Ice-making company fined $350 000 for Fisheries Act violation

Surrey, British Columbia – November 9, 2018 – Environment and Climate Change Canada

Canadians value a safe and clean environment. Environment and Climate Change Canada’s enforcement officers work hard every day to make sure individuals and companies are respecting Canadian environmental laws.

On November 5, 2018, Arctic Glacier Canada Inc. pleaded guilty, in the Provincial Court of British Columbia, to violating subsection 36(3) of the Fisheries Act. The company was ordered to pay a penalty of $350,000, which will be directed to the Environmental Damages Fund. The company was also ordered to conduct an independent environmental audit of their facility to implement a procedure for the storage and disposal of aqueous ammonia, to train their employees on ammonia management, and to upgrade as necessary their ammonia-based refrigeration system and related exhaust systems.

On April 30, 2014, Environment and Climate Change Canada received a dangerous goods incident report regarding dead fish in an unnamed creek near the Golden Ears Bridge in the City of Surrey. Two Environment and Climate Change Canada enforcement officers conducted an investigation into what caused the fish kill. The investigation concluded that the ammonia solution purged from equipment in Arctic Glacier’s facility ended up in the City of Surrey’s storm sewer system, which outflows into the unnamed creek. Water samples taken near the Arctic Glacier facility and the storm sewer system were found to be harmful to fish.

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Quick facts

• Environment and Climate Change Canada is responsible for the administration and enforcement of the pollution prevention provisions of the Fisheries Act, which prohibit the deposit of deleterious substances into water frequented by fish.
• Created in 1995, the Environmental Damages Fund is a program administered by Environment and Climate Change Canada. The Fund follows the polluter pays principle and ensures court-awarded penalties are used for projects with positive environmental impacts.
• The Environmental Offenders Registry contains information on convictions of corporations registered for offences committed under certain federal environmental laws.

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