Breakwater Resources Limited, which operates the Langlois Mine, has pleaded guilty in the Val–d’Or, Quebec courthouse to one count of violating the Fisheries Act. The company was fined $350,000, which will be directed to the Government of Canada’s Environmental Damages Fund.
On February 28, 2018, a 500-litre spill of flocculent from the Langlois mining site in Lebel–sur–Quévillon resulted in a discharge of acutely lethal effluent into the Wedding River. The discharge of acutely lethal effluent into water frequented by fish is a violation of subsection 36(3) of the Fisheries Act.
As a result of this conviction, the company’s name will be added to the Environmental Offenders Registry.
Environment and Climate Change Canada administers the Environmental Damages Fund, which is a Government of Canada program that was created in 1995. The Fund follows the polluter pays principle and ensures that court–awarded penalties are used for projects that will benefit the environment.
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