five major court cases to watch in 2016 by National Post Press Reader, December 26, 2015
Jessica Ernst v. Alberta Energy Regulator: An Alberta woman goes after Encana and the provincial government [and the AER for Charter violations while fraudulently trying to cover-up Encana’s law violations] over alleged contamination of groundwater [and well water, household water, tap water, drinking water] as a result of fracking.
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Major court case to watch in 2016 by Amie du Richelieu, December 26, 2015
In its December 26 edition, the National Post includes Jessica Ernst’s case in its list of “five major court cases to watch in 2016”.
“Is the water contaminated” reads the headline.
There is no question that the water is contaminated.
The case is about: Encana did it, and with what? And did Alberta Environment and ERCB do their job to protect its citizens and their drinking water resources while making sure Encana is a responsible corporate body and repair damages done?
Of course Ernst versus Encana is a major court case in 2016! But it should have never gone this far this long…
[Refer also to:
Ernst vs AER before the Supreme Court of Canada, hearing set for January 12, 2016
Factums on Appeal (the federal, BC and Saskatchewan Attorney Generals all dropped out, just before Christmas):
- Appellant Jessica-Ernst.pdf
- Appellant Jessica-Ernst Reply.pdf
- Respondent Alberta-Energy-Regulator.pdf
- Intervener British-Columbia-Civil-Liberties-Association.pdf
- Intervener David-Asper-Centre-for-Constitutional-Rights-et-al.pdf
- Intervener Procureure-générale-du-Québec.pdf
- Intervener Canadian-Civil-Liberties-Association.pdf
2015 11 04: Rosebud Hamlet Petition to the Supreme Court of Canada (with the 9 signature pages removed to reduce file size)
From: Shauna Murphy
Date: Wed, Nov 4, 2015 at 3:35 PM
Subject: Fwd: to fwd
To: Jessica Ernst <email hidden; JavaScript is required>
Cc: email hidden; JavaScript is required, email hidden; JavaScript is required,email hidden; JavaScript is required
Dear Ms.Ernst,
Please find attached a digital copy of the petition from Rosebud residents in support of your case, Ernst vs. AER, Docket 36167, mailed on November 2, 2015 to the Supreme Court of Canada. The signatures have been blocked to protect the residents and their privacy, the Supreme Court of Canada received the original petition complete with signatures.
It is through your case that we have been made aware of the huge threat fracking is to our precious water sources and that our charter rights are under attack. Thank you so much.
Shauna Murphy
PETITION to the Supreme Court of Canada
Re: Jessica Ernst vs Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) Supreme Court of Canada Docket #36167
We, the undersigned residents of the Hamlet of Rosebud, wish to add our voices to an urgent call to allow the AER to be held accountable for any damages incurred to our water source and reservoir as a result of fracking operations by Encana. Beforehand, the AER and Encana failed to consult with us about fracking planned in our drinking water zones. Since then, they have never confessed that Encana fracked our water source, the exact chemicals injected or what dangers residents are living with and the AER continues to let Encana frack in the fresh water zones here.
The only reason we know anything about the illegal fracking here is through Jessica Ernst’s legal case and investigative journalist Andrew Nikiforuk who recently released a book called Slick Water.
For the AER, mandated to protect the public, to be legally immune from violating our charter rights in such an important drinking water contamination case is wrong and must be overturned. …
Click to see the petition & supporting documents with signature pages
Click to see the supporting documents without signature pages
A footnote in the petition supporting documents:
*At the time of the law violations in Ernst vs AER, the AER was the EUB (Energy Utilities Board). In 2007, after it was caught breaking the law and spying on Albertans (both extensively reported in the media), the provincial government changed the regulator’s name to the ERCB (Energy Resources Conservation Board). After the Ernst lawsuit went public, the Alberta government changed the ERCB to a 100% industry-funded corporation, the AER, removed its public interest mandate and appointed Ex-Encana VP Gerard Protti as Chair.
Ernst vs Encana in Top 10 Canadian Judicial Decisions in 2014 of Import to the Oil and Gas Industry
(Refer also below for the actual copy of Encana’s 5-14 frac data on file with the AER)
2005 November 24: EUB Manager Jim Reid judges Jessica Ernst making criminal threats after she asked the EUB for help and filed extensive evidence of Encana’s non-compliance in her community:
The EUB copied their intimidation letter to security and surveillance branch and the RCMP but Ernst was never arrested, fingerprinted or charged. (Only dangerous gases in the community’s drinking water were fingerprinted with results indicating Encana the culprit!)
2004 May 12 EUB Manager Jim Reid’s warning presentation to industry:
2004 March 2: Encana intentionally, illegally, repeatedly fractures two Rosebud drinking water aquifers without consulting affected water users:
Above schematic from HCL’s 2004 investigation into the first water wells that went bad in the Rosebud River valley.
HCL, hired by Encana, avoided key damning Encana data and suggested the unnaturally high nitrogen levels in Rosebud drinking water wells (Encana injected 18 million litres of nitrogen into the community’s drinking water aquifers) was normal because high nitrogen was also found in Calmar water wells over 300 kilometers away (where energy wells are dangerously leaking gases via soils to surface).
Encana perf data on file at Alberta’s publicly accessible groundwater centre database
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WHERE ARE THE FRAUD INVESTIGATORS?
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