Downspout disconnection- why bother?
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?
View the post titled Downspout disconnection- why bother?Polar bears at risk: petition against Canada
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 e…
View the post titled Polar bears at risk: petition against CanadaMore rulings for cyclists against municipalities
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…
View the post titled More rulings for cyclists against municipalitiesProfessional ethics in a changing climate?
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 t…
View the post titled Professional ethics in a changing climate?Smith v Inco appeal application
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 dec…
View the post titled Smith v Inco appeal applicationDrinking water and "contamination"
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:
View the post titled Drinking water and "contamination"Did anything happen at Durban?
I am profoundly depressed by the thicket of verbiage coming out of Durban about climate change. So countries promise to agree to promise to do what they promise (if everyone else does too). Great. The Kyoto Protocol was supposed to be legally binding too, but there have been no meaningful co…
View the post titled Did anything happen at Durban?Pollution, hot spots and environmental justice
Is it acceptable for legal pollution levels to be higher in some neighbourhoods than in others? In the US, pollution is often concentrated in areas of colour, including the famous Cancer Alley. Changing this is called “environmental justice”, and is an important priority for US EPA Administ…
View the post titled Pollution, hot spots and environmental justiceAODA Compliance – Will you be ready for January 1?
Several months ago, I blogged briefly about the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (“AODA”), which became law in 2005. As part of that law, every private-sector and not-for-profit organization that provides goods or services to the public or to third parties and that has at l…
View the post titled AODA Compliance – Will you be ready for January 1?Intro to environmental law for construction
Interested in an overview of environmental law for those involved in construction? Dianne recently gave one to the Ontario Bar Association Construction Law section. To see it, click OBA Construction Intro.
View the post titled Intro to environmental law for constructionReceive Blog Posts
By subscribing to our blog, you will receive an email when a new post is added. You can unsubscribe at any time by sending an email to us at [email protected] with the word “unsubscribe” in the subject line.