Does Canada fine industrial polluters enough to make a difference?
Jun 4, 2024
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PhD student Ben Collison discusses the complexities of fining industrial polluters in Canada, exploring ways to hold them accountable. Topics include recent fines for water pollution, the impact of fines on businesses, enhancing penalties for wealthy companies, and the importance of public involvement in enforcing environmental compliance.
High fines can prompt companies to take environmental action, while repeat offenders raise concerns about penalty efficacy.
Deep dives
Effects of Current Fines on Corporations
High fines for environmental violations may serve as a wake-up call for businesses, prompting them to take proactive environmental measures. Responsible employers often reflect on the fine and make tangible efforts to prevent future harm to the environment.
Repeat Offenders and Ineffectiveness of Fines
Repeat offenders in environmental violations raise concerns about the efficacy of fines. Companies like Tech Resources, Rio Tinto, and Suncor Energy have been fined multiple times, yet the financial penalties are insubstantial compared to their profits, suggesting that fines may not deter repeat offenses.
Proposed Solutions for Meaningful Penalty Enforcement
Three potential solutions for enhancing penalty enforcement include creating a new penalty tier targeted at billion-dollar companies, prioritizing court prosecutions over administrative penalties, and utilizing stop-work orders and permit revocations. Such measures aim to hold large polluters accountable and promote environmental stewardship among corporations.
There are some large companies in Canada that have a history of breaking environmental laws. But the framework for fining them can be complex, and often struggles to make the larger businesses feel serious financial ramifications.
How does this system work? Or does it? How could we adapt it for a world in which the pursuit of profits that cause environmental harm will become more and more dangerous?
GUEST: Ben Collison, PhD student at Dalhousie University, writing for The Conversation
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