Nagzie Harb compares it to someone spitting in his sap.

Harb woke on the morning of March 27 to freshly fallen snow on his property, but as he looked closer, he saw something else on top of the new snow.

“It looked like little, un-burnt embers.”

Harb owns 45 acres of land he uses for maple syrup production, growing his own food and raising chickens. His land in Abercrombie is only a few kilometres from the Northern Pulp mill.

Harb said the black specks littered his property and fell into the buckets he uses to collect sap from his maple trees that morning.

It didn’t take him long to realize where the black specks were coming from.

“I’m aware of which way the smoke is going.”

Harb said he knew the emissions from the pulp mill had been blowing in his direction the night before. He was worried about what the black specks were and how they might affect his sap.

“Let’s put it this way, I don’t put anything on my ground that I’m not sure of.”

Harb immediately called the Environmental Monitoring and Compliance Department of Nova Scotia. They told him he’d have to call the mill with his concerns.

Mark Theriault, an inspector with Nova Scotia Environment, said it’s the responsibility of Northern Pulp to respond to concerns about their emissions, not the government’s.

“They have third-party consultants hired by Northern Pulp to do testing.”

Theriault said if the mill isn’t complying with environmental standards, the department can issue warnings, tickets, or directives to the company.

Northern Pulp has been issued two directives in the last year.

The mill was directed to reinstate the power boiler scrubber by November 2012, which its website states is working.

Harb contacted the mill after the Environment Department suggested he do so. He was put in touch with Dave Davis, who came down to his property and took samples of the black specks.

But Harb wasn’t satisfied with the response from Northern Pulp.

“He (Davis) was kind of patronizing. He said farmers use it in their fields.”

Harb’s response – “Well I don’t want it in my sap.”

Harb said he waited for results from the tests Northern Pulp conducted, but received nothing initially, not even an apology.

“If Northern Pulp had apologized I would have let it go, but they shook it off.”

Harb said he feels isolated because neither the Environment Department nor the pulp mill responded to his concerns right away.

Environment Minister Sterling Belliveau said he appreciates and understands Harb’s concerns.

He said he’s issued a directive to Northern Pulp to reduce their emissions.

This mill is required to complete a study on its emissions due Sept. 30 of this year.

Belliveau said he wants to reassure people the government is being proactive with Northern Pulp.

“There’s a process in place to protect residents. Our door is always open and we’re willing to work with people.”

The News contacted Northern Pulp about the incident Wednesday afternoon, leaving a message.

Harb called The News Thursday morning to report Northern Pulp had finally responded to his concerns.

“They said it was just charred wood, with no chemicals in it.”

Harb said he isn’t overly concerned with the fallout, but upset with the process.

“I don’t believe in coincidences. I probably wouldn’t have heard from them if you hadn’t called,” Harb said this morning, referring to the call placed by The News Wednesday.

Jack Kyte, acting spokesperson for Northern Pulp, said the mill had no reason not to get back to Harb. He confirmed the fallout came from the mill’s power boiler.

“The particulate is similar to burning wood in a fireplace, it’s not associated with a chemical process.”

Kyte said it takes time to get results back and it was coincidental their response to Harb came the day after Harb contacted The News.

Kyte said mill staff were surprised the incident occurred, explaining fallout hasn’t been a problem because they have a scrubber installed on the boiler.

He says anyone who sees particulate should contact the mill so Northern Pulp can respond to issues as they arise.  

Harb worries about the future of his land. He has free-range hens that might ingest the specks. He also plans to have goats free range on his land.

Harb isn’t sure how often the fallout lands on his property. When Dave Davis called him to apologize Thursday, he compared the fallout to a flat tire, something that happens now and then.

Harb is worried he only noticed the fallout during the winter with fresh snow and wonders how often it falls on his property without him noticing.

He says he’d like to see the money the government puts into the mill make tangible improvements to what the mill emits.

“I’ve lived here 40 years and there’s no difference. I haven’t seen it. You can still smell the mill for all the money they put into it.”

Harb said he’ll take matters into his own hands to monitor the mill. He plans on laying a white sheet over a box on part of his land to see what lands on it.