NEW – ON: Auditor General reports on government’s poor environmental protection record

A series of five environmental audits released by Auditor General of Ontario Bonnie Lysyk on November 22, 2021, details a pattern of government ministries “going about their duty to safeguard the environment half-heartedly, or shirking it entirely, while deliberately taking steps to avoid public scrutiny.”

The 172-page probe called out the environment ministry for a “lack of leadership” when it comes to enforcing the Environmental Bill of Rights Act (EBR) — which it says other ministries have been violating by skimping on consultations — and by acting “contrary to the spirit” of the EBR itself.

Lysyk says this has resulted in a low compliance rate with the EBR across government, with Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks being the worst offender, having met its legislated requirements only 18 per cent of the time. 

About propane

Of interest to the propane sector, one of the five audits revealed there have been 40,000 hazardous spills in Ontario between 2016 and 2020, with 94 per cent caused by entities not subject to spill prevention regulation, so the province cannot impose financial penalties. On top of that, the government is not attempting to recoup cleanup costs from those who caused the spills. 

This means that taxpayers and not the spillers cover the costs, said Lysyk. “Just 30 spills cost Ontarians an estimated $4.5 million in spill response costs ... The total amount of unrecovered costs is potentially tens of millions of dollars more.”

This data  reinforces the point the CPA recently made to the government in its imposition of fees and administrative penalties associated with non-compliance with the new Hazardous and Special Products (HSP) legislative regime. The proposed $one million maximum fine for propane marketers under this scheme is entirely out of line with the environmental damage a propane leak represents, particularly compared with other liquids and gases not regulated by the government.

“This trend heads in the wrong direction,” said Lysyk. “If Ontario continues its current trajectory of waste generation and disposal, existing landfill capacity in the province will be exhausted within the next 11 to 14 years … Yet the environment ministry has not taken concerted efforts and actions to drive ICI waste diversion.”

The CPA will use these findings to demonstrate to the government that Ontario propane businesses contribute positively to the province’s environmental health and should be known as such through less punitive fees and removal from the HSP regime.