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North Cowichan Mayor seeks support for the Crofton mill from B.C. government

The extended curtailment of paper operations at Paper Excellence Canada’s Catalyst Crofton mill has caused concerns in the mill’s community, including the Municipality of North Cowichan.

Mayor Rob Douglas has written a letter to B.C. Minister of Forests Bruce Ralston requesting enhanced provincial support for the Crofton mill and its workers represented by Public and Private Workers of Canada Local 2 and Unifor Local 1132.

The mill, which received federal and provincial investment support in early 2023, has had to extend the curtailment of its paper operations until February 2024 due to challenging market conditions, according to a company press statement.

“With the current challenges in the global pulp and paper market, we are increasingly concerned about the long-term future of this site, which is both our biggest employer and taxpayer in North Cowichan and the broader Cowichan region,” wrote Douglas, in his letter expressing concerns regarding the mill. “To lose the Crofton pulp and paper mill would be devastating to our residents who are directly and indirectly dependent on Paper Excellence for their employment and to our Municipality, which annually receives $4.5 million in property taxes from Paper Excellence, accounting for more than 13 percent of our tax base.”

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