Syncrude lawyer Robert White, shown here in March, made his closing arguments in the duck deaths trial on Wednesday. (CBC)The trial of oil giant Syncrude for the deaths of 1,600 ducks in one of its Alberta tailings ponds ended Wednesday afternoon with the judge announcing he will deliver his verdict on June 25.

The trial has taken 2½ months, with provincial court Judge Ken Tjosvold hearing evidence on the charges that the company violated the Alberta Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act and the federal Migratory Birds Convention Act.

Syncrude is accused of not doing enough to dissuade the ducks from landing on its Aurora tailings pond in northern Alberta. The migratory birds died on April 28, 2008, after getting stuck in the pond's toxic sludge.

On Wednesday, the court heard closing arguments from Syncrude lawyer Robert White, who argued the deaths of the ducks were accidental and not a crime.

As he stood behind the courtroom lectern, White told the judge that the charges against Syncrude were wrong and that a guilty verdict would be bad for the oilsands industry as a whole.

If Syncrude is guilty, then any oilsands company with a tailings pond is guilty, White argued, and has only two options: break the law or shut down.

"Should we? We should win," White said Wednesday. "Will we? I think so."

Tailings ponds legal, necessary: defence

Tailings ponds store the byproducts of the bitumen extraction that takes place during oilsands development. They contain a toxic sludge of bitumen remnants, clay, sand and metals.

No one likes tailings ponds, White said, but they are legal and necessary as long as there is a high demand for the synthetic crude that is processed from the oilsands.

The Crown contends that Syncrude is at fault for not putting out bird deterrents like noise-making air cannons and scarecrows early enough to keep migrating birds from landing on the ponds.

White argued that a late-season snowstorm made it impossible to get the deterrents in place.

Most of the trial, which began March 1, was taken up with evidence from Crown witnesses. After his request to have the charges dismissed was rejected in late April, White announced he wasn't calling any witnesses and rested his case.

Syncrude faces one count under Section 155 of the Alberta Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act for allegedly failing to ensure that hazardous substances directly or indirectly not come into contact or contaminate any animals, plants, food or drink.

The company is also charged with one count of violating the federal Migratory Birds Convention Act for allegedly depositing or permitting the deposit of a substance harmful to migratory birds in waters or an area frequented by birds.