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Lawyer dismisses dying ducks video
News Articles | Calgary Herald | Edmonton Journal | Alexandra Zabjek | March 03, 2010
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ST. ALBERT — Images of bitumen-soaked ducks struggling to flap their wings, including some being preyed upon by ravens, are signs of "showboating" by the government officials who took the photographs, Syncrude's lawyer said Tuesday on the second day of the company's trial for killing hundreds of waterfowl.
The images shown in provincial court included a video of a bitumen-soaked duck trying to flap its wings. In another video, a mallard is shown trying to dive into a thick slick of bitumen on a giant tailings pond, the tar-like substance dripping from its bill.
Provincial wildlife biologist Todd Powell told court the birds normally would have flown away when a human approached in a boat, as he did on April 29, 2008. But they were too thickly coated in bitumen to move, Powell said.
Wildlife officials shot about 12 ducks that day.
“The well-oiled or completely covered water birds … there was no chance they could be saved,” said Powell, who was one of the first provincial officials on the scene after the duck deaths were reported.
Syncrude is on trial for the deaths of more than 1,600 waterfowl that landed on its Aurora tailings pond, a 12-square-kilometre lake of industrial waste left over by the oilsands extraction process. The company has pleaded not guilty to charges under the Alberta Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act and the federal Migratory Birds Convention Act.
Outside court, Syncrude lawyer Robert White called the videos and photographs shown in court “showboating.” In particular, he referred to a sequence of photographs in which a raven is shown attacking and eating a bitumen-covered duck.
“If you would rather take pictures of ravens eating a duck than putting it out of its misery … what motive is there for that?”
He said the photos demonstrated “there was a much greater interest in proving how bad the incident was than looking after the suffering of the bird.”
White conceded the images were a “terrible thing to see.” However, he maintained the duck deaths were a mistake and said Syncrude had not committed an offence.
The company has said a late winter snowstorm prevented the deployment of noise cannons to keep migrating ducks off the Aurora tailings pond. White said that a unique set of circumstances led to the bird deaths that day.
Court heard that Syncrude had reported two bird deaths that resulted from oil exposure in the weeks before hundreds landed on the Aurora pond.
Court also heard a short history of wildlife reports made by Syncrude to the province between 2001 and 2008. The reports showed the company had recorded instances of bird deaths from oil exposure as early as April 4 in the past several years.
Outside court, Crown prosecutor Susan McRory said the timing of previous bird fatalities is a critical part of the case. She said evidence will suggest that “Syncrude ought to have known” such an incident could occur.
In court, White asked Powell, the wildlife biologist, whether a duck that has depleted its energy reserves could still fly. He suggested that “when the energy reserves are depleted so that the needle is on zero,” a bird might not be able to fly.
Powell said even a very tired duck would fly away if approached by a boat, but conceded that might not happen if they had absolutely no energy.
When asked if any autopsies had been conducted to determine the body composition of the dead ducks, Powell said no.
Syncrude could face up to $800,000 in fines and company executives could face six months in jail if convicted of the federal and provincial charges.
The trial continues.
Tagged with: syncrude, ducks, tailings ponds, lawsuit, calgary herald, edmonton journal
