Employees at Pactiv Evergreen’s Canton paper mill knew a health care coverage crisis  was coming, and many of them did exactly what the company told them to do to ward off a coverage gap, but some are only just now getting the coverage they’re entitled to — and paid for — and they’re pointing the finger at Pactiv for the expensive and potentially life-threatening delays. 

Officials on both the local and the state level have been adamant in demanding Pactiv Evergreen be held accountable for a number of unresolved issues since shortly after the company announced it would halt operations in Canton. But now, a week after the mill’s final whistle blew, they’re adopting a more forceful tone.

The closing of the paper mill in Canton is a major loss for its 1,100 employees and a shock to the area’s economy. The ripple effects also make it very bad news for sustainable forestry in the mountains.

Nearly three months ago, Pactiv Evergreen unceremoniously announced that after more than a century in operation, the paper mill at the heart of Canton would close. Since then, Canton Mayor Zeb Smathers has repeated an analogy comparing the community’s reaction to that of a death in the family.

As it prepares for permanent closure this spring, the Pactiv Evergreen paper mill in Canton has received two new notices of violation from the N.C. Division of Air Quality, bringing its total violations  since May 2021 to 13.

The paper mill has long been a staple of the Canton community, offering generations of residents the opportunity for regular work and steady pay. So it’s no coincidence that Pisgah High School offers three levels of Pulp and Paper Technology classes — a curriculum that provides students the opportunity to learn the basics needed to enter the paper industry.

The initial shock of Pactiv Evergreen’s announcement that its Canton paper mill would soon cease operations hasn’t quite worn off for some, but the various parties affected by the closing have begun to take actions to mitigate the impact that has only just begun.

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.

The whistle at Canton’s paper mill talked to me daily, sending the reassuring message that the mill was producing paper and employees were busy at their jobs. Security. Dependability. Reliable employment. Income. Pride.

At 94 years young, Ben Best is proud of several things in his long, bountiful life — a marriage of 67 years and counting, raising three healthy sons, being a grandfather, a loyal friend to many, and a hard-scrabble Haywood County farmer.