Landfill Investigation Case Update

April 26, 2006: Engineers found guilty after Riverkeeper investigates

Provincial Court Judge Yvette Finn this morning found the engineering consultants (Gemtec) guilty of breaching the Fisheries Act in relation to their involvement in the Moncton landfill closure project. Petitcodiac Riverkeeper conducted the initial investigation into this matter in the summer of 2000 and Environment Canada prosecuted the case. The attached 25 page long judgment gives a good background on the case and the utilization of section 36.3 of the Fisheries Act. The decision represents the first Canadian conviction under the Fisheries Act against an Engineering Firm.

January 13, 2004: The Attorney General of Canada has filed an appeal before the Provincial Court of Queen's Bench in Moncton yesterday in the matter between the Crown and GEMTEC Ltd. and Robert Lutes, in relation to the Moncton landfill case. News Release

December 18, 2003: The City of Moncton has filed a draft plan to resolve the leachate problem at their former landfill, in compliance with the court order.

Petitcodiac Riverkeeper is pleased with the City's commitment to resolving the leachate problem at the Moncton landfill. "We do have some concerns about the method proposed for treating the leachate (i.e. marsh filter vs. collection system), and will be following up with the City and the appropriate regulatory agencies to ensure that the option chosen does not result in continued harm to the river environment," said Riverkeeper Daniel LeBlanc upon reviewing the draft plan. Read the City of Moncton's press release

December 12, 2003: Provincial Court Judge Yvette Finn this morning granted a Defendant's motion to have their case dismissed in the matter involving GEMTEC and Robert G. Lutes in relation to the Moncton landfill case. The Crown's request to reopen the case was also denied, which signals the end of this trial. The Crown has 30 days to appeal the decision. News Release

November 10, 2003: The ruling on a motion brought forth last October 6 by the defense and which could see the case against Gemtec Ltd. and Mr. Robert Lutes dismissed, will be rendered by Judge Finn next December 12 at 11 am.

October 8, 2003: Following a motion introduced by defence lawyer Robert Kenny, provincial court Judge Yvette Finn will have to decide whether charges in the trial against the environmental consulting firm Gemtec Ltd. and its employee Robert Lutes will be dismissed or if the trial is to resume normally.The two parties have until October 31 to submit written arguments on the motion introduced by Mr. Kenny after which a date will be set on November 10 by Judge Finn to announce whether the trial goes ahead or not. News Release

October 6, 2003: Judge Yvette Finn will rule tomorrow morning at 9:30 a.m. on a Defence motion to throw out the case against Gemtec. Should Judge Finn not rule in favour of the motion, the trial will proceed with the Defence calling on its witnesses, which may include senior staff from the New Brunswick Department of the Environment.

September 22, 2003: A provincial court judge ordered the City to pay a fine of $10,000, to contribute $20,000 to the Jonathan Creek Restoration Committee, and to contribute $5,000 to the federal government's Environmental Damages Fund. As well, the judge ordered the municipality to arrange and pay for all work needed to ensure that the landfill meets requirements of the federal Fisheries Act. It is estimated that remediation costs could be as high as $700,000. The City must monitor the landfill and report regularly to Environment Canada on test results. If there are any continuing or new problems, the municipality must then immediately address them. News Release

January 13, 2003: The date for the beginning of the trial is set for the week of September 22nd, 2003. According to the Crown Prosecutor, the trial is expected to last three weeks. An outside judge, most probably from the City of Saint John, will be appointed to preside over the trial. In accepting the date of September, Judge Anne Dugas-Horsman stated for the record that earlier dates were available for this trial.

December 17, 2002: The four accused parties make their fourth appearance in Provincial Court in Moncton and all plead "not guilty" to the Fisheries Act charges. The date of January 13, 2003, at 9:30 a.m., is set aside to determine the date of the trial.

September 12, 2002: The four parties charged make their third appearance in Provincial Court in Moncton and ask for an adjournment. A third adjournment is granted until December 17th 2002 at 9:30 a.m. In granting the adjournment, Judge Anne Dugas-Horsman said: "This matter has been before the courts since April and we still haven't heard a plea. In December, it will have to be extraordinary circumstances for the courts not to hear a plea, I'll tell you that."

May 24, 2002: The four parties charged make their second appearance in Provincial Court in Moncton and ask for an adjournment. Adjournment granted until September 12th 2002 at 9:30 a.m.

April 3, 2002: The four parties charged make their first appearance in Provincial Court in Moncton and ask for an adjournment. Adjournment granted until May 24th 2002 at 9:30 a.m.

February 7, 2002: News Release.

February 4, 2002: Four charges laid by Environment Canada under the federal Fisheries Act relating to toxic leachate allegedly being discharged into a tributary of the Petitcodiac River (Jonathan Creek) from a decommissioned landfill owned by the City of Moncton. The four parties charged are asked to make their first appearance in Provincial Court in Moncton on April 3rd, 2002 at 9:30 a.m.