| Montreal, 7/05/2003 – The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) has received a citizen submission asserting that Canada is failing to effectively enforce the Canadian Environmental Protection Act and the federal Fisheries Act against Ontario Power Generation's (OPG) coal-fired power plants.
The attorneys general of the states of New York, Connecticut and Rhode Island, along with 48 Canadian and United States nongovernmental organizations and two towns in New York State, filed the submission (SEM-03-001) with the CEC on 1 May 2003.
The submitters assert that emissions of mercury, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides from OPG's coal-powered facilities pollute the air and water downwind, in eastern Canada and northeastern United States. They assert that Canada is failing to effectively enforce sections 166 and 176 of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, which, they claim, obligate the Minister of the Environment to take action to address Canadian sources of pollution that he has reason to believe are causing air or water pollution in the United States. They also assert that Canada is failing to effectively enforce section 36(3) of the Fisheries Act against the OPG facilities. Section 36(3) prohibits the deposit of a deleterious substance into water frequented by fish or in any place under any conditions where the substance may enter such water.
The citizen submissions mechanism of the CEC enables the public to play a whistle-blower role on matters of environmental law enforcement. Under Article 14 of the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC), any person or nongovernmental organization may submit a claim alleging that a NAFTA partner has failed to effectively enforce its environmental law. Following a review of the submission, the CEC may investigate the matter and pursue a factual record of its findings.
Please visit the Citizen Submission on Enforcement Matters page for more information. | 
