St Marys Cement’s McInnis plant in Port-Daniel-Gascons, Québec has been ordered to pay over $145,000 in fines, fees and other contributions after being found guilty of nine violations of the Environment Quality Act, reported The Canadian Press.
According to the Ministry of the Environment, the McInnis plant failed to comply with the emission standards stipulated in its ministerial permit on three occasions in October 2020 and on three occasions in August 2021. The ministry stated that on these occasions, “emissions from the three smokestacks exceeded various particulate matter discharge standards,” but did not specify the nature of these particles or the extent of the exceedance.
Furthermore, the plant discharged more than 30 mg per liter of suspended solids into the water, exceeding the prescribed standard on three occasions: in November 2020, March 2021 and October 2021.
A statement by the Ministry of the Environment adds that an order was issued to St. Marys Cement in 2022, directing the company to take the necessary measures to prevent any recurrence of these violations. According to the ministry, the company implemented the required corrective actions.
