Members of two separate groups have questioned municipal councillors in Inverness Co. on their support for a pulp mill in Pictou Co.
Councillors voted unanimously to send a letter to the premier in support of a one-year extension requested by Northern Pulp reps for the construction of their new effluent treatment facility in March.
Members of the Healthy Forest Coalition and the Council of Canadians presented their concerns with that support at May’s regular municipal council meeting Thursday.
Betty Ann MacQuarrie, the warden of Inverness Co., tells The Hawk they wanted to represent forest industry members in Inverness Co. using Northern Pulp.
“There are people working there, and there are people bringing pulp there,” she says. “They spoke to us, and asked if we could write a letter.”
Group members asked councillors to rescind their letter of support during their presentations Thursday.
MacQuarrie says it’s too late for that.
“Well it is awkward, because the letter has already been sent,” she says. “Our feelings were, more or less, expressed in that letter.”
MacQuarrie says their letter came with conditions- they don’t want the fishery, environment or people’s health negatively impacted by the project.
She says municipal officials plan to visit the Pictou Landing First Nation to make sure residents aren’t harmed in any way, and their environment improves.
