Have your say: Public consultation on amendments to Contraventions Regulations now open!
Rouge National Urban Park
About
Parks Canada is working to make the enforcement of regulations in Rouge National Urban Park more efficient and is seeking public feedback on proposed amendments to the Contraventions Regulations under section 8 of the Contraventions Act. Proposed amendments would add an option to prosecute certain offences in the Rouge National Urban Park Act through a ticketing procedure.
Currently, law enforcement wardens have the option to deliver warnings or prosecute offences through the federal Criminal Code summary procedure. This can be a lengthy and costly process for not only the offender, but also for the government and justice system. A ticketing procedure presents a more reasonable approach to enforcement that allows a law enforcement warden to issue a ticket rather than a criminal charge for less serious offences. An offender may alternatively opt to challenge the fine in the provincial court of the jurisdiction where the offence was committed.
Have your say!
The chart below lists the existing offences found in the Rouge National Urban Park Act that Parks Canada intends to add to the Contraventions Regime, making them offences for which a ticket may be issued at a law enforcement warden’s discretion. Some of these offences include hunting, vandalism, dumping, and the damage or removal of cultural or natural resources.
Proposed fines are also included. However, it should be noted that if Parks Canada chooses to enforce an offence either through the Criminal Code summary procedure or indictment in some cases (i.e., not through the Contraventions Regime), the offender may be issued a higher penalty. Maximum penalties are outlined in section 33 of the Rouge National Urban Park Act.
| Proposed existing Offences in the Rouge National Urban Park Act to be designated as contraventions |
Proposed Fine |
|---|---|
| 17 (1) If a substance that is capable of degrading the natural environment, injuring natural or cultural resources or endangering human health is discharged or deposited in the Park, any person who has charge, management or control of the substance and any person who caused or contributed to the discharge or deposit must take reasonable measures to prevent any degradation of the natural environment and any danger to natural or cultural resources or to human health that may result from the discharge or deposit. | $750 |
| 18 (2) Except as permitted under this Act, it is prohibited to | |
|
a) traffic in a wild animal, a plant, a part of a plant, any other naturally occurring object or product of natural phenomena or a cultural, historical or archaeological resource, whether it is in the Park or has been removed from it; |
$750 |
|
b) hunting a wild animal in the Park; |
$500 |
|
c) remove a wild animal, a plant, a part of a plant or any other naturally occurring object or product of natural phenomena from the Park; |
$350 |
|
d) possess a wild animal, a plant, a part of a plant or any other naturally occurring object or product of natural phenomena that is in the Park or that has been removed from it; |
$350 |
|
e) disturb, harm or destroy a wild animal or disturb, damage or destroy a plant, a part of a plant or any other naturally occurring object or product of natural phenomena that is in the Park or that has been removed from it; |
$350 |
|
f) harvest timber in the Park; |
$500 |
|
g) explore for minerals, oil or gas, or conduct an extractive activity, including mining, in the Park; |
$750 |
|
h) dump or dispose of any substance in the Park; |
$600 |
|
i) disturb a cultural, historical or archaeological resource in the Park, remove one from it or, whether it is in the Park or has been removed from it, damage, alter, destroy or possess one; |
$500 |
|
j) remove a park facility or other park property from the Park or, whether it is in the Park or has been removed from it, damage, alter or destroy a park facility or other park property. |
$300 |
Submit your comments
Parks Canada invites you to comment on proposed amendments to the Contraventions Regulations. Interested parties and members of the public can submit comments by sending an email to consultations-rouge@pc.gc.ca or by mail to:
Parks Canada
105 Guildwood Parkway
PO Box 11024
Toronto, Ontario M1E 1N0
The comment period has been extended to December 10, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. EST.
Thank you for participating! Parks Canada will take all feedback received into consideration in its evaluation of the proposed amendments to the Contraventions Regulations.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Contraventions Regime?
In October 1992, Parliament passed the Contraventions Act to establish an alternative to the summary conviction procedure set out in Part XXVII of the Criminal Code for prosecuting certain federal offences. The Contraventions Regulations made under the Contraventions Act identify federal offences that are designated as contraventions, establish a short-form description and set an applicable fine for each of them. The Contraventions Regulations are an essential element for the pursuit of the following three objectives underlying the Act:
- to decriminalize certain federal offences
- to ease the courts’ workload
- to improve the enforcement of federal legislation
How did you determine the fines?
Fine amounts are based on an analysis of similar fines for similar offences within the Federal government and in other jurisdictions. The goal is to set a fine amount that will promote compliance but is not too high that it is considered unreasonable for offences of a minor nature.
How does ticketing work?
Tickets are an enforcement measure that may be issued at the discretion of a law enforcement warden for federal offences of a minor nature. Parks Canada law enforcement wardens can only issue tickets for existing offences under the Rouge National Urban Park Act that are designated under the Contraventions Regulations.
An offender can choose to pay a fine voluntarily or contest the fine in the provincial court of the jurisdiction where the offence was committed. Offenders opting to pay the fine amount indicated on the ticket will not incur a criminal record for the offence nor face the possibility of imprisonment.
Using tickets provides an overall less costly and less time-consuming alternative to the federal criminal summary procedure to deal with individuals or companies that violate legislation under the Rouge National Urban Park Act.
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