Fortis Alberta Inc. fined $300,000 for contravening the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 and the PCB Regulations

The effective and strict enforcement of Canadian environmental and wildlife protection legislation is one way that Environment and Climate Change Canada meets its commitment to maintaining clean air and water and protecting wildlife and their habitats.

On August 15, 2018, FortisAlberta Inc. (FortisAlberta) was ordered by the Provincial Court of Alberta to pay a fine of $300,000 after pleading guilty to one count of violating the PCB Regulations and one count of violating the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999. The charges stem from the company’s release of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) into the environment and its failure to promptly notify an enforcement officer or other designated person of the release. The fine will be directed to the Environmental Damages Fund. On May 12, 2016, Fortis Alberta reported that one of their transformers, located in the town of Hinton, had leaked oil. An investigation conducted by enforcement officers found that FortisAlberta discovered the leak on October 19, 2015, but did not report it until May 12, 2016. Testing results showed that approximately 325 litres of oil containing PCBs were released into the environment.

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