The federal Fisheries Act, one of Canada’s strongest pieces of environmental legislation, provides legislative authority for management and regulation of fisheries (in salt and fresh waters), including access, control over conditions of harvesting, and enforcing regulations. The Fisheries Act provides for the protection of fish habitat and the prevention of pollution of Canadian fishery waters. In particular, forestry companies must comply with section 35 of the Fisheries Act, which states:

35.	(1) No person shall carry on any work or undertaking that results in the harmful alteration, disruption or destruction of fish habitat.

(2) No person contravenes subsection (1) by causing the alteration, disruption or destruction of fish habitat by any means or under any conditions authorized by the Minister or under regulations made by the Governor in Council under this Act.

Failure to comply with subsection 35(1) of the Fisheries Act is an offence subject to subsection 40 of the Act, which states:

40.

(1) Every person who contravenes subsection 35(1) is guilty of (a) an offence punishable on summary conviction and liable, for a first offence, to a fine not exceeding three hundred thousand dollars and, for any subsequent offence, to a fine not exceeding three hundred thousand dollars or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to both; or (b) an indictable offence and liable, for a first offence, to a fine not exceeding one million dollars and, for any subsequent offence, to a fine not exceeding one million dollars or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years, or to both.