Husky Energy officials are set to appear in court this week to face charges stemming from a 225,000-litre oil spill in Saskatchewan nearly two years ago.
The company is facing nine federal charges and one charge under Saskatchewan’s Environmental Management and Protection Act in relation to the spill.
The federal charges, laid March 22, follow a 19-month investigation, according to Environment and Climate Change Canada.
Specifics of the federal offences, as well as information on possible fines or penalties, were not provided by the ministry, but Husky could be fined up to $1 million for the provincial charge. The Saskatchewan charge alleges the company did “unlawfully permit the discharge of a substance to the environment that caused an adverse effect.”
The pipeline leaked 225,000 litres of heavy oil mixed with diluent onto a riverbank near Maidstone, Sask., in July 2016. About 40 per cent of the spill reached the North Saskatchewan River.
The oil plume flowed hundreds of kilometres downstream and forced the cities of North Battleford, Prince Albert and Melfort to shut off their water intakes for almost two months.
Husky's own investigation determined the pipeline buckled because of ground movement. The company has yet to comment on the charges, but has previously said it accepts full responsibility and is using what it learned to improve operations.
Husky is scheduled to appear in Lloydminster Provincial Court on March 29.
--- with files from The Canadian Press
