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Proposed
Damage Prevention Regulations |
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The National Energy Board notes on its website
that, “pipelines are often invisible” and that, “the safety and
integrity of Canada’s pipelines depends on public awareness and
industry involvement.” In furtherance of the Board’s stated
objective of safety, it has undertaken the development of new
“Damage Prevention Regulations” to replace the Pipeline Crossing
Regulations, Parts I and II (see Control Zone section on this
website). The Board says that these new regulations will,
“regulate activities on or adjacent to pipeline rights of way
under the Board’s jurisdiction in the interest of the safety of
the public and of the company’s employees and the protection of
property and the environment.”
Well, CAPLA has reviewed the draft version of the
regulations, and has put the NEB on notice that these new
regulations do little or nothing to address the problems
landowners have experienced and continue to experience under the
Pipeline Crossing Regulations. CAPLA agrees with the Board’s
statement that these regulations are about the protection of
property – the property of multinational energy pipeline
companies. Why upgrade and update pipeline facilities to ensure
that farming can be conducted safely when you can simply restrict
farming anywhere in the vicinity of pipelines? Restrictions on
landowners are a lot cheaper than lowering pipes in the ground, or
replacing thinning pipe with new thicker pipe. The draft Damage
Prevention Regulations are more of the same from the NEB and the
pipeline industry. |
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Highlights
of the changes proposed by the draft regulations |
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In contrast to current
interpretation of the “control zone”, the NEB’s “safety zone” will now extend 30 metres
on each side of the centre-line of the pipeline, rather than the
edge of the pipeline right-of-way (this diminishes the overall
area encumbered by the “safety zone”, but depending on the size of
the right-of-way, this reduction could be minimal). |
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The draft regulations make extensive
use of the undefined term “ground disturbance” – any “ground
disturbance” which disturbs the soil within 3 metres of the centreline of the
pipe requires, at minimum, the presence of a pipeline company
representative – Isn’t cultivation a ground disturbance? – Does
operating agricultural equipment constitute a ground disturbance? |
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Whereas the Pipeline Crossing
Regulations expressly exempted any excavation of less than
12 inches in depth from the pipeline company permission
requirement, the draft Damage Prevention Regulations specify
no such exemption, leaving the definition of “excavation” to
the pipeline company on a case-by-case basis – isn’t 12
inches safe? – what about 6 inches? |
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Pipeline companies are not required
to provide permission to landowners to cross the pipeline
right-of-way with vehicles or mobile equipment (s.112(2) of
the NEB Act) in written form – are you willing to rely on
something this important that isn’t backed up in writing? |
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CAPLA's Response |
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CAPLA wrote to the Board to
express its opinion that these new regulations do nothing to
address the concerns of landowners, and provide even more power to
pipeline companies to dictate what activities landowners can and
cannot pursue on their own farms. Your easement or right-of-way
agreement probably provides that you are entitled to carry out
normal cultivation on your farm – that may not be true anymore.
View CAPLA's submission to the
NEB.
For now, the new draft Damage
Prevention Regulations have been submitted to the Department of
Justice for review prior to “pre-publication” in the Canada
Gazette. These regulations are coming, and landowners should be
concerned. CAPLA is keeping an eye on the development of these
regulations, and will post any new information we obtain. |
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