Frederika Rotter

The City of Kawartha Lakes appealed a decision of the Environmental Review Tribunal upholding a Ministry of the Environment order requiring the City to remediate environmental contamination on its property.

The contamination was caused by a furnace oil leak from an adjacent private property.

The City argued it was an innocent owner and the Tribunal erred by excluding evidence regarding who was at fault for the spill.

The Divisional Court dismissed the appeal, finding that the Tribunal's decision to exclude fault evidence was reasonable, as the Environmental Protection Act's primary purpose is environmental protection, and fault-finding is better suited for civil courts.

The Director of the Ministry of the Environment appealed a decision of the Environmental Review Tribunal that revoked remedial orders against a former corporate officer (Lee) and an innocent current property owner (Montague) regarding historical contamination.

The Divisional Court allowed the appeal regarding Lee, finding the Tribunal erred in law by applying too narrow a test for 'management or control' and failing to consider his liability for waste removal.

The appeal regarding Montague was dismissed, as the Tribunal correctly found she did not cause or permit the discharge and properly exercised its discretion on fairness grounds to relieve her of financial responsibility for the cleanup.