Critics raise questions about enforcement of environmental laws

Critics raise questions about enforcement of environmental laws by Kelly Cryderman, June 8, 2012, Calgary Herald
But as the premier surveyed the site of the light sour crude spill, she said Alberta still has a strong system in place to prevent and deal with pipeline breaks. “There’s no doubt that if we have economic development, that there are certainly, in some cases, impacts. And they’re very unfortunate impacts,”…. “And we can have some confidence that when they do happen, we have plans in place to deal with them.” … Joe Anglin, environment critic for the Wildrose party and the MLA for the area, said it will likely have a huge effect on tourism, spawning fish and wildlife — as well as the livelihoods of his constituents. “The spill is inexcusable,” said the MLA for Rimbey-Rocky Mountain House-Sundre. … “They do not have the resources in place to do what they’re supposed to do.” NDP MLA Rachel Notley said both government departments and the ERCB need more resources and stronger enforcement mandates. She said the industry does too much self-reporting. “It really is about severing the relationship between the government and industry when it comes to compliance,” [Emphasis added]