Environmental causes of action
The recent Court of Appeal decision in Smith v Inco is requiring Canadian environmental lawyers to carefully rethink environmental causes of action–who can sue who for what? How can Smith v. Inco be reconciled with St. Lawrence Cement v. Barrette? (Different type of nuisance). Why can non-to…
View the post titled Environmental causes of actionPort Colborne class action dismissed
Can neighbours sue for historic contamination? The leading Canadian case has been Pearson (later Smith) v. Inco, a class action by thousands of Port Colborne property owners against Inco, for alleged losses in property value due to nickel oxide that was legally deposited in the area during t…
View the post titled Port Colborne class action dismissedTown 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…
View 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.
View the post titled Endangered species- what will MNR actually do?What was she thinking?
In R. v. Matchim, a recent case before the Ontario Court of Justice (March 18 2011), firefighters extinguished a blaze in the basement of a home on Vincent Street, in Newmarket. An explosion then occurred in the main sanitary sewer line on the street.
View the post titled What was she thinking?Guidance for Environmental Site Assessments
Now that Reg. 153/04 sets strict new standards for Environmental Site Assessments of contaminated sites, it is good news that the Ministry of the Environment has finally released its guidance document for performing those ESAs. Although the new rules are only mandatory when seeking a Record…
View the post titled Guidance for Environmental Site AssessmentsDo Pollution Exclusion clauses work?
Will pollution exclusion clauses stand up in commercial general liability insurance policies? The Ontario Court of Appeal says yes, when they are directed at activities likely to cause traditional soil and water pollution. See ING Insurance Company of Canada v. Miracle (Mohawk Imperial Sales…
View the post titled Do Pollution Exclusion clauses work?How much notice is enough?
A Niagara Escarpment Hearing Officer recently had to decide how many unsuccessful efforts to contact an appellant were enough.
View the post titled How much notice is enough?More on Can they make you talk?
Decades after the adoption of the Canadian Charter of Rights, and Freedoms, and after thousands of Miranda warnings on TV, most Canadians think they have a right to remain silent when the government comes after them. To some extent, this is true–people pulled off the street by uniformed poli…
View the post titled More on Can they make you talk?New brownfield cleanup standards- what dates?
Under regulation 153/04, the benchmark for contaminated site cleanups in Ontario has, since October 1, 2004, been the Soil, Ground Water and Sediment Standards for Use under Part XV.1 of the Environmental Protection Act, March 9, 2004. This standard becomes obsolete July 1, 2011, when subs…
View the post titled New brownfield cleanup standards- what dates?Receive Blog Posts
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