Another environmental conviction for Ministry of Transportation
In an unusual turn of events, Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation has had two Fisheries Act convictions this fall: one for road construction and design, the other for road maintenance. In September we blogged about the Ontario Ministry of Transportation pleading guilty to Fisheries Ac…
View the post titled Another environmental conviction for Ministry of TransportationCascades/ Superior paper mill cleanup: final settlement?
Going after individuals for cleanups of historic contamination continues to pay off for the Ontario Ministry of the Environment. The MOE Director issued a section 18 Order to five companies and three individuals to cleanup outstanding environmental issues at an old paper mill in Thunder Bay.…
View the post titled Cascades/ Superior paper mill cleanup: final settlement?Sriracha Hot Sauce Factory Faces Complaints From Neighbors; Could This Happen In Ontario?
Hoy Fong Foods, the maker of popular hot sauce Sriracha, has come under criticism from its neighbors who claim that its factory in California is emitting an unpleasant odour. Is this a case of NIMBYism or a legitimate complaint? Perhaps a more pressing question for Ontario business owners is…
View the post titled Sriracha Hot Sauce Factory Faces Complaints From Neighbors; Could This Happen In Ontario?Scott Environmental fined $96,250 for bad waste parking
Environmental fines for relatively minor offences are soaring. Scott Environmental Group Limited owns and operates waste disposal sites in Kingston, to treat, process and/or transfer a wide variety of hazardous and non-hazardous wastes. Each site operates under a detailed Environmental Compl…
View the post titled Scott Environmental fined $96,250 for bad waste parkingMerchants of Doubt
Ever wondered why good science has lost so much traction in public policy, especially in the US? (Though Canada is far from exempt: Consider the Experimental Lakes Area.) Or why so many Americans just won’t seem to accept obvious facts about evolution, climate change, even second hand tobacc…
View the post titled Merchants of DoubtBaker (Northstar Directors') liability appeal has settled
Ten corporate officers and directors have paid $4.75 million to be released from the Northstar Canada cleanup order, even though the Ministry of the Environment admits that none of them were at fault for causing the contamination. Some were not even on the Northstar Canada board. The Enviro…
View the post titled Baker (Northstar Directors') liability appeal has settledNorthstar Inc. and the Ministry of the Environment: Are Directors and Officers Responsible for Environmental Remediation?
How much responsibility do Directors and Officers bear for environmental contamination? The answer is not clear from the text of the Environmental Protection Act and currently the Ontario Courts are considering the issue in Baker v Ministry of the Environment. In this blog post, Paula Lombar…
View the post titled Northstar Inc. and the Ministry of the Environment: Are Directors and Officers Responsible for Environmental Remediation?Approvals Modernization spreads to Public Lands Act
The trend towards “modernization of approvals” (otherwise known as “permit by rule” for what are supposed to be routine, lower risk, routinely-permitted activities) continues to spread across the Ontario government. Now it’s the turn of the Ministry of Natural Resources’ Public Lands Act. On…
View the post titled Approvals Modernization spreads to Public Lands ActMisunderstood "best by" labels waste food and energy
According to a recent Harvard study, The Dating Game, badly regulated and poorly understood food labelling contributes to an enormous, avoidable waste of food, and associated energy and emissions. The study is focused on the US food labelling requirements, and the resulting impact on the Am…
View the post titled Misunderstood "best by" labels waste food and energyMore details on the new NPC 300 noise guideline
Ontario’s updated Noise Guideline, NPC 300, mentioned in yesterday’s post, is not identical to the draft posted for comments in 2010. For example, there will be no Class 5 areas. The Ministry of the Environment describes the changes from the original draft as follows: “59 comment…
View the post titled More details on the new NPC 300 noise guidelineReceive Blog Posts
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