Matthew Gardner

The applicant sought judicial review of the Minister's decision not to post an Environmental Compliance Approval (ECA) application for a proposed trailer park's sewage works on the Environmental Registry for public comment.

The Minister relied on s. 32(1)(a) of the Environmental Bill of Rights, which exempts proposals from posting if they are a step towards implementing a project approved by a tribunal after affording an opportunity for public participation.

The Divisional Court applied the reasonableness standard of review and found that the Minister's decision was reasonable, as the prior Ontario Municipal Board hearing regarding the trailer park development provided a sufficient opportunity for public participation concerning the sewage works.

The application for judicial review was dismissed.

The appellant appealed a Director's Order requiring remediation of petroleum hydrocarbons and PCBs discharged from its metals recycling facility onto an adjacent municipal golf course.

Following completion of the required remediation work, the parties reached a settlement agreement wherein the Director withdrew the requirement to provide an alternative irrigation water source and the appellant withdrew its appeal of the waste handling requirements.

The Environmental Review Tribunal approved the settlement as consistent with the Environmental Protection Act and dismissed the proceeding.

The appellants appealed an order issued by the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake under s. 100.1 of the Environmental Protection Act requiring them to pay $207,477.88 for remedial work related to a spill.

The Tribunal held a pre-hearing conference by telephone.

The Tribunal ordered the parties to exchange relevant documents by specified dates and directed them to advise if they wish to pursue Tribunal-assisted mediation.

The appellant appealed a Director's Order requiring remedial work following a discharge of petroleum hydrocarbons and PCBs from its metals recycling facility into a municipal drain.

The parties entered into Minutes of Partial Settlement and Further Minutes of Partial Settlement to amend certain items in the Director's Order.

The Environmental Review Tribunal reviewed the settlement agreements and found that the proposed amendments were consistent with the purpose and provisions of the Environmental Protection Act and in the public interest.

The Tribunal directed the Director to amend the order accordingly and scheduled a continuation of the hearing to address the remaining outstanding issues.

The appellant appealed the property assessment of her residential property, which was built on a former municipal waste disposal site.

The parties agreed that the 'clean' value of the property was $402,000, but the estimated cost to remediate the contamination exceeded $1.7 million.

The Assessment Review Board found that the remediation costs far exceeded the clean value and that there would be no willing buyer for the property.

The Board determined the current value of the property to be zero for the 2017 and 2018 taxation years.

The Receiver for Northwood Recycling & Energy Inc. appealed a Director's Order requiring work at a waste disposal site.

Following an inspection confirming full compliance with the work items, the parties reached a settlement.

The Tribunal found the proposed settlement, which revoked the Director's Order and dismissed the proceeding, to be consistent with the purpose of the Environmental Protection Act and in the public interest.

The appellant appealed a Director's Order regarding a waste disposal site.

At a pre-hearing conference, the City of Oshawa and the Ummah Foundation sought and were granted participant status without objection.

The parties jointly requested and were granted an adjournment of the pre-hearing conference to allow for ongoing settlement discussions and to address a related jurisdictional motion filed in court.

The appellants appealed a Director's Order requiring them to submit an application for an environmental compliance approval for air discharges at an agricultural material processing site.

The appellants brought a motion seeking a stay of Item 3 of the order pending the disposition of their appeals.

The Director consented to the stay without condition.

The Environmental Review Tribunal found no statutory bar to granting the stay and granted the motion on consent.

The Regional Municipality of Niagara issued an order under s. 100.1 of the Environmental Protection Act to recover over $3.6 million in cleanup costs related to a spill.

Several named parties appealed the order to the Environmental Review Tribunal.

Prior to the hearing, the Region proposed revoking the order against one appellant whose estate lacked funds, and two other appellants sought to withdraw their appeals.

The Tribunal found the revocation consistent with the Act's purpose and the public interest, and accepted the withdrawal of the remaining appeals, dismissing the proceedings.

The appellants appealed two Director's Orders requiring them to remove and dispose of PCB waste at a property in Thorold, Ontario.

