Decision to uphold act validates community’s rights: lawyer

They huddled around a cellphone screen, steeling themselves for the possibility that Premier Stephen McNeil would break his word.

Those 60 Pictou Landing residents were preparing Friday morning for another betrayal and that the province would continue to allow Northern Pulp to contaminate their harbour.

But they watched in disbelief as the premier made good on his commitment to Pictou Landing five years ago, pledging that Northern Pulp would stop pumping effluent into Boat Harbour on Jan 31. That end date written in the Boat Harbour Act would not be extended.

Brian Hebert, the community’s lawyer who negotiated the deadline with the province, was among those 60. Like them, he was at first in a state of disbelief. Then they shared in the sheer magnitude of the moment.

“There was such a sense of disbelief and when the significance of what had happened started to sink in there was a real sense of validation, that as a people their rights were finally being validated,” said Hebert. “As I watched them it was such a refreshing change for them. It was really moving to be a part of.”

The community is finally on track to righting an injustice spanning over six decades. An injustice initiated by the federal government and carried out by successive provincial governments. What set this whole thing off was the federal government granting the province the right to pollute Boat Harbour, dismissing the community’s riparian rights to have the community’s historical fishing grounds kept intact.

“So on Friday there was this incredible sense of what this moment meant to the people,” said Hebert. “The work that they had done, the work that I had done was validated. It comes with a new start for the community.”

“When you have no choice but to live somewhere and you can’t control your environment, that wears you down, it leads to a lot of mental health issues. Someone is ... kicking you while you’re down and you want it to stop and then someone finally stepped in and said you’re not going to be able to bully these people anymore.”