Regulatory history of Alberta's industrial land conservation and reclamation program

Powter, C. B., Chymko, N. R., Dinwoodie, G., Howat, D., Janz, A., Puhlmann, R., Richens, T., Watson, D., Sinton, H., Ball, J. K., Etmanski, A., Patterson, D. B., Brocke, L. K. and Dyer, R. 2012. Regulatory history of Alberta's industrial land conservation and reclamation program. Can. J. Soil Sci. 92: 39-51. Alberta first legislated the requirement to reclaim land disturbed by industrial activities in 1963 with the enactment of the Surface Reclamation Act. In 1973 the Land Surface Conservation and Reclamation Act introduced the concept of conservation and added new regulated industries and an approvals process. In 1993 the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act linked reclamation and remediation in a single Act. Alberta's industrial land conservation and reclamation program developed over 48 yr from an initial focus on surface debris removal and safety to increasing emphasis on returning ecological function and minimizing cumulative effects. The program has been influenced by various factors, includ...