While the population of Canada is, for the most part, concentrated within 200 kilometers of the US border, many citizens live in remote areas including the three Territories (Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and Yukon). The challenges of life in these remote areas include a colder climate, higher cost of living, and difficulty in getting supplies to the citizens.
Being in remote areas also means that you may not have access to natural gas or electricity for heating your home. According to the Canada Energy Regulator, “Almost all of Nunavut’s electricity is generated from diesel fuel imported during the summer and then stored for year-round use.”
Human Error Leads to Release
The handling and delivery of this fuel are prone to human error as was the case in 2020. As reported recently by the CBC, “In April 2020, during a manual transfer of fuel, a pump was left on overnight at Maani Ulujuk Ilinniarvik school. The tank began to overflow, and a spill went unnoticed until the next morning. About 18,400 litres of fuel dripped down the drain in the room the storage tank is held, and into the sewer system.”
Environmental spills in remote areas such as Nunavut can be more challenging to address (Photo by Isaac Demeester on Unsplash).
The CBC also reported that “After that, said Daniel Smith, the prairie and northern area regional director with Environment and Climate Change Canada’s environmental enforcement program, it flowed toward the treatment plant and then directly out in to the Arctic Ocean via Hudson Bay. In an interview with CBC this week, Smith said there’s an outfall about 500 meters offshore under the ice.”
Government of Nunavut Fined
Because of the spill, the Government of Nunavut was ordered to pay $100,000 after pleading guilty to one offence under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999, violation of subsection 2.1(1) of the Storage Tank Systems for Petroleum Products and Allied Petroleum Products Regulations. The fine will be directed to the Government of Canada’s Environmental Damages Fund to “support projects that benefit the natural environment” (See Government of Nunavut ordered to pay $100,000 fine for Rankin Inlet diesel fuel spill into Hudson Bay).
$600,000 Fine for Violation of Fisheries Act
In our April 22, 2022 blog, we reported three different violations of the Fisheries Act. Enforcement of the Fisheries Act was in the news again.
Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) reported, “On April 29, 2022, Husky Oil Operations Limited was fined $600,000 in the Provincial Court of Saskatchewan for contravening subsection 36(3) of the Fisheries Act. The company pleaded guilty to one count of depositing a deleterious substance into water frequented by fish. The fine will be directed to the Government of Canada’s Environmental Damages Fund.”
2.8 Million Litres of Processed Water Released
The incident occurred in 2018 when there was a release of approximately 2.8 million litres of process water from the “Westhazel pipeline.” ECCC environmental enforcement officers responded to a notification of the rupture in the pipeline. The process water travelled approximately 450 metres over land and entered the Englishman River, near Turtleford, Saskatchewan, a fish-bearing tributary of the North Saskatchewan River.
As a result of the conviction, the company’s name will be added to the Environmental Offenders Registry.
Environmental Expertise in Canada
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