CN pleads guilty to environmental offenses

The Montreal-based Class I railway has been ordered to pay a federal fine of $2.5 million Canadian (U.S. $1.9 million) and a provincial fine of C$125,000 in relation to a diesel fuel discharge on the North Saskatchewan River in April 2015.    Canadian National Railway Co. (CN) has been fined for a diesel fuel discharge on the North Saskatchewan River that took place in April 2015, according to a statement from Environment and Climate Change Canada.
   The substance was traced over eight kilometers through a storm drain system in Edmonton, the capital of Canada’s Alberta province, to an engine fueling station at CN’s Bissell Yard.
   The oil-water separator and fuel storage system at Bissell Yard was not compliant with a number of requirements under the Storage Tank Systems for Petroleum and Allied Petroleum Products Regulations, causing about 90 liters of diesel to be released to the storm sewer, Environment and Climate Change Canada said.
   CN pleaded guilty in the Provincial Court of Alberta last Thursday to one offense under the Fisheries Act and three offenses under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999.
   Consequently, CN has been ordered to pay a federal fine of $2.5 million Canadian (U.S. $1.9 million), which will be directed to the Environmental Damages Fund. On May 25, a fine of C$125,000 was also levied against the company in relation to the provincial charges laid by Alberta Environment and Parks, under the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act.
   “CN is committed to operating safely and in an environmentally responsible way,” CN spokesperson Kate Fenske said of the ruling. “We regret this unfortunate incident. We have already made changes to our operations to avoid a reoccurrence.”