50 years of environmental law in Canada
While I was giving a seminar on environmental law to Turkish lawyers this week, I realised that 2011 is roughly the 50th anniversary of Ontario (and I think Canadian) environmental laws. It was in 1961 that the Ontario Water Resources Act and Ontario Water Resources Commission were created, …
Continue reading the post titled 50 years of environmental law in CanadaEnvironmental Assessment not statutory authority?
An environmental assessment, no matter how “extensive and wide ranging”, does not amount to statutory authority, or provide a defence in nuisance, according to the British Columbia Court of Appeal in Appeal in Heyes v. Vancouver, now Susan Heyes Inc. (Hazel & Co.) v. South C…
Continue reading the post titled Environmental Assessment not statutory authority?Carbon Farming
Australia has introduced carbon farming legislation. The Carbon Farming Initiative is a carbon offsets scheme being established by the Australian Government to provide new economic opportunities for farmers, forest growers and landholders and to reduce greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
Continue reading the post titled Carbon FarmingNasal Ranger
I am intrigued by the potential of a newish gadget to improve odour monitoring, including self-monitoring by regulated entities. The Nasal Ranger is a handheld “field olfactometer”, an alternative to conventional odour panels that can be used on the spot. The Ranger is designed for US…
Continue reading the post titled Nasal RangerJudicial Criticism of Experts: so what?
Judges occasionally make harsh criticisms of the witnesses who appear before them. Sometimes those criticisms are justified; other times, everyone is just having a bad day. In these days of instant search, such a criticism could be recycled endlessly in subsequent cases, perhaps permanently …
Continue reading the post titled Judicial Criticism of Experts: so what?Darlington and Fukushima
As new explosions demolish ever more of the Fukushima nuclear reactors, and as radioactivity spreads in air, soil and ocean water, environmental assessment hearings continue into the planned expansion of the Darlington nuclear plant near Toronto. Scheduled presenters at the hearing today wil…
Continue reading the post titled Darlington and FukushimaUS database on impacts of electric generation
How clean is each form of power?
Continue reading the post titled US database on impacts of electric generationOntario Budget 2011
Steady as she goes: not much changed in yesterday’s provincial budget for the environment. Most of the budget is devoted to the many achievements resulting from past/ existing initiatives. The province is pressing ahead with its Clean Energy Plan, continuing its existing support for pu…
Continue reading the post titled Ontario Budget 2011Agent Orange: we knew, but did it anyway
As calls flood in to the Agent Orange hotline by people worried about their health, I came across a 1970-Press release by MPP Dr. Morton Shulman. Dr. Shulman, one of Canada’s early environmental campaigners, lambasted the provincial government for continuing to spray 2,4,5T up and down…
Continue reading the post titled Agent Orange: we knew, but did it anywayHeyes appeal: Subway construction a nuisance?
Is transit construction a nuisance? The British Columbia Court of Appeal has released its decision in Heyes v. Vancouver, now called Susan Heyes Inc. v. South Coast BC Transportation Authority. The court overturned a $600,000 judgment awarded to a local store owner, who was driven out of bus…
Continue reading the post titled Heyes appeal: Subway construction a nuisance?