North Cowichan Mayor Rob Douglas knew about the challenges Domtar’s Crofton pulp mill faced getting hold of raw materials, but the news this week that the company will permanently close the facility as of Dec. 15, eliminating 350 jobs, still came as a shock.

“Over the years, there’s always been talk about maybe the mill potentially shutting down one day,” Douglas said. “I think a lot of us who had heard that sort of took it with a grain of salt.

“We’ve had the mill so long, we just couldn’t picture a day when it was no longer going to be operating. So, to get that news (on Tuesday) was a real punch in the gut.”

The Crofton mill, which Douglas’ grandfather helped build, was first opened by B.C. Forest Products in 1957 and has been the bedrock of the Cowichan Valley’s economy for almost s

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