Nunavut-based TMAC Resources Inc. has been ordered to pay $50,000, in the Nunavut Court of Justice, after pleading guilty to one offence under the Fisheries Act in violation of the Metal Mining Effluent Regulations.
In December 2015, Environment and Climate Change Canada enforcement officers launched an investigation, which revealed that TMAC Resources Inc. had deposited effluent containing a deleterious substance into Doris Creek without meeting regulatory requirements. These requirements include collecting and testing samples and reporting results. The Metal Mining Effluent Regulations authorize deposits of effluent, provided the conditions stipulated in the regulations are observed. TMAC Resources Inc. failed to meet all of these conditions and was not authorized to discharge effluent from the site.
As a result of this conviction, the company’s name will be added to the Environmental Offenders Registry. The Environmental Offenders Registry contains information on convictions of corporations for offences committed under certain federal environmental laws.
The total fine from the conviction will be directed to the Government of Canada’s Environmental Damages Fund. Created in 1995, the Environmental Damages Fund is a Government of Canada program administered by Environment and Climate Change Canada. The Fund follows the polluter pays principle and ensures that court-awarded penalties are used to support projects with positive environmental impacts.
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