SARNIA ON (3/29/2012) – On March 9, 2012, Union Gas Limited pleaded guilty to one violation under the Ontario Water Resources Act for failing to comply a Certificate of Approval by failing to prepare annual performance reports.

The Court heard that the company has a natural gas storage, transmission and distribution facility based in Chatham and uses a site located in the Dawn-Euphemia Township as a compressor station. The ministry had issued a sewage works Certificate of Approval to the company for the sanitary sewage system at the Euphemia Township site. The ministry provided written permission to discharge additional treated effluent providing certain provisions were met. One of these provisions included a sewage lagoon capacity study. On August 25, 2010, a Provincial Officer of the ministry conducted a sewage inspection at the site and requested the Annual Performance Reports for 2007 to 2009. A review of the data and inspection of the facility revealed that the company had not been in full compliance with the Certificate of Approval. Among other non-compliances, the company had failed to prepare annual performance reports for the sewage treatment plant for 2007, 2008 and 2009.

The company was charged following an investigation by the ministry’s Investigations and Enforcement Branch.

The company was fined $70,000 plus a victim fine surcharge and given 180 days to pay the fine.

Contact: Kate Jordan, Communications Branch, (416) 314-6666