Brookfield Lumber Company v. Nova Scotia (Minister of the Environment), 1995 CanLII 4469 (NS SC)

This case was heard in the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia.

The Brookfield Lumber Company ("Brookfield") kept a large pile of bark on its property. In August 1994 the Minister of Environment notified Brookfield that the pile had created leachate that had in turn contaminated a nearby domestic well. The Department of Environment asked Brookfield to devise a plan to address the problem and report back to the Minister. By March 1995, the Minister had not yet received a report, and on March 2, the Minister issued an Order stipulating that a professional consultant must be brought in to assess the site. Brookfield Lumber Company did not hire a consult to conduct a site assessment, and it appealed to the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia for a stay of execution of the Ministerial Order.

After considering the issues, the Court held that there were no grounds on which to interfere with the Ministerial Order.

View the Decision on CanLII: https://www.canlii.org/en/ns/nssc/doc/1995/1995canlii4469/1995canlii4469.html

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