Professional Engineer and the Laws
Purpose of Assignment:Engineers must comply with various legislations and statutes and regulations in theperformance of their responsibilities. The scope of law is rather broad and engineers shouldhave a breadth of understanding of the legal system in which they operate and have sufficientknowledge of the many relevant statutes that are relevant to the professional engineer. It isimportant that the engineer complies with federal and provincial statutes of relevance to his/herpractice and that the engineer is aware of amendments and new statutes. A “statue” is acodification of the law as the legislature determines at the time of enactment; it may becodification of existing common law or the enactment of new law. Many statutes are relevant tothe professional engineer. Some statues provide for regulations as a further source of law. TheProfessional Engineers Act of Ontario (and similar statutes and common-law of otherprovinces), for example, provides that an elected and appointed council may prescribe thescope and conduct of examinations of candidates for registration, and may regulate othermatters, such as the designation of specialists. When made in accordance with an authorizingstatute, regulations are another source of law.A good relevant study is the case of the “Walkerton’s Inquiry”. In May 2000, Walkerton’s drinkingwater system became contaminated with deadly bacteria. Seven people died, and more than2,300 became ill. The community was devastated. The losses were enormous. There werewidespread feelings of frustration, anger, and insecurity. The tragedy triggered alarm about thesafety of drinking water across the province of Ontario. Immediately, many important questionsarose. What actually happened in Walkerton? What were the causes? Who was responsible?How could this have been prevented? Most importantly, how do we make sure this neverhappens again? The Province conducted an inquiry [Report of the Walkerton Inquiry: TheEvents of May 2000 and Related Issues; The Honourable Dennis R. O’Connor Published byOntario Ministry of the Attorney General, 2002].Professional Engineer’s Ontario (PEO) also published a report entitled: “The Roles andResponsibilities of Professional Engineers in the Provision of Safe Drinking Water” [2001].Page 2 of 2Requirements:Read the PEO report entitled: “The Roles and Responsibilities of Professional Engineers in theProvision of Safe Drinking Water” [2001]. Pay attention to the legal aspects of the engineer’sresponsibility, including: definitions, legislations, statutes, licensing requirements, theengineer’s responsibilities vs. the law and the professional engineering Act.Write a report that answers the following specific questions:1) What are the Federal and Provincial statutes that relate to this case?2) What are the relevant PEO Professional Practice Guidelines?3) List the guiding principles for the environmental responsibilities of the engineer[PEO, 1992: “Environmental Guideline for the Practice of ProfessionalEngineering in Ontario”].4) Explain why engineers are ideally suited for assuming increased levels ofresponsibility and accountability in drinking water and water supply management.5) What are specific engineering tasks that require a licensed engineer in relation todrinking water and water supply?6) How did PEO demonstrate its commitment to Safe Drinking Water in Ontario?7) Identify and discuss a couple of potential liabilities in tort law that may arise fromthe engineer’s actions or negligence.https://customwriting.s3.amazonaws.com/AT8337/Assignment%203.pdf?versionId=wqf.Trgc4qOXr_ldJh0N8cNeRP3xRW6A&AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAIDY3BOXYKEAMAEOQ&Expires=1458237984&Signature=lEdx217VkQjDkbsMR9t9T7AUuo4%3D
