HALIFAX – A Mi’kmaq band has been awarded $75,000 in court costs as part of its battle against an energy company’s plan to store natural gas in underground caverns in central Nova Scotia.
A provincial Supreme Court judge quashed the province’s rejection of the Indian Brook band’s appeal of the plan in January, saying the band was denied procedural fairness.
Justice Suzanne Hood ruled the province wrongly refused the band’s request to review and respond to reports on the project by the Nova Scotia Office of Aboriginal Affairs and the Environment Department.
READ MORE: Mi’kmaq band wins legal battle, Alton Gas appeal returning to minister
In a supplementary decision released this week, Hood awarded the band the $75,000 it was seeking in court costs for its successful appeal.
The judge ordered the provincial government to pay 65 per cent of the costs, with the remaining 35 per cent to be paid by Alton Gas Natural Storage.
Indian Brook argues Alton Natural Gas Storage’s plan to flush out salt to create storage caverns near Stewiacke poses an environmental risk to the nearby Shubenacadie River.