KITCHENER, Ont. -- November
16, 2010 -- J.T. Bakeries Inc. of Kitchener,
Ontario, pleaded guilty yesterday in the
Ontario Court of Justice to federal and
provincial environmental violations, and
was assessed a total of $60,000 in fines.
Of this sum, the company was ordered to
pay $35,000 in fines and penalties for having
contravened the Government of Canada's Migratory
Bird Conventions Act, 1994, of which $25,000
will be made payable to the Environmental
Damages Fund, and $10,000 will be directed
by court order to a scholarship for environmental
studies to The Waterloo Education Foundation
Inc., in trust for Huron Heights Secondary
School. The company also pleaded guilty
to charges brought forth by the Government
of Ontario, and was fined $25,000 for those
offences.
An investigation by
Environment Canada's Enforcement Branch
determined that in March 2009, a fill sensor
on a J.T. Bakeries vegetable oil holding
tank failed. As a result, approximately
644 litres of vegetable oil spilled over
and entered a nearby storm management pond
off Strasburg Road in Kitchener. On April
19, 2009 a private citizen reported the
presence of an oily substance on the water
of the pond to the City of Kitchener. Responding
local agencies discovered dead and oiled
birds in the area and called the Ontario
Provincial Spills Action Centre, which subsequently
contacted Environment Canada.
Like other more common
petroleum products, the vegetable oil spilled
by J.T. Bakeries Inc. is considered harmful
to migratory birds as it can lead to drowning
or hypothermia, or interfere with birds'
ability to fly. Nine migratory birds were
retrieved from the storm management pond
and a larger number thought to be affected
by the oil could not be captured.
Environment Canada investigates
offences with the objective of ensuring
that companies, governments, and the general
public comply with legislation and regulations
that protect migratory birds. Environment
Canada supports the conservation and protection
of Canada's natural environment through
the enforcement of the Migratory Birds Convention
Act, 1994, Canada Wildlife Act, Species
at Risk Act, and the Wild Animal and Plant
Protection and Regulation of International
and Interprovincial Trade Act.
The Environmental Damages
Fund was created in 1995 to provide courts
with a mechanism to direct that monetary
penalties and settlements be invested for
the repair of the actual harm done to the
environment. It helps ensure the "polluter
pays" principle is applied and that
polluters take responsibility for their
actions.
Environment Canada
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North 60° Petro
Limited Convicted for Failing to Comply
With Inspector's Direction to Stop Discharging
Hydrocarbons Into the Yukon River
WHITEHORSE,Y.T. -- November
16, 2010 -- North 60 ° Petro Limited
pleaded guilty on November 12, 2010, in
Whitehorse Territorial Court for failing
to comply with an Environment Canada Inspector's
Direction requesting that the company stop
discharging hydrocarbons into the Yukon
River from North 60° Petro Bulk Terminal
site in Whitehorse, Yukon.
Failure to comply with
an Inspector's Direction is a violation
of the Fisheries Act, which prohibits the
discharge of deleterious substances into
fish bearing waters. North 60 ° Petro
Limitedwas ordered to pay a $2,000 fine
and make a $28,000 contribution to the Environmental
Damages Fund. The Territorial Court has
also ordered North 60 ° Petro Limited
to cease discharging deleterious substances
(i.e. hydrocarbons) into the Yukon River,
as well as to remove the deleterious substances
that were previously discharged into the
Yukon River.
Environment Canada issued
an Inspector's Direction to the company
requesting an immediate stop of the discharge
in December 2006. North 60 ° Petro Limited
failed to comply with the Inspector's Direction,
which expired in November 2007. The company
was granted a 30-day extension in December
2007 to comply with the original Inspector's
Direction. North 60 ° Petro Limited
was charged in April 2009 for failing to
comply with an Inspector's Direction and
thereby committing an offence under of the
Fisheries Act.
The Environmental Damages Fund (EDF) helps
ensure polluters take responsibility for
their actions. It gives courts a way to
direct the money from pollution penalties
and settlements to repair the actual harm
done by the pollution.
Environment Canada
enforcement officers investigate potential
offences under a number of Acts and Regulations
including the Canadian Environmental Protection
Act, 1999; the Species at Risk Act (SARA);the
pollution prevention provisions of Canada's
Fisheries Act; the Migratory Birds Convention
Act, 1994; Wild Animal and Plant Protection
and Regulation of International and Interprovincial
Trade Act (WAPPRIITA). They help ensure
that companies, government departments and
agencies and the general public comply with
legislation and regulations that protect
Canada's environment.
Media Relations
Environment Canada
