Save caribou, kill wolves?
On August 26, the Federal Government released its proposed Woodland Caribou Recovery Strategy under the Endangered Species Act. The foremost threats to caribou are habitat alteration (including loss, degradation and fragmentation) from human activities, and predation, mostly by wolves. In th…
Continue reading the post titled Save caribou, kill wolves?Keystone pipeline
If approved, the Keystone XL pipeline would carry oil extracted from Northern Alberta’s oil sands to refineries and markets in the United States. Vocal opponents of the project hope to convince President Obama not to approve the project, but their chances seem poor. The Canadian portion of t…
Continue reading the post titled Keystone pipelineOdour control tax credit
I was delighted to learn about Manitoba’s Odour Control Tax Credit, even if it is about to expire.
Continue reading the post titled Odour control tax creditOzone: health or money?
Despite strong scientific evidence that current permitted ozone levels cause harm to human health, President Obama has decided not to cut them. This will likely lead to lawsuits, as the Clean Air Act requires EPA to set air levels that protect human health. And Canada, as usual, will probabl…
Continue reading the post titled Ozone: health or money?Lawsuit for noise and odour
Noise and odour are frequent sources of neighbourhood disputes. Sometimes those disputes can be resolved by turning to regulators, such as the Ministry of the Environment or municipal bylaw enforcement officers. Often, however, that isn’t enough. Some then turn to the courts.
Continue reading the post titled Lawsuit for noise and odourMelancthon Mega Quarry to have full EA
Those opposed to public and private projects often request that they be “bumped up” to an individual environmental assessment (EA) under the Environmental Assessment Act. Full individual EAs take a lot of time and money, and are usually considered a major obstacle to the approval…
Continue reading the post titled Melancthon Mega Quarry to have full EASet fines under Reg. 347
Many environmental offences can be enforced either as a full-scale prosecution, where the maximum fines are enormous, or as a ticket, where there are modest set fines. For example, the set fine for operating a waste collection vehicle that is not “leakproof”, contrary to section 16 (3) of Re…
Continue reading the post titled Set fines under Reg. 347Town of Kirkland Lake fined re late landfill plan
The Town of Kirkland Lake pleaded guilty to one violation under the Environmental Protection Act for failing to comply with a Certificate of Approval relating to the submission of a Design and Operation Plan with a number of requirements regarding the Kirkland Lake Landfill Site. It was fine…
Continue reading the post titled Town of Kirkland Lake fined re late landfill planEndangered species- what will MNR actually do?
The Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) has started work on government response statements, now that recovery strategies for eleven endangered species have been finalized, as required by the Endangered Species Act, 2007: See EBR Registry Number: 011-2480.
Continue reading the post titled Endangered species- what will MNR actually do?Drat those barrels
Tonda Construction Limited was fined $25,000 and Nethercott Excavating Limited was fined $8,000, because an unlicenced hauler took old barrels and contaminated soils for (otherwise) lawful disposal.
Continue reading the post titled Drat those barrels