Does law have to be so dysfunctional?
It's a debate worth having - have we allowed the role of litigation and courts to expand too much, in environmental and other fields? And if so, what should we do about it?
View the post titled Does law have to be so dysfunctional?Stormwater surprise
Why does so much filth pour out of Toronto sewer outfalls? Hundreds of the outfalls, which should only carry rainwater and perhaps noncontact cooling water, run even in dry weather. Toronto’s water department has identified 53 priority outfalls, places where the “water” p…
View the post titled Stormwater surpriseMore Olympic nuisance lawsuits
Olympic nuisance claims have now spread past transit. Last year, Susan Heyes was awarded $600,000 for the disruption she suffered during construction of the Canada Line. (The decision is under appeal.) Other businesses in the area have launched a class action seeking similar redress. Now Mar…
View the post titled More Olympic nuisance lawsuitsSustainable events – real or greenwashing?
Canadian pride in our “green Olympics” is about to be translated into a standard for sustainable events: Z2010. The Canadian Standards Association worked unofficially with VANOC’s Corporate Sustainability Office to develop the standard in record time, and to learn from its …
View the post titled Sustainable events – real or greenwashing?Environmental Assessment: Worth the cost?
The main finding of this study is that the lengthy time frames and higher costs to comply with the Municipal Class EA process are not providing additional environmental or other benefits.
View the post titled Environmental Assessment: Worth the cost?Renewable energy guidance
Need a renewable energy approval under the Environmental Protection Act for a wind, solar or biomass project? Six new draft technical guidance documents have been released for three months’ public comment, to May 30, 2010. See EBR Registry Number 010-9235. Applicants should follow the…
View the post titled Renewable energy guidanceApprovals Reform gets closer
For most businesses that need new or amended approvals, these changes probably cannot come quickly enough. But the transition period could be painful.
View the post titled Approvals Reform gets closerWater Quality Trading
An enthusiastic study on Water Quality Trading recommends using “cap and trade” to control phosphorus levels in the Lake Simcoe watershed. Lake Simcoe needs a major reduction in phosphorus loadings, even as population and climate change increase. The Lake Simcoe Protection Plan c…
View the post titled Water Quality TradingFalse or misleading Records of site condition
Is a site really clean? Can you trust a Record of Site Condition? We keep finding examples of why the Ministry of the Environment had to tighten the obligations of Qualified Persons in Regulation 153/04, the regulation that governs contaminated sites. The regulation requires a Qualified Pers…
View the post titled False or misleading Records of site conditionBuilding codes, waterless urinals and rooftop solar
Ontario has finally adopted the regulation that it promised last May, to prevent building codes and 23 other types of rules from blocking geothermal and rooftop solar projects.
View the post titled Building codes, waterless urinals and rooftop solarReceive Blog Posts
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