U.S. energy company on trial in Canada for environmental crimes

Edwards v. DTE Energy

From a press release:

(Sarnia, Ontario) - On Monday, July 7, 2008 the Ontario Court of Justice set
a trial date for the prosecution of DTE Energy Company. The Michigan-based
coal-fired power plant operator faces charges for polluting the St. Clair
River. Judge Austin scheduled an ex parte trial after the accused declined
to appear in Sarnia Court on Monday. This is the first time that a U.S.
company has faced prosecution in Canada for transboundary pollution.

Detroit Edison, a wholly owned subsidiary of DTE, operates the St.
Clair/Belle River coal-fired power plant complex in eastern Michigan.
Monitoring data show that these facilities emit significant amounts of
mercury each year, with more than half landing locally in Canada and the St.
Clair watershed. When the mercury enters the St. Clair River, it spreads
throughout the food chain, harmfully altering fish habitat and rendering
fish unsafe for human consumption, which is a violation of Canadian
fisheries law. Mercury is a dangerous neurotoxin; a single gram of mercury
per year is enough to contaminate a 25-acre lake to the point that fish are
unsafe to eat.

Scott Edwards, the Informant in the case, initiated the private prosecution
in early 2007. Under Canadian law, citizens can use the criminal courts to
prosecute individuals and corporations for violations of the Fisheries Act.
The Fisheries Act is one of the country's most powerful environmental laws,
making it an offence to deposit pollutants into waterways, destroy fish
habitat, or contaminate fish.

"Two years ago I wrote a letter to DTE Energy asking for a meeting to talk
about the company's mercury emissions. The company has never responded to
this request. For two years DTE officials have refused to recognize Canada's
jurisdiction, declining to show up in court time and time again. With a
trial date finally set, I look forward to the opportunity to put all the
facts on the table," says Scott Edwards, Informant in the case known as
Edwards v. DTE Energy.

Scott Edwards is the Legal Director for Waterkeeper Alliance, a global
coalition of 180 grassroots environmental groups, and an authority on
mercury issues. He is being aided by three other affiliates of Waterkeeper
Alliance, Mark Mattson, Doug Chapman and Doug Martz. Mattson is lead
investigator and the Lake Ontario Waterkeeper. Doug Chapman is lead counsel
and the Fraser Riverkeeper, based in Vancouver. Martz is the St. Clair
Channelkeeper.

The trial is set to begin February 2, 2009 in Sarnia court.