Last week, the Ontario Court of Appeal denied leave to appeal from the Divisional Court's decision in Hamilton Beach Brands Canada, Inc. v Ministry of the Environment.1

We previously reported that the Divisional Court upheld the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks ("MECP") Director's jurisdiction to issue Orders requiring off-site environmental investigation.

The upshot of Hamilton Beach is that Ontario Environmental Protection Act, s. 18 no-fault Orders requiring off-site environmental investigation are permitted even where the Orderee did not have any association with the polluting activity aside from the Orderee's current or former ownership and/or occupation of the contaminated source property.

Footnotes

1 14 CELR (4th) 137 (Ont ERT) aff'd 2018 ONSC 5010 (Div Ct); Decision issued September 4, 2018. 

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.