Alberta Energy Regulator fines company $456K for providing misleading, false information
Fine against CEPro is for 150 separate issues, decision says
The Alberta Energy Regulator has fined a company $456,000 for submitting false or misleading information in its applications for reclamation approval.
In a decision published Friday, the regulator says CEPro Energy and Environmental Services submitted five certificate applications in 2023 that were incomplete, while two contained false or misleading information.
The decision doesn't specify what information was falsified but says providing misleading information is a major contravention of provincial law.
"Such actions compromise regulatory oversight and prevent the protection of the environment by obstructing the AER's ability to ensure, in this case, that land reclamation is conducted properly and restored to equivalent land use," the decision says.
The regulator is responsible for signing off on the work companies undertake to return land to its original state. If the regulator considers the work complete, it issues reclamation certificates.
"By providing false or misleading information, the AER cannot verify whether a site has been properly reclaimed, increasing the risk that contaminated soil, residual pollutants or improperly restored land may go undetected," the decision reads.
"This can lead to long-term environmental degradation, such as soil erosion, water contamination and habitat destruction, which may negatively impact local ecosystems, wildlife and future land use."
The decision says the fine against CEPro is for 150 separate issues. However, each contravention was not individually assessed for potential harm.
"While potential adverse effects are possible and could be of significance, in this specific case the potential adverse effects are unknown," the decision says.
"Given the type of information provided in the reclamation applications, the potential for adverse effect is classified as 'minor to none."'
The fine includes $75,000 because CEPro didn't previously provide required information on reclamation certificate applications in 2020.
The regulator also says it hasn't been able to contact CEPro officials in nearly two years. The company's known phone number was disconnected and mail sent to one of two addresses was returned as undeliverable.
The regulator said in a statement Friday that CEPro submitted the applications "on behalf of" Everest Canadian Resources Corp.
Everest, a Calgary-based oil and gas company, was ordered to halt operations one month after CEPro submitted the 2023 applications. It was also ordered to give up its assets for failing to operate in an acceptable manner.
