Howe Sound Pulp and Paper Mill owned by Paper Excellence has been handed $22,000 in penalties for releasing toxic gases into the atmosphere. The fines included 201 failures to comply with limits on the release of sulphur dioxide from its power boiler. In some cases, gas concentrations climbed 81 per cent above the daily limit, according to a decision from director of the Environmental Management Act Jason Bourgeois. In high concentrations sulphur dioxide can cause “breathing problems, respiratory illness, changes in the lung’s defences, and worsening respiratory and cardiovascular disease,” noted the decision. …The director increased the penalty to the mill for the repeated nature of the violations, finding “there was no detectable decrease in the rate of failures” over the nearly three years of contraventions. But Bourgeois decided they were not deliberate and reduced the penalty further after finding Paper Excellence had spent some money to ensure they did not occur again.