Joint panel wants Enbridge measures to be mandatory
Transport Canada is being asked to assess how Enbridge Inc.'s "voluntary" commitments to pre-vent the dumping of diluted bitumen crude into the Pacific Ocean can be made "mandatory and enforceable."
The request from the Joint Review Panel considering the company's $6-billion pipe-line project was in response to a Transport Canada-headed government review released in February.
The study said there are "no regulatory concerns" regarding marine safety due to a significant increase in tanker traffic on B.C.'s north coast to deliver crude to and from the Northern Gateway terminal in Kitimat.
Enbridge used Transport Canada's conclusions to reassure its shareholders, and a senior company official said in March the report proves the pipeline will actually enhance shipping safety on the north coast.
Anti-Northern Gateway groups such as the Coastal First Nations said the report either ignored or minimized factors such as "treacherous passage-ways, poor weather conditions and human error."
The JRP, created under the National Energy Board Act and the Canadian Environ-mental Assessment Act, has given Transport Canada until next Tuesday to respond to its request.
That day marks the start of the autumn session of public hearings at which registered participants can cross-examine witnesses, starting with four days of hearings in Edmonton. "Please provide a detailed discussion on what provisions exist in relevant Canadian marine shipping legislation to ensure that Northern Gate-way's voluntary marine ship-ping risk reduction measures (e.g. use of escort tugs, installation of radar, transit speeds, and operational limits) are and remain mandatory and enforce-able," the JRP said.
The JRP, Transport Canada and Enbridge all refused to comment Monday on the thorny issue of how voluntary actions could be made mandatory without changes in laws or regulations. However, Enbridge spokesperson Ivan Giesbrecht defended his company's plan to protect the ocean.
"We won't speculate about future legislation changes, but we can confidently say that our marine safety plan, as it is pro-posed today, meets or exceeds all applicable Canadian regulations," he wrote in an email.
Enbridge, along with its pledge to comply with rules such as accepting only double-hulled tankers at the port, also promised voluntary measures such as a commitment to have two escort tugs, one tethered to the vessel, accompany tankers laden with oil through "confined channels" to and from the terminal.