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Environment Canada lays 200 Fisheries Act charges against ArcelorMittal

OTTAWA — Environment and Climate Change Canada has laid 200 charges against mining company ArcelorMittal Canada for alleged violations of the Fisheries Act.
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Giant trucks carry iron ore on Friday, May 20, 2011 in Fermont, Que. Environment and Climate Change Canada has laid 200 charges against mining company ArcelorMittal Canada for allegedly violating the Fisheries Act. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot

OTTAWA — Environment and Climate Change Canada has laid 200 charges against mining company ArcelorMittal Canada for alleged violations of the Fisheries Act.

In a news release, the government says the charges stem from alleged illegal dumping by the company into fish-bearing waterways in Quebec between 2014 and 2022.

The dumping is alleged to have happened at the Fire Lake Mine and at the Mont-Wright mining complex, the largest open-pit iron mine in Canada.

Environment Canada says the waterways in question flow into the Moisie River, which is a provincially administered aquatic reserve and one of the major salmon rivers in North America.

This isn't the first time the company has faced environmental charges in Canada.

In 2014, its subsidiary was fined $390,000 after pleading guilty to six air quality standards charges related to its former coke plant in Hamilton, Ont.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 2, 2025.

Canadian Press Staff, The Canadian Press