As a family doctor and, currently, medical director of Palliative Care at the Aberdeen Hospital, his hand is on the pulse of Pictou County health.
“I’ve dealt with people before they were born right up until they’ve passed away,” Farrell said.
Working as a general practitioner in Pictou for so long, Farrell was left confused and frustrated by Environment Minister Randy Delorey’s statement to the CBC that emissions from Northern Pulp aren’t “an imminent threat to human health” on July 31.
David Mackenzie of Northern Pulp said that while he’s not a health professional, he believes the word of the minister, who said his information was obtained by the Department of Health.
“The statement itself doesn’t mean anything,” said Farrell. “I think it reflects the minister’s deep misunderstanding of the information or worse, a political statement.”
While working in Pictou, he recalled patient after patient, young and old, coming in with asthma, breathing problems and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Since working in palliative care, Farrell has witnessed numerous cases of lung cancer and chronic lung diseases.
“It would seem there is an inordinate number of pulmonary cases.”
While conceding that other factors such as smoking might be a factor he believes that emissions from Northern Pulp likely play a large part in the equation. His patients also feel the mill is a contributing factor to their illnesses.
“For many years, people would come in firmly believing the pulp mill was responsible,” he said. “I would have patients show respiratory problems and decide to move away from the area. Within a short period of time, they would get better.”
Farrell isn’t the only local doctor to suggest a connection between pulp mill emissions and locals’ breathing problems. In 1989, Dr. Daniel Reid, then chief of staff of the Sutherland Harris Memorial Hospital, concluded that the kraft pulp process used by the mill was hazardous to the health of Pictou.
“I conclude that the air emissions from the Scott pulp mill… releasing hydrogen sulfide and sulphur dioxide… are the reason for the highly statistically significant incidence of respiratory illness in the Pictou Hospital,” Reid’s report in the Nova Scotia Medical Journal read.
Both doctors conceded that the conclusions are based on anecdotal, indirect and circumstantial evidence, but, as Reid wrote, “the evidence is strong nonetheless.”
Farrell cited findings of the World Health Organization and Environment Canada on particulate matter, which stated that extensive scientific studies indicate that there are significant health and environmental effects associated with these pollutants. Particulate matter and ozone are linked to serious health impacts including chronic bronchitis, asthma, and premature death.
Farrell noted that the bigger issue in his mind is that the government hasn’t been complying with its own standards for Northern Pulp, instead granting extensions and public funds for upgrades.
“The last tests performed on Northern Pulp for particulate matter were 78 per cent above limits,” he said. “We need action, not delays.”
The Canada-wide standard for particulate matter is 30 milligrams per cubic metre over a 24-hour period. According to Mackenzie, the new precipitator scheduled for completion in May 2015 will bring the mill’s emissions near that threshold, down from the 375 milligrams currently being emitted.
While he feels for the employees caught in the middle of the discussions and acknowledges the recent job losses from Michelin and Convergys, Farrell said the buck must stop with the government.
“They have a duty to look after the common good. A temporary close is much better than being bombarded with pollution.”
Farrell will be retiring from the medical profession in the next year or so. With his own conclusions about the health effects from Northern Pulp, he said leaving the county with his family has crossed his mind but that Pictou is his home.
“I’ve lived here and would like to retire here. Pictou and the surrounding area is very scenic and has a lot of potential.”
On Twitter: @NGNewsJohn
