Town of Baie Verte - conviction information for 2020-09-22
| Corporation name: | Town of Baie Verte |
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| Address: | 32 - Highway 410, P.O. Box 218 |
| City: | Baie Verte |
| Province/territory: | Newfoundland and Labrador |
| Postal code: | A0K 1B0 |
| Country: | Canada |
| Sector or industry: | 913 - Local, municipal and regional public administration |
| Location of offense: | Baie Verte River located 333 - Highway 410, Town of Baie Verte, Newfoundland and Labrador |
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| Case summary: |
The Town of Baie Verte operates a municipal drinking water system for the Town’s 1313 residents. Water from Southern Arm Pond enters the treatment plant for water filtration and chlorination as a disinfectant. The use of Chlorine as a disinfectant is essential for the health and safety of residents who rely on the Town’s drinking water supply. August 31, 2017, ECCC Enforcement Officers conducted an onsite inspection to verify compliance under the General Prohibitions of the Fisheries Act following a report of chlorinated water discharging into the Baie Verte River near Route 410, Baie Verte, NL Water sample tests for chlorine analysis were taken onsite. Onsite testing revealed a presence of chlorine in the water depositing into the Baie Verte River at concentrations from 3000 to 6000 times the maximum allowable for the protection of freshwater aquatic life. On September 5, 2017, ECCC Enforcement Officers returned to the discharge site and conducted water field test followed with the collection of water samples for laboratory analysis. The field test once again confirmed that the chlorinated water was being deposited into the river at a concentration 5200 times the maximum allowable for the protection of freshwater aquatic life. On September 11, 2017, the Senior Toxicologist for the Atlantic Laboratory of Environmental Testing reviewed the report of analysis for the water samples collected on September 5, 2017 at which time they confirmed that the chlorinated water was a deleterious substance, as defined by the Fisheries Act. On September 14, 2017, ECCC issued a written Fisheries Act Direction to the Town of Baie Verte to take all reasonable measures to prevent, counteract, mitigate, or remedy, any adverse effects that result from the deposit of the chlorinated water into the Baie Verte River. The Direction also required the Town to provide a written report documenting the measures taken to comply with the Direction. On October 2, 2017 and November 2, 2017, the Town of Baie Verte failed to provide ECCC with the requested documentation outlining the measures to be taken by the Town to comply with the Direction. On November 2, 2017, ECCC initiated an investigation into the failure to comply with the reporting requirements of the September 14, 2017 Fisheries Act Direction. On November 8, 2017, ECCC Enforcement Officers returned to the Baie Verte River at which time water was observed discharging from the riverbank and depositing into the Baie Verte River at the same area and at a similar rate as observed during the September 5, 2017 site inspection. Water field tests were conducted followed by the collection of water samples for laboratory analysis. The field test once again confirmed that the chlorinated water was being deposited into the river at concentrations between 3200 and 5600 times the maximum allowable for the protection of freshwater aquatic life. On January 3, 2018, January 8, 2018 and January 15, 2018, ECCC Enforcement Officers collected a series of statements from town employees with the Public Works Department along with a witness statement from a government official from NL Department of Municipal Affairs and Environment. From the statements, ECCC learned that the Town had located a leak within the main line of their water distribution system on September 21, 2017 and that it was repaired on November 17, 2017. It was learned that the Town did not monitor the site to verify the effectiveness of the repair and if the chlorinated water discharge into the river had stopped. It was also learned that the Town did not document the events pertaining to the repair nor did they have a report to provide to ECCC as required by the September Fisheries Act Direction. On March 12, 2018, ECCC Enforcement Officers returned to the discharge site and conducted a water field test followed by the collection of water samples for laboratory analysis. The field test once again confirmed that the chlorinated water was being deposited into the river at a concentration 3200 times the maximum allowable for the protection of freshwater aquatic life. Between April 17, 2018 and May 18, 2018, the Town implemented a mitigation plan by placing a submersible pump into the Baie Verte River adjacent to the riverbank discharge. Through a series of field tests and laboratory analysis, it was determined that chlorine in was still present in the water depositing into the Baie Verte River at concentrations of 800 to 1600 times the maximum allowable for the protection of freshwater aquatic life. On May 18, 2018, the Town constructed a trench adjacent to the riverbank discharge and a shutoff valve. The Town identified the source of the leak as a valve responsible for opening/closing a 6” drainage line that tees off the main waterline and that the Town did not check the valve because they thought it was a part of the main waterline and that it was shown as “turned off”. That on May 25, 2018, the Town had repaired the valve with no further discharge of chlorinated water into the river. |
| Charges: |
Count 1- Subsection 36(3) - Unlawfully depositing a deleterious substance in waters frequented by fish
Count 2- Subsection 38(7.1) - Unlawfully fail to comply with the whole or any part of a direction of a Fishery Officer Count 3- Subsection 38(7.1) - Unlawfully fail to comply with the whole or any part of a direction of a Fishery Officer Count 4- Subsection 38(5) - Unlawfully fail to notify a fishery officer without delay of a deposit of a deleterious substance in water frequented by fish |
| Enforcement notification: | Town of Baie Verte, in Newfoundland and Labrador, fined $50,000 for two offences under the Fisheries Act |
| Result: | Guilty Plea |
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| Date of conviction: | 2020-09-22 |
| Court level: | Provincial and Territorial Court |
| Nature of offense(s): |
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| Additional details about the nature of the offense: |
Count 1: Subsection 36(3) - Unlawfully depositing a deleterious substance in waters frequented by fish. Count 2: Subsection 38(7.1) - Unlawfully fail to comply with the whole or any part of a direction of a Fishery Officer. Note: Charges 3 & 4 were withdrawn by the Crown as part of pre-trial negotiations |
| Act | Regulations | Section(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Pollution Prevention provisions (subsection 36(3)) of the Fisheries Act | General Prohibition | subsection 38(7.1) Unlawfully fail to comply with the whole or any part of a direction of a Fishery Officer |
| Pollution Prevention provisions (subsection 36(3)) of the Fisheries Act | General Prohibition | subsection 36(3) Unlawfully depositing a deleterious substance in waters frequented by fish |
| Date of sentencing: |
2020-09-22 |
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| Location of sentencing: | Grand Falls-Windsor, NL |
| Sentence(s): |
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| Amount of fine(s): | $50,000 |
| Sentencing details: |
On September 22, 2020, at Grand Falls Windsor, in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Town of Baie Verte was convicted of breaching subsection 36(3) and paragraph 40(3)(g) of the Fisheries Act.
The Town of Baie Verte was sentenced pursuant to: 1. Subsection 35 (3) of the Fisheries Act, to pay a fine of $45,000.00, and 2. Subsection 38(7.1) of the Fisheries Act, to pay a fine of $5,000.00. The Town of Baie Verte is ordered that, in pursuant to section 79.2(i) of the Fisheries Act, to have the fine paid in full within 28 months from the date of conviction and to pay their fine to the Receiver General of Canada, in trust of the EDF for purposes related to the conservation and/or protection of fish or fish habitat on the restoration of fish habitat in Western Newfoundlant. |