Ponoka fined $70,000 for sewage discharge permitted by province

January 11, 2012

While federal environmental enforcement is less frequent these days, the fines imposed are getting larger. The small town of Ponoka, Alberta (population about 7000) was fined $70,000 after pleading guilty to one count under the Fisheries Act. The Town was releasing effluent from their wastewater lagoon in the Battle River, as permitted by the Province, [...]

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In depth analysis of Heyes v BC

January 10, 2012

We’ve twice mentioned the BC case, refusing to compensate business owners severely impacted during subway construction: Susan Heyes Inc. v. South Coast BC Transportation Authority. See April and March, 2011. The Supreme Court refused leave to appeal on October 20, 2011. The current issue of the Journal of Environmental Law and Practice contains

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Congratulations to Environmental Commissioners

January 9, 2012

I am late in congratulating both the Ontario and the federal Environmental Commissioners for their invaluable annual reports, and will try to look more closely at their findings as time permits. The Ontario Commissioner emphasizes how much the Ontario Ministry of the Environment is doing with a steadily declining share of government revenues- now half [...]

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Offshore wind moratorium claim

January 6, 2012

For those interested, here is a copy of Trillium Power vs. The Queen (Ontario), Trillium’s Statement of Claim against the province of Ontario over Ontario’s on-again, off-again policy of encouraging offshore wind development, which is currently under a moratorium again. The allegations are, of course, unproved, but they make fascinating reading all the same, for those [...]

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Expropriating contaminated land

January 5, 2012

When a municipality expropriates contaminated land, can it deduct the full cost of remediating the contamination from the amount paid to the reluctant seller?  Surprisingly, the answer is still not clear.

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Downspout disconnection- why bother?

January 4, 2012

A dinner guest recently grumbled about municipal requirements that he disconnect his downspouts. Why are they making us do such a stupid thing, he complained. What’s the point? Do we really have to do it?

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Polar bears at risk: petition against Canada

January 3, 2012

A U.S. biodiversity group has petitioned the Commission for Environmental Cooperation, alleging that Canada has failed to enforce its species at risk law by failing to list and protect polar bears as endangered species. Such petitions can lead to a full scale investigation, and possibly an embarrassing report on a country’s failures.

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Safe ways to reuse grey water

December 30, 2011

What are the safe ways to reuse grey water on site? On site water reuse promises many economic and environmental benefits, but could cause health problems if done badly. The American standards agency, NSF, therefore released a useful standard for comprehensive evaluation of water reuse technologies, whether residential or commercial: NSF/ANSI 350.

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Congratulations to Cumberland

December 28, 2011

Congratulations to the Village of Cumberland, BC, for adopting an ambitious Water Conservation Plan, including universal metering and pay-per-use. The Village hopes to reduce per capita summer water use to 700 L/c/day, about a 30% reduction. The plan was a condition of a provincial Towns for Tomorrow grant. Our Environmental Commissioner has repeatedly pointed out [...]

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Warmest holiday wishes

December 22, 2011

We wish all of our friends and colleagues every blessing during this holiday season. Health and joy to you, your family and your community. In this darkest time of the year, may we find a way to work together to shed more light in the year to come. Dianne and everyone at Saxe Law Office.

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More rulings for cyclists against municipalities

December 21, 2011

Two Quebec cases have held municipalities liable, where cyclists were injured when they lost control of their bicycles after riding over unexpected defects in the road. In Wilson Davies c. Montreal (Ville de), the cyclist was severely injured when she was thrown from her bicycle and became a paralyzed from the neck down. The Court [...]

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Professional ethics in a changing climate?

December 20, 2011

West Coast Environmental Law’s new report, Professionals and Climate Change: How professional associations can get serious about global warming, challenges the self-regulating professions to clearly define their members’ ethical obligation that the members of professional organizations owe to their clients and the public relating to climate change.

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Big wastewater fines

December 19, 2011

Town Line Processing Limited (TLP), a related company and their directors have been fined $159,375 for breaching a Provincial Officers Order to clean up their wastewater lagoons.

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Smith v Inco appeal application

December 15, 2011

Kirk Baert has kindly permitted us to post his Application to the Supreme Court of Canada for leave to appeal the Ontario Court of Appeal’s decision in Smith v. Inco. This was the first environmental contamination class action in Canada tried on its merits. The Appeal Court’s decision on liability has substantially narrowed environmental causes [...]

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Drinking water and “contamination”

December 14, 2011

Eric Hood of Golder Associates Ltd. notes that municipal drinking water often doesn’t meet Ontario’s contaminated site cleanup standards, with potentially serious consequences for cleanups:

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