The now-shuttered paper mill in Canton has received a new violation for exceeding permit limits on toxicity for water released from the plant, continuing a pattern established over the last two years of averaging more than one notice of violation every two months. 

When the impending closure of Canton’s paper mill was announced in March, conservation professionals predicted a swift improvement  in downstream water quality once papermaking stopped.

In a notice of violation  issued Monday, July 10, the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality has accused Pactiv Evergreen of dumping chemicals directly into its wastewater treatment system rather than disposing of them properly, as required by the company’s permit. 

A baby whale washed up on a beach. Eighty-eight pounds of plastics were found in its stomach. Should we care? 

A community conversation about reducing plastic pollution will be held at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, July 6, at Grace Episcopal Church in the Mountains in Waynesville.

Learn about plastic pollution and the threat it poses to freshwater and marine ecosystems during a free lecture at 6 p.m. Thursday, June 29, at the Highlands Nature Center in Highlands.

Pactiv Evergreen has received a notice of violation from the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality after a water quality measurement taken Sept. 20, 2022, came in nearly 50% over the limit.

For decades, concern about water quality has been the central tension between Canton’s paper mill and the environmental advocates monitoring it. When the plant closes this year, those issues are likely to fade with the final whistle — but even the mill’s longtime critics aren’t rejoicing.

For more than a year, Canton residents have complained about a gritty white dust from the Evergreen Packaging paper mill clinging to their cars and driveways — and they’re still complaining.

Sept. 27, 2021, was a day of constant phone calls and email notifications for Brendan Davey, regional supervisor at the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality office in Asheville.