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Nova Scotia’s Department of Justice is abandoning its attempts to seek the forfeiture of a $300,000 piece of equipment it claimed was tied to an alleged illegal landfill, a victory for the owner who has argued he’s been wrongly caught up in the investigation.
The department confirmed its decision Thursday, less than two weeks after a CBC story that detailed an Environment Department probe last year into an alleged dump in Upper Hammonds Plains, N.S., but also the frustration of construction company owner Arni Lively.
Lively’s topsoil machine, the Powerscreen Warrior 800, was seized by investigators in January, but he has asserted he knew nothing about a landfill and was simply leasing space on the 10-hectare site to store and sift soil excavated from a nearby development.
“Somebody shouldn’t be able to confiscate a piece of equipment based solely on an affidavit with zero evidence,” he said in an interview Friday.
The Powerscreen was returned to Lively this week. But he was without the equipment for months, which meant six employees were out of work. He said he’s lost roughly $250,000 in operating income this spring and learned he’s lost a major customer.
A Department of Justice spokesperson confirmed Thursday the forfeiture application filed last month in Nova Scotia Supreme Court has now been withdrawn. She declined further comment, and it’s unclear what led to the decision.
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Court documents filed in Nova Scotia Supreme Court have outlined how in June 2025 Environment Department investigators flew a drone over the site off Pockwock Road.
A description of the footage said trucks were dumping debris and litter, which was then buried with an excavator. The land was not approved for a landfill or a construction and demolition debris disposal site, according to the records.
None of the allegations have been tested in court. The Department of Environment has refused to comment on the case, and it’s unclear when, or if, environmental charges might be laid.
Two other pieces of equipment — a backhoe and an excavator — were also seized. The Department of Justice is continuing to seek the forfeiture of those machines.
Court documents say both are owned by Franklyn Whiley, whose family owns the land off Pockwock Road and who was allegedly seen taking cash payments before burying debris.
Whiley has told CBC News he was willing to do an interview but on his lawyer’s advice will wait until later in the court process.
In a parallel provincial court proceeding earlier this month, Judge Christine Driscoll noted other items seized included bills, invoices and receipts, and more than $1,000 in cash. The judge also indicated investigators took 14 samples at the site, including of soil, water and rock.
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The Nova Scotia Supreme Court documents say the drone footage shows the Powerscreen being used “adjacent” to where the waste was being dumped.
Lively said he’s not been told why the forfeiture case has been dropped, but believes it was because there was no evidence of wrongdoing on his part, authorities realized they had no chance of winning the case and they “all jumped ship.”
Lively said he didn’t know about an alleged landfill at the site.
“I was there to screen, entirely separate from anything that may be going on. In our industry, you learn to mind your business.”
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