Are safety precautions enough?
Enbridge promises extra measures, but company's track record concerns critics. Proposed 1,172-km Northern Gateway pipeline would be about a metre wide and buried a metre deep
CONDITION 3 : World-leading practices for land oil-spill prevention, response and recovery systems to manage and mitigate the risks and costs of heavy-oil pipelines.
WHAT'S BEING ADDRESSED
The possibility of a rupture of Enbridge's $6.5-billion Northern Gateway pipeline into salmon-bearing rivers in British Columbia is a major concern of First Nations and environmental and community groups.
Similar concerns have been expressed over Kinder Morgan's proposed $5.4-billion twinning of its existing Trans Mountain line, which is in the preliminary stages of review.
While the risk of a major rupture occurring is considered low, recent major incidents - including the 2010 leak of 20,000 barrels of oil from an Enbridge pipeline into the Kalamazoo River in Michigan - have increased apprehension. The largest oil pipeline spill in U.S. history, the Kalamazoo cleanup, has cost Enbridge more than $1 billion.
Adding to public fears, a National Transportation Safety Board investigation into the Kalamazoo spill concluded there was a deficient safety culture at Enbridge, inadequate training, insufficient pipeline checks and an ineffective spill response. Enbridge notes that in 2010 it safely transported 950 million barrels of hydrocarbons with a safety record better than 99.99 per cent.
The last major pipeline spill in B.C. took place in 2000, when about 6,200 barrels of oil spilled near the Pine River (about half of the oil entered the river) in northeastern B.C.
PROGRESS
The Christy Clark-led B.C. government is reviewing its spill preparedness and response system to determine how it can be improved.
It held a spill symposium in March, and subsequently created an industry-led committee and three working groups to provide advice.
Besides investigating what a "world-leading land spill response system" would encompass, the review is meant to provide advice on rules for restoring the environment and creating effective government oversight and coordination.
Federally, the Stephen Harperled Conservative government has promised more inspections and audits of pipelines, and stronger fines for environmental violations.
In 2012, Enbridge announced it would spend an extra $500 million to make the pipeline safer, installing thicker pipe at river crossings, increasing remote shut-off valves by 50 per cent and staffing remote pump stations around the clock. Pump stations would normally be monitored remotely from Edmonton.
HURDLES Last August, internal documents showed B.C. government officials have warned the province is not prepared to handle a spill of even moderate magnitude. Enbridge has committed to a "world-class response capability," but the B.C. government in its submission to the National Energy Board said it is not clear from the evidence that Northern Gateway will be able to respond effectively to spills from the pipeline.
The B.C. government, which opposed the Northern Gateway pipeline in its submission to the NEB, cited many difficulties including: Landslide dangers Heavy snow cover Avalanches Possibility the heavy oil being transported would sink in rivers "The terrain the pipeline would cross is not only remote, it is in many places extremely difficult to access," said the province in its submission.
B.C.'S CURRENT THINKING
The B.C. Liberal government says it is working with stakeholders to develop an industryfunded model for land-based spill prevention and response. Feedback is being used by the ministry to develop an updated report with policy recommendations, expected in early 2014, say B.C. environment officials.
Pipeline buried in the standard method lies on a layer of bedding material (well drained sandy gravel without sharp rocks) covered with prepared gravel padding and soil fill material.
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