Delhaven Farms Limited pleads guilty to environmental charge

HALIFAX – July 25, 2002 – Delhaven Farms Limited has been ordered to pay a $12,000 penalty after pleading guilty today in Kentville Provincial Court to a charge of violating Section 36(3) of the federal Fisheries Act. The charge, laid by Environment Canada’s Office of Enforcement on September 6, 2001, alleged that on March 27, 2001, Delhaven Farms Limited deposited a significant volume of liquid pig manure from its Burlington pig operation into Brown Brook.

"Environment Canada is very concerned about the potential negative environmental impacts of agricultural operations and it works on an ongoing basis with provincial Environment departments and the farming industry to encourage farmers to employ the best possible management practices to limit these impacts," explains Roger Percy, A/ Atlantic Manager of Environment Canada’s Office of Enforcement. "However, when collaborative work and warnings fail to improve the situation, or they are considered to be inappropriate under the circumstances, our Enforcement Officers will investigate and, where necessary, prosecute these polluters to send the message that negligent farm practices are not acceptable."

Under the Fisheries Act it is an offense to deposit, or to permit the deposition of, a deleterious substance into water frequented by fish or into any place under any conditions where the substance may enter such water. The charge against Delhaven Farms Limited alleged that the liquid manure escaped from a recently constructed wetland area and entered Brown Brook which has water known to have fish habitat. Liquid pig manure is extremely harmful to fish because of its high ammonia content.

The reduction of river water quality because of agricultural pollution is currently of growing concern in the Maritimes provinces. For example a recent report released by the international conservation society Earthwild International selected the Cornwallis River as one of the 10 most polluted rivers in Canada and it identified massive amounts of agricultural pollution as one of the main causes of the pollution.

The $12,000 penalty that the company was ordered to pay consists of a $6,000 court fine and a $6,000 payment to the Environmental Damages Fund that is administered by Environment Canada. The Environmental Damages Fund serves as a special holding or trust account to manage funds received as compensation for environmental damage. The purpose of any contribution to the Fund is to remediate damages to the environment in a cost effective way and to deter other parties from causing damage in the future.

The charge against Delhaven Farms Limited was laid after a two-month investigation by Environment Canada’s Office of Enforcement with assistance from the Kentville office of the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the Nova Scotia Department of Environment and Labour.

Mr. Percy is optimistic that by using a combination of education, regular farm inspections and where necessary, prosecutions, that the situation will continue to improve and that the negative environmental impacts sometimes associated with farming will continue to decrease. "We have had a lot of success working with the provincial government and industry in other jurisdictions in developing ways to motivate and assist farmers to meet their obligations under the federal Fisheries Act. Many livestock farmers have embraced these initiatives and it has resulted in very encouraging compliance rates that are setting an example for sustainable agriculture in Canada," says Mr. Percy.

For more information on the Environmental Damages Fund and Environmental Damage Assessment please go to: http://www.atl.ec.gc.ca/emergencies/edf.html