Canadians value a safe and clean environment. Environment and Climate Change Canada enforcement officers strive to ensure that businesses and individuals comply with laws and regulations that protect the natural environment in Canada.
On October 11, 2024, at the Alberta Court of Justice, Mercer Peace River Pulp Ltd. (Mercer Peace River) was ordered to pay a $1 million fine after pleading guilty on September 4, 2024, to one count of violating the Fisheries Act. The charge follows an investigation by Environment and Climate Change Canada enforcement officers that determined that on April 14, 2021, Mercer Peace River deposited or permitted the deposit of 30,868,000 litres of effluent (wastewater) that was acutely lethal (toxic) to fish from its pulp mill near the Town of Peace River, Alberta, into the Peace River. The deposit of acutely lethal effluent into fish-bearing waters violates a condition of the authorization to deposit effluent that is set out in subsection 6(5) of the Pulp and Paper Effluent Regulations, in contravention of subsection 36(3) of the Fisheries Act.
The pulp mill operates a wastewater treatment system that treats effluent before it is released to the Peace River. The wastewater treatment system has a spill pond designed to capture and store effluent resulting from spills or unusual operating conditions. Once in the spill pond, effluent is gradually reintroduced back into the treatment system at a controlled rate to minimize its overall negative effect.
Environment and Climate Change Canada's investigation determined that the offence occurred during a maintenance shutdown of the pulp mill. The shutdown generated waste materials from process vessels and wastewater from cleaning operations which were directed into the spill pond. Mercer Peace River had not maintained sufficient capacity in the spill pond to capture the additional effluent. As a result, the spill pond did not function as designed. The investigation determined that the reduced capacity within the spill pond contributed to the offence. Mercer Peace River has since taken steps to increase the capacity of the spill pond by removing sludge and upgrading the associated pumping system.
The fine will be directed to the Government of Canada's Environmental Damages Fund.
As a result of this conviction, the company's name will be added to the Environmental Offenders Registry. The Registry contains information on convictions of corporations registered for offences committed under certain federal environmental laws.
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