Topic Environmental
Oilsands tailings ponds leaking; federal enforcement unclear: report
September 4, 2020 by Bob Weber - THE CANADIAN PRESSAn international environmental watchdog says there’s convincing evidence that oilsands tailings ponds are leaking. “There is strong scientifically valid evidence of … seepage into near-field groundwater around tailings ponds,” says a report from the Commission on Environmental Co-operation, a body…
Climate change creating vast new glacial lakes, future flooding risk: research
August 31, 2020 by The Canadian PressCALGARY – Meltwater from shrinking glaciers is creating vast lakes that could eventually pose an enormous flooding threat, says newly published research. “Unsurprisingly, we found those lakes are growing,” said Dan Shugar, a geographer at the University of Calgary. “What…
Pipeline owner fined for unsafe incident near GO tracks in Greater Toronto
July 29, 2020 by THE CANADIAN PRESSCALGARY – The Canada Energy Regulator is fining Trans-Northern Pipelines $40,000 for an incident near a commuter train line in Greater Toronto that resulted in damage to a pipeline transporting gasoline. It says the incident near Oakville could potentially have…
Why insurers cross their fingers after microburst storms in Toronto
July 15, 2020 by Adam MalikOld infrastructure and combined sewer systems mean that severe thunderstorms like the one seen last week will continue to leave basements flooded for years to come, leaving insurers and claims professionals busy, according to an industry expert. “When you get…
The impact of surreptitious dangerous goods shipments on marine insurance
July 15, 2020 by Greg MeckbachThe marine insurance sector saw a huge drop last year in the number of total shipping losses but the industry continues to have a problem with shippers trying to sneak hazardous and flammable cargo on board without declaring it. “Dangerous…
Lac Megantic marks seventh anniversary of 2013 rail disaster with memorial site
July 6, 2020 by Stephanie Marin – THE CANADIAN PRESSSeven years after a rail disaster decimated its downtown, Lac-Megantic sought Monday to honour both its past and future by inaugurating a long-planned memorial space at the site at the heart of the tragedy. On July 6, 2013, a runaway…
Truck fire in Nova Scotia turns propane cylinders into projectiles
June 25, 2020 by THE CANADIAN PRESSDEBERT, N.S. – A cleanup is underway in Debert, N.S., after a transport truck carrying over 1,000 propane cylinders caught fire. Nobody was injured in Sunday’s blaze on the Plains Road, which turned a large number of the nine-kilogram cylinders…
How not to handle a lawsuit alleging historical environmental contamination
March 9, 2020 by Greg MeckbachBrokers wanting to advise commercial clients on pollution liability risk might learn a lesson or two from London Transit Commission v. Eaton Industries (Canada) Company, released this past Friday by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. London, Ontario’s city bus…
More insurers may stop covering oil sands: Environmentalist
October 24, 2019 by Greg MeckbachExpect more insurers to stop covering Canadian oil sands infrastructure and pipeline projects, an environmental advocate suggests. “We have seen a lot of insurance companies, over the last four or five years, adopt coal policies and get out of insuring…
Environmental groups to sue Shell over climate change
April 5, 2019 by Mike Corder - THE ASSOCIATED PRESSTHE HAGUE, Netherlands – Climate activists delivered a court summons Friday to oil company Shell in a court case aimed at forcing it to do more to rein in carbon emissions. Friends of the Earth Netherlands, one of the groups…
How environmental liability ruling could affect other insurance lines
March 27, 2019 by Greg MeckbachEnvironmental liability is not the only line of insurance that could be impacted by the recent Supreme Court of Canada ruling on a trustee in bankruptcy’s obligation do deal with inactive energy assets such as oil wells. In Orphan Well…
This Supreme Court ruling could drive environmental insurance sales
March 19, 2019 by Greg MeckbachBrokers could see more demand for environmental liability insurance because of a recent Supreme Court of Canada ruling in favour of the Alberta Energy Regulator, a Toronto underwriter suggests. In Orphan Well Association v. Grant Thornton Ltd., the Supreme Court…