Environmental Law
Prowse Barrette LLP has a long history of assisting individuals and groups, including First Nations,
Environmental Law
Prowse Barrette LLP has a long history of assisting individuals and groups, including First Nations, to intervene in regulatory hearings to assist with environmental matters. In a resource-rich province such as Alberta, individuals or groups often find themselves against large corporations or government agencies whose projects will have an impact on surrounding land, air or water. Detailed environmental laws often relate to issues such as pollution of soil, global warming, depletion of oil, coal and clean water.
Our lawyers are well-equipped with profound knowledge to protect human health, the natural environment and national development interests. We assist landowners, business owners and engineering professionals in dealing with claims arising from contamination, pollution or design and construction.
Our Areas of Focus include:
Disputes and Claims
We manage cases related to Contaminated Land Claims, Landfill / Sewage Lagoon Disputes, Interventions on behalf of individuals / interested groups in ERCB, NRCB and other regulatory applications, hearings, assessments and/or approval processes, and client defence in quasi-criminal prosecutions.
Pollution Control
Our lawyers know the legalities surrounding pollution control and ensure that our client’s operations are conducted on the right side of the law.
Violations of Environmental Law
Violations of environmental laws are usually handled in a civil manner. However, with the imposition of fines and civil damages to injured parties, an emerging trend is spreading throughout the field of environmental law, in favour of the enactment of state laws criminalizing environmentally destructive behaviour. This can lead to prison time for those who violate property use in protected environments.
Areas that Affect Environmental Law
We educate our clients on various environmental laws that also have relevance to product design in the form of emissions control, environmentally friendly materials, and energy-efficient electronic devices. Our lawyers are fully aware of laws related to incentives for activities intended to benefit the environment, like fuel-efficient vehicles and the installation of solar panels.
Environmental Litigation
Without hampering our clients’ business operations, our lawyers have built an impressive reputation in resolving environmental disputes. We have always favoured our clients’ interests as well as maintained the environmental interests tactfully. To drive cost-effective results, our consistent approach is to develop litigation strategies keeping in mind the wide range of diversified environmental cases. We employ every effort to resolve cases with more cost-effective mediation and settlement wherever possible.
Regulatory Hearings / Compliance
We have the experience and knowledge to assist and educate clients to navigate through complex regulatory processes, including assembling the right experts to critically analyze technical application fields. We also have the understanding and expertise to ensure our Aboriginal clients’ constitutional treaty rights are protected when dealing with industry and government.
