Released on June 18, 2009
Two men have been fined a total of $10,400 in Wakaw provincial court for the unauthorized alteration of Lepine Creek.
Alain Schulzke of Saskatoon and Gerald Osze of Wakaw were each convicted of one count under The Environmental Management and Protection Act for adding gravel in or to the bed, bank or boundary of a creek without a permit. Schulzke had also previously been issued an Environmental Protection Order to clean up the altered site, with which he had complied.
The charges were laid as the result of a Turn In Poachers (TIP) call to the Ministry of Environment in April 2008. An investigation found that Schulzke had contracted Osze to have trees removed and gravel added to a road along a creek so he could move a cabin into a lakefront lot at Wakaw Lake. The work was done without the proper environmental authorization and permits.
"It is important that property owners around lakes find a way to carry out development without damaging our environment," Ministry of Environment's Compliance and Field Services Executive Director Kevin Callele said. "If a person is conducting work in and around water, the best thing for them to do is contact their nearest Ministry of Environment office about what they would like to do."
A conviction for modifying a creek or shoreline without the proper permits carries a maximum fine of $1 million.
Anyone who is aware of or who suspects environmental, fisheries or wildlife violations is encouraged to report them to the nearest Ministry of Environment office or to call the province's toll-free TIP line at 1-800-667-7561 or #5555 for SaskTel cell phone subscribers.
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For more information, contact:
Gary Provencher
Environment
Saskatoon
Phone: 306-933-7928
Jeanette Krayetski
Environment
Prince Albert
Phone: 306-953-2691