Lohnes v. Corkum, 1981 CanLII 2694 (NS CA)

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

Mr. Corkum alleged that Mr. Lohnes had contaminated his water supply, making it unfit to drink. At trial, the Court made factual findings that Mr. Corkum’s well was fed by a nearby brook and two other sources. Water from the brook would enter the well through rock fissures, making Mr. Corkum’s water source a percolating water source. The Court also held that logging operations at another point along the brook had been carried out with “negligent disregard” for the brook, and that the brook, at Mr. Corkum’s well, had been polluted temporarily as a result.

When Mr. Lohnes appealed to the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal, the Court affirmed the lower court’s decision. It held that when multiple parties have riparian rights to the same water source, those rights give every party the freedom to use as much of the source as they can, but they do not make it lawful for any of the parties to contaminate the source.

View the Decision on CanLII: https://www.canlii.org/en/ns/nsca/doc/1981/1981canlii2694/1981canlii2694.html

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