The nation's highest court heard the contentious case on Thursday, centred on the failure of Redwater Energy, a junior oil and gas company that slipped into receivership in 2015 in the wake of the oil price collapse. But now the Supreme Court will determine if the country's bankruptcy laws are in conflict with Alberta's regulatory regime — and if those federal laws are paramount to the province's environmental rules. Saskatchewan, British Columbia and Ontario, in submissions to the court, contend that federal bankruptcy laws do not allow a bankrupt company to avoid its environmental remediation obligations. There are thousands of oil and gas wells across the province, like these pumpjacks at work pumping crude oil near Halkirk, Alta. "We have to have a consistent bankruptcy practice across all of the provinces of Canada, not just Alberta," he said outside court.

Source: CBC News February 15, 2018 21:00 UTC