Greenhouse Company & President Fined $12,000 for Water Permit Violations

A large commercial greenhouse that produces vegetables uses watering and/or irrigation in its commercial agricultural operation. It has a Permit To Take Water and operates two wells from which water is drawn. When MOE staff contacted the company president to schedule an inspection, he told them the company didn’t have any device installed for well water level monitoring, as required by its permit. During the inspection, ministry staff asked for all water taking records, but the company couldn’t produce such records. As a result, the company and the president pleaded guilty to violating the Ontario Water Resources Act. The court fined the company $10,000 and the president $2,000 [Hillside Hothouse Ltd. and David Mastronardi, Govt. News Release, March 20, 2017].