Land Reclamation Legislation in Alberta
Alberta was the first province in Canada to legislate land
reclamation. Through the mid 1950s and early 1960s, Alberta's
landscape was dotted with unreclaimed land sites, abandoned oil and gas well sites
and coal mines. If action had not been taken, the number of these
sites would have increased. In 1963, the provincial government
passed the Surface Reclamation Act to ensure that reasonable reclamation
standards were the main concern. The Land Conservation and
Reclamation Council (LCRC) were the group responsible for enforcing the
department standards. In 1973, the concept of conservation was
introduced, bringing about new legislation in the form of the Land
Surface Conservation and Reclamation Act. With this new Act, large
operations such as coal mines, oil sands sites, pipelines and sand and
gravel pits were regulated. The Act required operators to submit
their plans for conservation and reclamation and obtain approval from the
LCRC prior to the development of a project.
In 1978, the Act was further amended to legally require
operators to use conservation methods such as stripping topsoil and
storing it separately for later replacement. In 1993, the Environmental Protection and Enhancement
Act and the Conservation and Reclamation Regulation were enacted to
replace the Land Surface Conservation and Reclamation Act. The
Departments of Environment and
Agriculture, Food and Rural Development
monitor project development, construction, operations, changes to plans
and abandonment. Before a company is free from responsibility for
a land disturbance, their conservation and reclamation efforts are given
a final inspection. Those who "pass" are issued a certificate
indicating that their site meets or exceeds standards. Those who
do not qualify for this certificate must modify their work and efforts
until approved standards are met.
A program was in place from 1978 to 1994 to clean up
sites on municipal and crown lands that were disturbed and abandoned
prior to the legislation. The Land Reclamation Division of Alberta
Environment managed to program, which included research so that
companies had the best means to return the land to a useful state.
Support for this work was provided through the Heritage Savings Trust
Fund.
For more information regarding land reclamation and
conservation in Alberta, contact the Land
Management office at Alberta Environment or visit the Alberta
Environment website!
Reprinted from Focus On Land Reclamation (1999) with permission of
Alberta Environment.
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