Harper Grey LLP

Environmental law issues have significant implications for businesses. They can affect the way you operate, the products you make, the way you make them, the materials you use, the waste you discard. They can influence the property you buy or sell, develop or lease. They can entangle your business in a maze of competing federal, provincial and municipal laws and regulations, consume your human resources with paper work, subject you to costly project delays and involve you in tough litigation.

The environmental law group at Harper Grey LLP can help you develop proactive and pragmatic solutions to protect your business and your projects in the most complex of cases. We have a reputable background helping land owners, commercial operators, and developers navigate the mine field of contaminated sites legislation.

We assist buyers and sellers, lenders and borrowers, landlords and lessees, municipalities and taxpayers with the environmental issues. Our job is to prevent environmental problems, and to resolve them when they arise. Our lawyers have argued many of the leading cases in the Superior Courts of British Columbia and before the Environmental Appeal Board. We are experienced in interpreting the requirements of environmental legislation, including the new Environmental Management Act, Contaminated Sites Regulation, Soil Conservation Act and the Transportation of Hazardous Goods Act.

For more information on our environmental law services, please contact Richard Bereti, practice group chair at 604.895.2816 or via email at rbereti@harpergrey.com

We help clients with environmental law issues such as:

Contaminated sites
Remediation orders
Environmental appeals and litigation
Corporate transactions
Commercial real estate transactions
Landlord and tenant issues
Indemnities and releases
Urban development
Brownfields
Production of contaminants
Municipal issues
Industrial waste management
Creditor liability
Regulatory compliance
Environmental assessments
Offences and prosecutions
Transportation of hazardous goods
Sick building syndrome
Endangered species and species at risk
Expropriation issues

Representative work:

■Helping environmental consultants and other experts with various aspects of the remediation of contaminated sites, from investigation and risk assessment, through implementation of remedial measures
■Advising clients on all aspects of environmental law including regulatory and common law obligations arising from contamination of land, water and air.
■Creating strategies to assess and minimize environmental risk, such as releases and indemnities
■Advising businesses with regard to expropriation of contaminated sites
■Preparation of expert witnesses regarding soil, surface water, groundwater, drinking water, and air contamination, as well as noise, human health and wildlife/habitat issues
■Mediation, arbitration, litigation and representation before the Environmental Appeal Board and other regulatory bodies
■Drafting and providing advice regarding contracts, leases, indemnities, and releases
Industry Experience:

Environmental Consultants
Engineers & Architects
Construction
Oil & Gas
Retail Gas Stations
Real Estate Developers
Franchisees/Franchisors

Insurance
Small Business
Oil Tank Removal
Rail and other transportation
Municipalities
Mining
Commercial and Residential Property Owners