“Plains All American has an atrocious record, and is responsible for releasing at least 6,510 barrels of crude oil into bodies of water in Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and in the Gulf of Mexico,” said Green Party leader Elizabeth May. “Plains Midstream operated its pipeline in close proximity to Alberta communities and the spill is having a devastating effect on residents and the environment. Knowing the company’s record of major spills, what kind of monitoring and oversight of its activities took place in Canada? Were Canadian officials so lax that the company thought it could get away with hiding its past pollution?”

The release of nearly 30,000 barrels of oil into muskeg and wetlands near Peace River, Alberta, took place on April 29, yet the massive spill was not made public until after the May 2 federal election was over.

“The other unanswered question is whether officials tried to keep the Plains Midstream spill out of the news until after the election,” said Ms. May.

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Canada’s first elected Green Member of Parliament, Elizabeth May, today decried the devastation created by the Peace River oil spill and called for an immediate investigation and serious consequences for any corporate negligence.

“There has been a violation of the federal fisheries act, not to mention the negligence of failing to notify the public for five days,” said Ms. May. “We need to ensure a full investigation and serious sanctions. Corporate negligence is not deterred without meaningful consequences.”

Under the Federal Fisheries Act, it is against the law to put any substance into water systems that would be deleterious to fish. An estimated 4.5 million litres or more of oil have been spilled into the Peace River watershed since April 29, the largest spill in Alberta in at least three decades. Members of the Lubicon Cree, whose territory has been impacted by the spill, are reporting health effects in the area of Little Buffalo, approximately 30km from the spill site.  Nearly a week after the spill began, the American-owned oil company –Plains Midstream – and Alberta officials have yet announced a cause for the spill.

The Green Party will press for much greater corporate accountability in the fossil fuels industry. This will include rewards for corporate leadership and penalties that create a real incentive to ensure 100 per cent compliance.

“We have 45-year-old pipelines lines like this one running through some of the most ecologically sensitive parts of our country, and the industry wants to build even more. It’s time to take a step back and reassess,”said Ms. May. “Accidents are too damaging to be acceptable in this industry.”

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