By Caitlin Coombes, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Guardian
December 27, 2023
CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. — An act to increase the fines related to violations of the Environmental Protection Act (EPA) has received royal assent.
Entitled An Act to Amend the Environmental Protection Act, it was passed on Nov. 29, the final day of the fall sitting of the provincial legislature in Charlottetown.
The Act increases the maximum of individual violation fines to $50,000. Before that, the range of fines for individuals who violate the EPA was $200 to $10,000.
During the bill’s debate earlier in the month, Greg Wilson, acting director of the Environment Regulatory Division, and Environment Minister Steven Myers fielded questions from the assembly regarding the amendment.
In response to concerns expressed by Liberal MLA Robert Henderson, Wilson explained the increase from $10,000 to $50,000 is intended to bring the fine ranges in P.E.I. in sync with Nova Scotia and New Brunswick’s environmental protection fines.
“We’re trying to line up with the Maritime region to make sure we are all in the same boat,” Wilson said.
Henderson continued to express concerns that this increase would result in unintended impacts for farmers and foresters instead of impacting shoreline developers.
“It doesn’t sound like there was really a lot of consultation on this,” Henderson said.
This increase to the individual fine maximum would bring individual and corporate fines to the same level, with the current maximum fine for corporations who violate the EPA being $50,000.
During the debate, Progressive Conservative MLA Jamie Fox introduced an additional amendment to raise the minimum from $200 to $1,000.
“We should be doing everything we can to protect the environment and make sure that these acts do not happen,” said Fox.
This amendment to the amendment did not pass a vote at the end of the reading, while the original amendment did.
Fox would later resign his provincial seat to run for the Conservative Party of Canada in the next federal election.
During an interview with SaltWire on Nov. 23, Green MLA Peter Bevan-Baker said he was satisfied the bill passed and hoped to see future amendments increase the corporate fine maximum as well.
“I think it would be a good idea to look at what the corporate fines are in adjacent provinces and move ours up,” Bevan-Baker said.
Bevan-Baker had questioned Myers on whether there were plans to raise the maximum fines for corporations debate.
“I’m happy it’s happened and that it now matches the corporation rate, but I would have liked to have seen the maximum fine for corporations increased as well.”
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Caitlin Coombes is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter, a position funded by the federal government. She can be reached by email at caitlin.coombes@saltwire.com and followed on X @caitlin_coombes.