The Company can Restrict Operations on your Entire Farm

Prior to commencement of an activity requiring leave, the landowner must request that the pipeline company mark out the location of its pipe with stakes. The pipeline company is required to mark the location of the pipe within three working days of the landowner’s request. Pursuant to s.9 of the Crossing Regulations, Part I, a pipeline company which has received a request to locate its pipeline may designate an area situated in the vicinity of the proposed facility or excavation, which may extend beyond the control zone (to the whole of the landowner’s property), in which no excavation may be performed either before the pipes are located and marked or before the expiry of the three working day period, whichever comes first.

 Obtaining Leave of the Company may take up to 18 Days

Where a landowner requests leave of a pipeline company, that company shall have ten (10) working days in which to notify the landowner of its decision (s.6(1) Crossing Regulations, Part II). If approval for the activity is granted by the company, the landowner must provide notice of at least three (3) working days before commencing work (s.4(f) Crossing Regulations, Part I), and of at least twenty-four (24) hours prior to backfilling over a pipe (s.6(p) Crossing Regulations, Part I).

With these notice requirements and taking into consideration weekends and holidays particularly during the summer months when much of landowner activity requiring leave of the pipeline company occurs, these consent and notice requirements may delay the commencement of necessary work for up to eighteen (18) calendar days.

 The Company may Decide how your Operation Should Proceed

Pursuant to s.14(1) of the Crossing Regulations, Part II, the pipeline company may, at its own discretion, suspend the permission given to construct or install a facility or to excavate if it is satisfied that unsafe construction practices have been or are being used. Affected activities must cease immediately once the company suspends its permission.

At any time during construction or installation of a facility on, under or adjacent to the easement, the pipeline company may stipulate specific practices to be undertaken by the landowner to lessen any detrimental effect that the facility may have on a pipe.  Landowners must comply with all practices stipulated by the company pursuant to s.4(h) of the Crossing Regulations, Part I.

Section 4(n) of the Crossing Regulations, Part I, requires landowners to maintain in a state of good repair any facility they construct or install on, under or adjacent to the pipeline easement. Under s.15(1) of the Crossing Regulations, Part II, pipeline companies shall inspect such facilities and shall inform landowners of any deterioration that is detected. Landowners must immediately correct any deterioration noted by the pipeline company.

Section 4(o) of the Crossing Regulations, Part I, requires landowners to notify the pipeline company, in writing, of any proposed abandonment or removal of any facility affecting a pipe or right-of-way of the pipeline and (under section 4(n)(ii)) to restore the site to the satisfaction of the pipeline company.

 You need Company Permission to Cross the Easement with Equipment

Section 112(2) of the NEB Act provides that no person shall operate a vehicle or other mobile equipment across a pipeline without leave of the pipeline company who owns and operates the affected line. There is no limitation provided in either the NEB Act or the Crossing Regulations on the length of time a company may take to respond to a request for leave to cross, nor is there any requirement that the company provide reasons for refusal to grant such leave.
 

 You can Face Fines of up to $1 Million and 5 Years in Prison

Under sections 112(7) and 51.1(1) of the NEB Act, NEB inspection officers are empowered to issue orders requiring compliance with s.112 and related regulations. Contravention of such an order may result under Section 51.4(1) in criminal prosecution and penalty. On summary conviction, landowners are liable to a fine of up to one-hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) and/or imprisonment for up to one year. Upon conviction on indictment, the penalty increases to a fine of up to one-million dollars ($1,000,000) and/or imprisonment up to five (5) years.

 Our View - Companies, not Farmers, Responsible for Pipeline Safety

In effect, pipeline landowners are paying for inadequacies of pipeline depth-of-cover and pipe wall thickness through the loss of efficiency and managerial flexibility caused by land use restrictions like the control zone. This is a cost that should be borne by those benefiting from the pipelines – pipeline companies and end-users. That’s how other modes of transportation work – those who drive on the roads pay for the roads. If pipes as constructed by the pipeline companies are unsafe, then companies should be required to repair their pipes, and ensure that they are buried deep enough in the ground.