Irving Pulp and Paper claims it has already spent hundreds upon millions of dollars to modernize its Saint John mill and is willing to spend $150 million more in order to reduce its impact on the environment.
The company proposes to build a new treatment facility that would further clean the effluent that it discharges into St. John River.
Irving stated that Canada’s pulp-and-paper effluent regulations will tighten once again.
The project also fulfills an obligation that was made five year ago in court after Irving Pulp and Paper, who were convicted for violating federal pollution laws by dumping effluent in the St. John River.
A water-use reduction system, which would reduce the mill’s freshwater consumption by over half, is also being considered.
Currently, the mill holds a large amount of water from Spruce Lake’s watershed.
It flows through an underground pipe to the mill at a rate approximately 136,800 cubic meters per day.
Mark Mosher (Vice-President of Pulp and Paper) stated, “If you divide the water intothe water we actually use versusthewater that is there just for cooling things, yes, it is very high.”
Brent McGovern, Saint John water commissioner, stated that the mill uses more water than everyone else in the city.
McGovern said that “looking back at 2020 water usage data for the Irving Pulp and Paper Mill, it consumed approximately 101 Megalitres or 101 Million litres per Day.” McGovern stated that the entire city used 46.5 million litres of water per day, if you include all residential, commercial, institutional and institutional users.
Mosher said that the water used for cooling was not polluted. It simply flows through the system.
The mill relies on microorganisms for biological treatment of its effluent. This is why it needs a cooling system. They can thrive at 35 to 37 C, but the effluent from the pulping process can reach 60 C. This means that the mill needs to cool it down.
Coolant for the new system would be drawn from St. John River via pipes and a pumping station on the riverbank. Because of the tidal influx from Bay of Fundy, that water is described as either brackish or salubrious.
Rene Morais (director of environmental affairs) said, “It’s where magic happens.” It reduces our dependence on foreign oil. [Spruce Lake]Water consumption reduced by half
Morais was one the many Irving employees present Wednesday at an open house at St. Mark’s United Church. The public was encouraged to walk past several stations equipped with visual aids to help them understand the mill’s operation and the plans for upgrades.
Public consultation is an important part of the environmental review process by the provincial government. It starts with an EIA, or environmental impact assessment.
It’s a 350-page report by Matt Alexander, an environmental scientist at Fundy Engineering.
He explained that the EIA was designed to assess the potential environmental impacts of the project and to find ways to reduce them.
He has concluded that the project should continue as planned since it would be beneficial to the environment.
Promise made in court
Irving Pulp and Paper pleaded guilty to violating the federal Fisheries Act’s pollution prevention provisions in a provincial court.
Environment and Climate Change Canada reported that this was the second of several incidents in which “improperly handled and deleterious effluents” were released into the St. John River.
Irving Pulp and Paper was added as an Environmental Offenders Registry because of its conviction. It was also ordered by Canada to pay $3.5million, the largest penalty for an environmental violation.
Irving was also told to build a new effluent treatment unit within five years.
Anne McInerney, spokesperson for the company, stated that the proposal now being considered exceeds the original commitment.
She said, “It goes far beyond that.” “The technology has improved so we were able look at new and alternative options. We wanted to keep a small footprint on our site, and technology allows us to do that. We’re also well-positioned in case regulations change in the future.
Alexander was asked by CBC News about the effluent that drained into the river in 2014 and 2016, and how the new systems would protect against future problems.
He said, “Those would be spills.” “This system is designed to handle issues such as that.”
“In case of a spillage, the water would be collected and transferred into a special tank. The substance would be collected and transferred to the treatment system. This will ensure that the system doesn’t experience a shock. It is slowly introduced so that microbes can still live and treat the substance.
Views from the Neighbourhood
Irving stated that if the project is approved, one of the first things that will occur is a landscaping effort along Millford Road.
The company stated that it would plant berms with greenery and build them on the site where treatment tanks would be.
Mosher stated, “We’ll make certain to get some tall trees, six-foot trees because people will likely have concerns throughout construction.”
“We want to ensure that we can place a berm there for any noise during construction, and to beautify it.”
Summer construction
At peak construction, the project will employ at most 120 construction workers.
Mark Fitzpatrick (director of engineering) stated that most of these jobs would be in local trades.
Gary Crossman, New Brunswick’s minister for environment and local government, must approve everything before it can begin.
Mosher stated, “Ideally, we would get approval in 90 days so that we could start construction this summer.”
Mosher stated that the new systems could become operational in 2024 if this happens.
