PIPELINE SAFETY MUNICIPAL CONCERNS AND EXPECTATIONS

Transcription

1 PIPELINE SAFETY MUNICIPAL CONCERNS AND EXPECTATIONS Scott Pearce, Reeve, MRC of Argenteuil and Mayor, Township of Gore Frédérick Jones, GIS Geographer, MRC of Argenteuil 2 June 2015

2 Introduction Consultations with several Quebec municipalities to clearly identify their concerns The regional county municipality (MRC) of Argenteuil an overview 9 local municipalities (Municipality of Brownsburg-Chatham, Township of Gore, Village of Grenville, Municipality of Grenville-sur-la-Rouge, Township of Harrington, City of Lachute, Municipality of Mille-Isles, Municipality of Saint-André-d Argenteuil and Township of Wentworth) Permanent population: 32,627 Seasonal residents: approximately 20,000 Area: 1,330 km 2 Distance from Montreal: approximately 80 km Distance from Ottawa / Gatineau: approximately 120 km Pipelines in MRC of Argenteuil One existing pipeline: crosses one municipality over a distance of 12.5 kilometres One proposed pipeline: would cross two municipalities over a distance of 17 kilometres Pipelines in Quebec Few oil pipelines compared with other regions of Canada, but they are raising major concerns and questions Oil transportation by pipeline, train and ship? 2

3 MAIN MUNICIPAL CONCERNS

4 Main concerns of municipalities Safety of communities and living environments Quality of emergency response plans Are the companies prepared to deal with a significant spill? Response and equipment deployment times? Will they be able to provide for the basic needs of the affected communities? Do local, regional and provincial emergency services understand the role they will have to play in the event of an incident? Are emergency telephone lines effective? 4

5 Main concerns of municipalities Safety of communities and living environments Protection of the environment In the event of a spill, will the companies be able to clean and rehabilitate environmentally sensitive areas (wetlands, plant and wildlife habitats, etc.), within acceptable timeframes? Will the companies be able to compensate for losses of environmentally sensitive areas during construction? The definition of watercourses and crossing methods Protection of groundwater and municipal well supply areas Protection of local and regional sites of interest (eco-tourism sites, urban forests, etc.) 5

6 Main concerns of municipalities Companies transparency Contradictions between the documentation filed and the documentation that is presented The quality of the information conveyed by the companies Open-house type information meetings Are not consistent with the principles of participative democracy and did not meet the requirements of open and transparent consultation Difficulty getting information in French quickly The signing of confidentiality agreements to access the companies emergency response plans Individual rather than collective relationships and approaches Funding for municipal equipment without clearly defined guidelines 6

7 Main concerns of municipalities The economic aspect No significant economic benefit for a municipality Development constraints (e.g., residential, industrial, etc.) Loss of space (pipeline right-of-way, related infrastructure, etc.) Regressive property taxes* Obstacles to farming (drainage work and loss of cropland during construction and maintenance) No economic leverage at the local and regional levels The municipalities have the feeling that they are managing substantial risks that far outweigh the negligible economic benefits resulting from the presence of pipelines. 7 Pipeline et fiscalité municipale: une iniquité à corrige [pipelines and municipal taxation: inequity that should be corrected]. Goudreau Poirier inc., Study prepared for the MRC of Vaudreuil-Soulanges

8 Analyses of pipeline projects Background and role of municipal staff Responsibilities and obligations of municipalities and MRCs Sustainable land use planning Protection of the environment Public safety (fire safety and emergency management) Economic and social development Municipal staff and oil pipeline projects No employees are expressly assigned to analysis of this type of project they have to do it concurrently with other tasks. They inform and make proposals to municipal elected officials. They are not completely familiar with all engineering aspects, but they have an in-depth understanding of the area and the social, economic and environmental issues. 8

9 ANALYSES OF PIPELINE PROJECTS IN THE MRC OF ARGENTEUIL

10 Analysis of pipeline projects in the MRC of Argenteuil

11 - CASE STUDY THE OTTAWA RIVER AND PIPELINES, A RISK FOR MILLIONS OF PEOPLE

12 The Ottawa River and pipelines a risk for millions of people

13 RECOMMENDATIONS

14 Recommendations To the companies Respond diligently and clearly to questions from municipalities by providing information documents in the language in which they are requested (English or French). Avoid giving evasive, incomplete or contradictory answers. Provide science-based documentation and avoid submitting promotional documents that focus on selling the project. For construction projects, provide the municipalities with all route scenarios being considered and document them. At the initial phase of the project, gather data (maps, etc.) from the municipalities, MRCs, provincial governments, agencies, etc. 14

15 Recommendations To the federal government Create a reserve fund to offset costs of cleaning, rehabilitating and restoring sites, funded by the oil companies, managed by an impartial organization and disbursed independently of the oil industry. Create a research and development fund devoted to incident prevention and to environmental studies, including the assessment of costs to rehabilitate natural environments. Create a regional fund for MRCs whose territory is crossed by oil pipelines, to stimulate innovative projects in critical areas, public transit in particular, thus contributing to regional greenhouse gas reduction targets. Create a local fund for local municipalities to stimulate innovative projects that add value to local sustainable development. 15

16 Recommendations To the federal government Require that future interprovincial pipeline projects be subjected to an independent environmental assessment as part of the NEB s decision-making process. Implement a legislative measure requiring the reimbursement of costs incurred to update municipal emergency response planning tools, train staff and acquire the equipment needed to ensure the safety of the public and the environment. 16

17 Recommendations To the National Energy Board Require companies to comply with regional and urban planning documents. Require the development of joint emergency response plans. Require companies to find technological means for detecting leaks of less than 1.5% in the lines.* Require companies to show that the placement of sectionalizing valves is optimized to reflect sensitive elements within the area. Introduce a regulatory mechanism to frame discussions between companies and municipalities during the project planning phase. Pay particular attention to compliance with standards governing information disclosure (sections 33, 34 and 35 of the National Energy Board Onshore Pipeline Regulations); To provide local services, the NEB should open permanent regional offices in each Canadian province affected by NEB-regulated projects. 17 *J.Harvey Consultant et associés and ÉcoGestion Solutions. Study produced for the MRC of Autray

18 Recommendations To the National Energy Board Require companies that propose changes to a pipeline s location to conduct hydrostatic testing. Require companies to prepare a complete strategic response plan for main watercourses and environmentally sensitive areas, and to distribute and present the plan to all concerned stakeholders without the stakeholders having to sign a confidentiality agreement. 18

19 THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION