Environmental Law and the Citizen

• Author: Jamie Benidickson
• Profession: Faculty of Law University of Ottawa
• Pages: 322-338

322

CHA PTER 15

ENVIRONMENTAL LAW

AND THE CITIZEN

The i mportance of individua l commitment to environment al protec-

tion cannot by overemphasized. As Mr. Justice Gonthier of the Supreme

Court of Canada remarked not long ago, “[e]veryone is aware that indi-

vidually and collectively, we are responsible for preserving the natural

environment,”1 and legi slation is replete with such obs ervations as “all

persons should be responsible for the consequences to the environment

of their actions,”2 or with references to “the shared responsibil ity of all

. . . citizens for ensuring the protection, enhancement and w ise use of

the environment through indiv idual actions.”3 It should be understood

that the foundation for these responsibilities is more than exhortation.

In the words of two ex perienced students of environmental law, re-

sponsibilities are conceptual ly integrated with env ironmental rights:

Since the correlative of rights is responsibil ity, if we have these rig hts

we also h ave the responsibilit y to res pect those rights in others and

must be prepared for constrai nts on our ow n conduct. S o there is a

notion of duty or responsibility, in addition to the notion of entitle-

ment.4

1 R. v. Canadian Pacif‌ic Ltd., [1995] 2 S.C.R. 1028 at 1075.

2 Environment Act, S.Y. 1991, c. 5, s. 5(2)(e).

3 Environmental Protecti on and Enhancement Act, S.A . 1992, c. E-13.3, s. 2(f)

[AEPEA].

4 E.L. Hughes & D. Iyalomhe, “Sub stantive Environmenta l Rights in Canada”

(1998–99) 30 Ottawa L. R ev. 240.

Environment al Law and the Citizen 323

How, apart from liability under pollution laws and other general

environmental legislation, law promotes and facilitates environment-

ally responsible indiv idual action is considered in th is chapter prima r-

ily with reference to the automobile, household waste and energy eff‌i-

ciency, and the Environmental Choice program for consumers.

A. THE AUTOMOBILE

In 1994 at lea st one member of almost two-t hirds of Canadian house-

holds commuted to work; for nearly 80 percent of these households,

the motor vehicle wa s the preferred mode of travel, and t he overall

situation was very much the same in 2006.5 Many and var ied environ-

mental effects of the automobile demonstrate linkages between individ-

ual behaviour and environmental quality. The equally varied responses

demonstrate the complexity and the persistence of the challenge of re-

ducing the environmental impact of a way of life.

In terms of impact, now intimately associ ated with greenhouse gas

emissions, automobile traff‌ic makes continuing dem ands on land-use

priorities, leading to the destruction of agricultural and other rural

lands and in general undermining env ironmental amenitie s. The long-

term tran sformation of Toronto’s Don River, as described by t he Royal

Commission on the Future of the Toronto Waterfront, is a dramatic

illustration:

Much of wh at was once a lovely valley is now a transport ation cor-

ridor and a repository for road sa lt, dir ty snow, and illega lly dumped

garbage. The river’s lower stretch is str ait-jacketed in steel and c on-

crete, wh ile chain-lin k fence s d iscourage strolls along its degraded

banks. L ong gone i s its natural mouth, an expansive delta that once

teemed with li fe.6

In responding to the environmental issues raised by automobile

use, Canadian governments utili ze an array of instrument s and incen-

tives. Attempts to address the problem of automobile traff‌ic volume

have included improved public-transit serv ices, ded icated lanes to fa-

vour multipassenger vehicles, and, on occasion, tax measures designed

5 Statistic s Canada, Households an d the Environment, 1994 (Ottaw a: Statistics Can-

ada, 1995) at 14–15 [Households, 1994]; Statistics Can ada, Households and the

Environment, 2006 (Ottawa: St atistics Canad a, 2007) at 26 [Households, 2006].

6 Royal Commi ssion on the Future of the Toronto Waterfront, Regeneration :

Toronto’s Waterfront and the Sustainable City: Final Re port (Toronto: Queen’s

Printer, 1991) at 227 [Regeneration].