Regulator sells out community safety for pennies on the dollar, as Imperial Oil gets 95 per cent “discount” on oil sands spill fine
Keepers of the Water, alongside a coalition of Indigenous Nations, health, environmental, and community organizations, is calling on the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) to reconsider its decision to issue a paltry $50,000 fine to Imperial Oil for a 263-day toxic tailings spill at its Kearl Oil Sands Mine. This decision, representing a mere fraction of what the AER could have imposed, disregards the severity of the incident and the regulator’s responsibility to enforce its own laws.
Keepers of the Water are First Nations, Métis, Inuit, environmental groups, concerned citizens, and communities working together for the protection of water, air, land, and all living things within the Arctic Ocean Drainage Basin. Keepers of the Water understand that clean, fresh water is invaluable to life and the environment for a sustainable, balanced, and just future for the survival of all of the life we share on this incredible planet.
On November 28, 2024, Ecojustice submitted a request for reconsideration on behalf of Keepers of the Water, the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation, and other coalition members including the Council of Canadians Edmonton Chapter, the Alberta Wilderness Association, Environmental Defence Canada, and the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, demanding the Regulator to impose a fine that reflects the severity of the incident and is in accordance with its own laws.
While the Alberta Energy Regulator has the ability, and responsibility, to hold companies that break the law to account, it has repeatedly demonstrated an unwillingness to enforce its own laws when it comes to industry rulebreakers — leaving Albertans to bear the costs and clean up the mess.
The unreasonably low $50,000 penalty, which took the Regulator more than two years to issue, represents just 0.004 per cent of Imperial’s $1.13 billion Q2 profits from 2024. Furthermore, the AER’s claims of imposing a fine “representing the maximum base penalty table amount permissible under the regulation” in this case is downright false: the law gives them authority to issue Imperial Oil a much larger fine of at least $1.3 million in this case, but they opted not to. This discretionary decision calls into question the AER’s commitment to fulfilling its duty to protect the public and hold industry accountable.
The Regulator’s weak response to such a significant spill does little to deter Imperial Oil, or other large corporations, from future violations that threaten both human and environmental health. The groups point to other federally regulated bodies, including examples in Manitoba and Alberta, that have imposed significantly higher fines for similar violations, demonstrating that more robust enforcement is possible. The Regulator’s leniency and readiness to overlook industry violations also undermines public trust and reflects a recurring pattern of failing to hold polluters accountable.
By repeatedly disregarding its own responsibility, the AER is risking the health and safety of Albertans, while big polluters like Imperial Oil continue to operate, and profit, unscathed. Through its lax enforcement against oil sands operators and its pattern of prioritizing industry at the expense of human and environmental health, the AER shows a systemic failure to protect communities and ecosystems.
Groups highlight that the Regulator has the sole discretion to reconsider the penalty, correct its $1.3M mistake, and hold Imperial Oil accountable for the spill’s damages.
Representatives from the groups said the following:
Jesse Cardinal, Executive Director at Keepers of the Water said: “There is a lot of contention in regard to the AER — they are continuously approving extractive industry projects at a rate that is not sustainable and offering little care to the oversight of environmental protection, which is also their job. Companies need to be held to the highest standard, and when a massive spill into a watershed that flows into international waters occurs, they should be fined to the highest amount possible.”
Zachary Biech, lawyer at Ecojustice said: “Albertans expect the AER to know better, and to do better. Instead, the Regulator has – once again – chosen to protect industry dollars over the health and safety of Albertan communities and ecosystems. This penalty is an invitation for other oil giants to come in and pollute Alberta, free of charge or consequence, and to get rich while they do it.”
Phillip Meintzer, conservation specialist at Alberta Wilderness Association said: “The AER’s decision to give Imperial a discount on this penalty is yet another example of the Regulator putting the interests of oil sands executives first, at the expense of ecosystems, Indigenous Peoples, and all Albertans. It highlights how the regulator has become captured by the very industry it is responsible for regulating.”
Aliénor Rougeot, senior program manager at Environmental Defence Canada said: “The AER must address its failure and immediately impose the full penalty Imperial Oil owes. Anything less than that would signal to oil companies that breaking Alberta’s environmental laws comes with little consequence.”
Dr. Joe Vipond, an emergency physician and Past President of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment said: “The Alberta Energy Regulator’s paltry $50,000 fine for Imperial Oil’s 263-day toxic tailings spill is not just a slap on the wrist, it’s a complete abdication of responsibility to protect health and safety. This decision sends a dangerous message that polluters can operate with impunity in this province, putting the health of Indigenous peoples, local communities and ecosystems at risk. As physicians, we call on the AER to reconsider this decision and impose a fine that truly reflects the severity of the incident, demonstrating that the health of Albertans and our environment is not for sale.”
Peter Loney, Council of Canadians, Edmonton Chapter said: “The fine of $50,000, a mere pittance for a company as large as Imperial Oil, does nothing to encourage environmental responsibility nor does it deter unsafe conduct that puts local indigenous communities at risk.”
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