Moncton pleads guilty to pollution charges
Contact: Mark Mattson t) 416.861.1237 or email) Mark@waterkeeper.ca
MONCTON, NB - The City of Moncton pleaded guilty to Fisheries Act charges in a New Brunswick court on Monday, accepting legal responsibility for allowing toxins from an old landfill discharge into the Petitcodiac River.
The Court ordered the city to clean up the landfill site and implement a full monitoring program to protect the nearby Petitcodiac River. The city was also fined $35,000.
The charges date back to July 2000, when environmental groups found PCBs, ammonia, and heavy metals seeping into the river from the city landfill. Daniel LeBlanc of the Petitcodiac Riverkeeper and environmental lawyer Mark Mattson took the information to Environment Canada. Environment Canada launched its own investigation and laid the charges in 2002.
?Our work with Environment Canada leading up to today has demonstrated how communities can work effectively with government enforcement officers to protect our rivers and lakes,? says Mattson. ?We are glad the City of Moncton has accepted responsibility for its actions and we now look forward to a full remediation.?
Environment Canada also charged Gemtec Ltd, an engineering consultant. Gemtec has pleaded not guilty. The trial begins Monday afternoon and is expected to last two to three weeks.
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