By The Canadian Press

FortisAlberta fined for dangerous spill that occured in the fall of 2015

Aug 16, 2018 | 12:42 PM

HINTON, Alta. – The electrical utility FortisAlberta has been fined $300,000 for a spill of potentially dangerous polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, in west-central Alberta nearly three years ago.

Environment and Climate Change Canada says in a release that a provincial court judge ordered the fine Wednesday after the company pleaded guilty to two charges of violating federal regulations.

The department says the charges relate, in part, to FortisAlberta’s failure to quickly notify an enforcement officer or other designated person of the release.

Court heard that on May 12, 2016, the utility reported a spill at one of its transformers in Hinton, but an investigation showed the company had discovered the problem on Oct. 19 of the previous year.

Test results showed that about 325 litres of oil containing PCBs was released into the environment.

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The department says FortisAlberta will be added to the Environmental Offenders Registry, which contains information on convictions of corporations under certain federal environmental laws.