Decision D ATCO Electric Ltd. Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation Decommission and Salvage. November 8, 2018

Transcription

1 Decision D Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation Decommission and Salvage November 8, 2018

2 Alberta Utilities Commission Decision D Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation Decommission and Salvage Proceeding Applications A001 and A002 November 8, 2018 Published by the: Alberta Utilities Commission Eau Claire Tower, 1400, 600 Third Avenue S.W. Calgary, Alberta T2P 0G5 Telephone: Fax: Website:

3 Alberta Utilities Commission Calgary, Alberta Decision D Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation Proceeding Decommission and Salvage Applications A001 and A002 1 Decision summary 1. In this decision, the Alberta Utilities Commission must decide whether to approve applications from (ATCO Electric) to decommission and salvage Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation. 1 After consideration of the record of the proceeding, and for the reasons outlined in this decision, the Commission finds that approval of the proposed decommission and salvage is in the public interest, having regard to the social and economic effects of the project and its effect on the environment. 2 Introduction and background 2. ATCO Electric, pursuant to Licence AP is the operator of Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation in the Swan Hills area. 3. ATCO Electric, pursuant to Licence AP is the operator of transmission line 6L96 in the Swan Hills area. 4. ATCO Electric filed applications with the AUC seeking approval to decommission and salvage the substation and alter and operate the transmission line pursuant to sections 14, 15 and 21 of the Hydro and Electric Energy Act. The applications were registered as applications A001 and A002 on September 10, The Commission issued a notice of applications on October 10, The notice was sent directly to stakeholders, occupants, and agencies within 150 metres of the existing substation and transmission line segment. The notice was also published on the AUC website and notification was automatically ed to efiling System users who had chosen to receive notices of applications issued by the Commission. 6. No submissions were received in response to the notice of applications. 3 Discussion 7. ATCO Electric proposed to decommission and salvage Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation and the entire 90-metre tap segment of transmission line 6L96. The decommission and salvage would include the removal of one 72/2.4-kilovolt, three-megavolt ampere transformer at Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation. 1 refers to Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation as Federated Pipelines 744S Substation in its applications. 2 Licence AP86-149, Application , January 15, Licence AP87-76, Application , July 15, Decision D (November 8, 2018) 1

4 Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation Decommission and Salvage 8. Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation is located approximately two kilometres northeast of Swan Hills, within the Pembina Pipeline Corporation (Pembina) industrial facility property. The substation is located in the northwest quarter of Section 19, Township 66, Range 9, west of the Fifth Meridian. The existing 72-kilovolt transmission line 6L96 operates between Sarah Lake 743S Substation and Swan River 735S Substation. 9. Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation historically supplied power to the Pembina facility. ATCO Electric stated that escalating capital maintenance costs necessitated an alternative method of powering the facilities. In June 2017, ATCO Electric de-energized the substation after an alternative supply of power was provided. ATCO Electric has since determined that Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation and the tap segment of transmission line 6L96 would no longer be required. 10. ATCO Electric submitted a letter of endorsement from the Alberta Electric System Operator for the proposed project. 11. On August 17, 2018, ATCO Electric notified stakeholders, occupants and agencies within 150 metres of the substation and transmission line segment of the project. 12. ATCO Electric indicated that nine pieces of oil-filled equipment present at the substation were tested and confirmed to contain polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). ATCO Electric confirmed that two pieces of equipment contained two to 50 milligrams per kilogram of PCBs and seven pieces of equipment contained less than two milligrams per kilogram of PCBs. ATCO Electric noted that the main transformer at the substation was drained of oil in 2017 and the oil shipped to ATCO Electric s approved PCB disposal contractor. 13. A review of internal incident databases at Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation indicated the occurrence of one prior release and minor leaks from the transformer. ATCO Electric stated that repairs were made to the transformer in 2001 and As a result, ATCO Electric believed that there may be a moderate risk of encountering contamination at the substation site near the transformer foundation. ATCO Electric stated that all remaining equipment, including oil, would be shipped to ATCO Electric s disposal contractor in Edmonton for disassembly/scrap as part of the decommission and salvage. 14. ATCO Electric explained that it would complete a combined Phase 1 and Phase 2 environmental site assessment (ESA) as part of the site decommission. ATCO Electric stated that the proposed ESAs would be conducted in general accordance with standards from the Canadian Standards Association and Alberta Environment and Parks (AEP). The Phase 2 environmental site assessment would be completed following the removal of all above-ground equipment and infrastructure to delineate potentially contaminated transformer pad material. Should any releases occur during the decommission, ATCO Electric maintained that it would follow its incident response procedures for spill containment in conjunction with its electric safety management procedure for incident reporting, along with applicable site-specific emergency response plans, and operations and maintenance contingency plans. 15. In response to an AUC information request, ATCO Electric confirmed that wood poles to be removed and salvaged as part of the project had been treated with a wood preservative. ATCO Electric stated that the presence of pentachlorophenol or other wood preservative chemicals would be assessed as part of a Phase 1 ESA, and a list of appropriate potential 2 Decision D (November 8, 2018)

