47 million litres of untreated pulp and paper effluent into an area that leads to the East River and Pictou Harbour.
The court rendered a decision in May 2016 regarding the allocation of the total penalty, with the Mi’kmaw Conservation Group, the Pictou County Rivers Association and the Pictou Landing First Nation each receiving $75,000 through the Environmental Damages Fund program, to carry out fish and fish habitat projects in Pictou County.
The pulp mill located at Abercrombie Point entered a guilty plea in January 2016, after being charged with depositing or allowing the deposit of a deleterious substance into water frequented by fish. Samples collected near the pipeline break showed that the untreated effluent was harmful to fish.