The Role of Enforcement in Protecting
Alberta's Environment

In the vast majority of cases, these measures are effective in protecting the environment. Occasionally, enforcement is required to ensure compliance with environmental legislation. The intention is to provide, in a timely fashion, firm but fair enforcement measures. But enforcement is generally the last step in a regulatory process that aims to first identify and prevent potential problems and to quickly remediate problems if they occur.

The key components of this regulatory process are outlined below.

Public Consultation/Education

All sectors of society must share responsibility as stewards of the environment. The new Act places responsibility on all stakeholders, from individuals to corporations, to cooperate with Alberta Environment in protecting the environment. The Act ensures public consultation will be an ongoing and integral part of all aspects of the regulatory process. It also recognizes the importance of environmental education in preventing environmental impacts.

Objectives, Standards and Guidelines

To be effective, an environmental protection program must have clearly established and understood objectives, standards and guidelines. An example of an objective includes ambient water quality objectives for a river. Examples of standards include requirements for controlling contaminants and for reclaiming developed sites. Affected industries and individuals will continue to have a role in developing future objectives and standards.

Environmental Assessments

The Environmental Assessment process plays an important role in environmental protection by integrating environmental and economical decisions in the early stages of planning a proposed activity. This process also helps predict the environmental, social and economic consequences of a proposal and enables regulators to assess plans to mitigate any adverse impacts arising from an activity. The comprehensive Environmental Assessment Process is spelled out in EPEA and its regulations. This process provides opportunity for public input to the decision.

Approvals and Certificates

An approval is the principle document outlining the construction, operation, monitoring, reporting and reclamation requirements governing a facility or activity. The approval process allows Alberta Environment to conduct detailed reviews of specific projects and then set terms and conditions to protect the environment.

These terms address such things as reclamation procedures and the adequacy of proposed emission and discharge control technology. Some facilities will be required to make security deposits to ensure reclamation procedures are adequately carried out.

As well, certain individuals are required to obtain certificates of qualification for operating specific facilities such as municipal waste water treatment. The new Act also allows any directly affected person to participate in the decision-making process. These people can submit written statements of concern regarding applications for approval and can appeal Director's decisions to an Environmental Appeal Board if their concerns have not been addressed.

Compliance Monitoring

Once approved, environmental compliance of these activities must be monitored by their operators. These activities are also closely monitored by Alberta Environment to ensure they operate in compliance with the terms and conditions attached to their approvals. As well, Alberta Environment investigates the public complaints regarding alleged environmental contraventions.

Environmental Protection Orders

One of the key mechanisms for preventing environmental problems are the provisions throughout the Act for issuing Environmental Protection Orders (EPOs) and emergency EPOs. These orders are intended to prevent environmental problems or, failing that, to ensure action is taken to fix environmental problems. Under an EPO, individuals can be required, for example, to take measures to protect the environment, prepare environmental audits or submit plans on remedial measures.

Enforcement

The final component of the regulatory process is enforcement. In response to increasing public expectations for environmental enforcement, Alberta Environment has developed an approach of providing firm but fair enforcement of environmental legislation in a timely and consistent manner. Effective environmental protection can only be achieved by deterring or punishing polluters, especially those who knowingly and wilfully discharge substances that have a significant adverse impact on the environment.

Guiding Principles for Enforcement

The primary objective of enforcement is to achieve and maintain compliance with environmental legislation, including appropriate acts, regulations, approvals and orders. In achieving this objective, the following principles will apply.

• All Albertans are expected to comply with environmental legislation. Every instance of noncompliance will be met with an appropriate enforcement response.
• To achieve its stated objectives, Alberta Environment will not hesitate to use all of the components of enforcement action at its disposal--education, correction and deterrence.
• Recognizing that all Albertans have a responsibility for ensuring the protection of the environment, Alberta Environment will encourage the public to report environmental concerns and suspected contraventions of environmental legislation.
• Public complaints will be treated seriously and followed up with the appropriate enforcement response.
• Legislative reporting requirements relating to noncompliance and to significant adverse environmental impacts are the cornerstone of enforcement activities. Failure by those responsible to report such incidents will result in stringent enforcement action.
• Environmental legislation provides for a number of enforcement options. In response to a suspected noncompliance incident, Alberta Environment will conduct a fact-finding investigation, followed by a compliance assessment to determine whether a contravention has occurred and, if so, what the appropriate enforcement response should be. To achieve compliance, this response may include the use of both administrative and prosecution tools.
• Protection and enhancement of the environment will be achieved by providing firm but fair enforcement in a timely and consistent manner. In this context:

  "firm but fair" means:

  • the severity of the enforcement response is related to the severity of the offence; and
  • the rules of environmental compliance are clearly spelled out.
  
  "timely and consistent" means:
  • the priority of the enforcement response will be related to the severity of the potential environmental impact;
  • problems related to a specific industrial activity will be dealt with on an industry-wide basis; and
  • taking into consideration the fact that environmental impact differs between facilities, the enforcement response will be comparable regardless of the source, size, location or ownership of the facility.

     

• Alberta Environment will take the lead role in enforcement of environmental legislation and will liaise with other responsible government departments to ensure a coordinated and consistent enforcement act.
• In the event of an administrative transfer of any part of the environmental legislation to another government agency, the enforcement of the duties transferred will be carried out in accordance with these principles.
• The priority of Alberta Environment's enforcement activities will be guided by these principles.

For more information, please call:

Alberta Environment
Pollution Control Program
(780) 427-6209