The parties reached a tentative settlement where the appellants would submit a plan to remove above-ground waste and secure below-ground waste, in exchange for the revocation of the orders against them.

The Tribunal conditionally accepted the settlement, finding it consistent with the purpose of the Environmental Protection Act and in the public interest, as it provided a protective resolution for the environment given the appellants' limited financial means.

During an appeal of an order to pay costs related to the clean-up of an environmental spill, an orderee requested presenter status.

The Tribunal granted the request, finding that the orderee's interests may be directly and substantially affected by the hearing, he has a genuine interest in the subject matter, and he is likely to make a relevant contribution to the Tribunal's understanding of the issues.

The Regional Municipality of Niagara issued an order under s. 100.1(1) of the Environmental Protection Act against several persons to recover costs incurred for cleaning up a spill.

Several named persons appealed the order.

The Region subsequently advised the Tribunal that it intended to revoke the order against four of the appellants, as they did not have ownership or control of the pollutants.

The Tribunal found the proposed revocation to be consistent with the purpose of the Act and in the public interest, revoked the order against those four appellants, and dismissed their appeals.

The Director of the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change issued an order regarding a spill of environmental contaminants at a site in Fort Erie.

Several parties appealed the order.

After the required remediation work was completed by some of the appellants, the Director proposed to revoke the order.

The Environmental Review Tribunal found the proposed revocation to be consistent with the purpose of the Environmental Protection Act and in the public interest.

The Tribunal revoked the order and dismissed the appeals.

The Regional Municipality of Niagara issued an order under s. 100.1 of the Environmental Protection Act to recover clean-up costs related to a spill.

Several named persons appealed the order and filed a Notice of Allegation against other parties, including the Town of Fort Erie.

The Town of Fort Erie requested party status in the proceeding.

The Tribunal granted the Town party status, finding its interests may be directly and substantially affected by the outcome of the appeal.

The Tribunal also set a schedule for motions and the main hearing.

The appellants appealed two orders issued by the Director of the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change requiring them to secure, remove, and destroy PCB waste stored at their property, and to provide financial assurance.

Following unsuccessful mediation, the parties agreed to a revised timetable for the appeal process and for proposed motions to strike a notice of allegation.

The Environmental Review Tribunal issued a procedural order confirming the schedule for document exchange, motion materials, and the main hearing dates.

The Tribunal held a preliminary hearing by telephone conference call regarding appeals of a Director's Order related to a spill of environmental contaminants.

Several entities requested party status.

Finding that the entities were named in a Notice of Allegation and could be directly affected by the outcome of the appeal, the Tribunal granted party status to Amercoat Canada, Rubyco Ltd., and Danroh Inc. The preliminary hearing was adjourned to allow for the completion of work required under interim amendments to the Director's Order.

At a preliminary hearing regarding an appeal of a Director's Order related to an environmental spill, several individuals and entities sought party and participant status.

The Tribunal granted party status to several potential orderees and individuals named in the order, finding their interests could be directly and substantially affected.

The Regional Municipality of Niagara was granted participant status due to its genuine interest as an adjacent property owner.

The preliminary hearing was adjourned to allow ongoing remediation work to proceed.

The appellants appealed a Director's Order relating to a spill of environmental contaminants, including toluene and acetone, at a site in Fort Erie.

Several appellants brought motions to stay the Director's Order pending the final resolution of the appeals.

At the hearing, the moving parties and the Director presented an agreement for a partial stay and interim amendments to the Order.

The Environmental Review Tribunal approved the consent agreement, finding that the stay would not result in a danger to health, safety, or the environment, and that the balance of convenience favoured granting the stay to allow necessary investigative work to proceed.

The appellants appealed a Director's Order requiring work to prevent the discharge of contaminants from a site in Fort Erie.

On consent of the parties, the Environmental Review Tribunal granted an interim stay of portions of the Order and amended specific items pending the final resolution of the appeal.

The amended Order established new compliance dates and requirements for investigating soil, groundwater, sediment, and surface water impacts.