5 Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation Decommission and Salvage contaminants of concern and a soil and groundwater sampling plan for a Phase 2 ESA would be developed. ATCO Electric anticipated that testing for PCBs in soil and groundwater would be included in the proposed soil and groundwater sampling and analysis program as part of the Phase 2 ESA. The need for pentachlorophenol analysis in soil and groundwater would be determined based on the results of the Phase 1 ESA. 16. ATCO Electric submitted that it would provide the results of the Phase 1 and Phase 2 ESAs to Pembina and that it would consult with Pembina and AEP to determine any impacts that would require remediation. ATCO Electric further submitted that it would prepare a remediation plan and conduct remediation to the extent agreed upon by Pembina. ATCO Electric added that, once the substation land is remediated to the agreed-upon extent, the land would be returned to Pembina. 17. ATCO Electric stated that if concentrations of contaminants are detected above the Alberta Tier 1 Soil and Groundwater Remediation Guidelines, it would develop a remedial action plan for approval by Pembina and AEP. Once remediation is completed, ATCO Electric would apply for a limited remediation certificate under the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act, Remediation Regulation. If a full remediation of impacts associated with substation operations is not possible, ATCO Electric submitted that a risk management plan would be developed for approval by Pembina and AEP and implemented by ATCO Electric. 18. Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation commenced operations in 1966, prior to the enactment of the Historical Resources Act. ATCO Electric stated that no records of previously discovered historical resources were found in a search of the online database. ATCO Electric also stated that it would not be impacting any new or additional lands for this project, and as a result, formal Historical Resources Act approval is not required. 19. ATCO Electric submitted that a noise impact assessment was not conducted for the project and that temporary construction noise would comply with Rule 012: Noise Control. 20. ATCO Electric planned for project completion by the end of April 2019 and provided a cost estimate of $523,365 with an accuracy tolerance of plus 20 per cent and minus 10 per cent. The costs for the decommission and salvage are included in the ATCO Electric General Tariff Application. 4 Findings 21. The Commission has reviewed the applications and has determined that they meet the requirements for a substation decommission and salvage and transmission line alteration. 22. The Commission finds that the participant involvement program undertaken by ATCO Electric meets the requirements of Rule 007: Applications for Power Plants, Substations, Transmission Lines, Industrial System Designations and Hydro Developments. 23. The Commission finds that the commitments provided by ATCO Electric reasonably mitigate the potential environmental impacts associated with the decommission and salvage of Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation. Decision D (November 8, 2018) 3

6 Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation Decommission and Salvage 24. The Commission accepts ATCO Electric s environmental commitments respecting completion of the Phase 1 and Phase 2 ESAs as well as remediation coordination with Pembina and AEP. 25. The Commission expects ATCO Electric to comply with the relevant sections of the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act, the Environmental Protection Guidelines for Transmission Lines, and other relevant statutes, regulations, rules and guidelines listed in the facility applications. 26. The Commission finds that the technical and environmental aspects of the project, as submitted by ATCO Electric, fulfill the requirements of Rule The Commission finds that there are no outstanding technical or environmental concerns associated with the project, nor are there any outstanding public or industry concerns. 28. Given the considerations discussed above, the Commission finds the proposed project to be in the public interest, pursuant to Section 17 of the Alberta Utilities Commission Act. 5 Decision 29. Pursuant to Section 21 of the Hydro and Electric Energy Act, the Commission approves Application A001 and grants ATCO Electric the approval set out in Appendix 1 Approval D to decommission and salvage Swan Hills F.P.L. 744S Substation. 30. Pursuant to sections 14, 15 and 19 of the Hydro and Electric Energy Act, the Commission approves Application A002 and grants ATCO Electric the approval set out in Appendix 2 Transmission Line Permit and Licence D to alter and operate transmission line 6L The appendices will be distributed separately. Dated on November 8, Alberta Utilities Commission (original signed by) Joanne Phillips Commission Member 4 Decision D (November 8, 2018)