NAFTA panel wants oilsands answers

OTTAWA — The environmental arm of NAFTA is demanding Canada explain what it is doing to stop oilsands tailings ponds from leaking into Alberta waterways.

The request comes in a decision by the commission that oversees the North American Agreement on Environmental Co-operation, a parallel agreement to NAFTA signed by Canada, the U.S. and Mexico.

Canada has until Sept. 28 to officially respond to allegations it is failing to enforce the Fisheries Act by allowing contaminants from the ponds to leak into water without forcing the companies involved to fix the problem.

The complaint was made in June by Canada’s Environmental Defence group and the Natural Resources Defense Council based in the United States.

Environmental Defence executive director Tim Gray said studies have suggested as much as 11 million litres of tailings water containing substances such as benzene, arsenic and cyanide leaks into the Athabasca River every day.

A spokeswoman for Environment Minister Catherine McKenna said the government will work with the commission to respond to the request and expects this to be resolved soon.

“Our government takes the protection of water very seriously,” Marie-Pascale Des Rosiers said in an email. “We are proud of our world-class, joint oilsands monitoring system we have with the government of Alberta.”

NAFTA’s environment annex allows non-governmental organizations and citizens of the three countries to submit complaints alleging their government is failing to enforce its environmental laws and regulations.

The commission has 30 days to decide if a complaint warrants a response from the government involved.

The request for a response from Canada means the commission found the complaint was submitted by legitimate organizations that offered sciencebased evidence for their complaints and that it was intended to promote enforcement of environmental law rather than simply harass industry.

Gray said the commission’s request for a response is a sign that the complaint appears legitimate, so far. “They’re saying, based on the evidence presented to them and legal review, it looks like the government isn’t enforcing the Fisheries Act and they want to know what the Canadian government thinks about that.”