Canada publishes onshore pipeline regulations

April 12, 2013
Canada’s National Energy Board has published “Regulations Amending the Onshore Pipeline Regulations, 1999. The regulations clarify requirements for federally regulated pipelines regarding management systems, with the purpose of protecting the public, workers, and the environment, according to NEB.

Canada’s National Energy Board has published “Regulations Amending the Onshore Pipeline Regulations, 1999. The regulations clarify requirements for federally regulated pipelines regarding management systems, with the purpose of protecting the public, workers, and the environment, according to NEB.

NEB requires pipeline companies to anticipate, prevent, manage, and mitigate potentially dangerous conditions associated with their pipelines. When implemented, the new requirements can effectively manage risk and promote safe pipeline operation, NEB said.

The regulations make it clear that management systems must apply to key company programs for safety, pipeline integrity, security, environmental protection, and emergency management, according to NEB. They also require these systems be in place through each phase of the pipeline’s lifecycle; from design, materials, construction, and operation all the way through to abandonment.

NEB described the regulations as including provisions focused on a company’s senior leadership for accountability of its management systems, the company’s safety culture, and the achievement of outcomes related to safety of the public and environmental protection. Furthermore, it said, the companies must have an internal reporting policy encouraging employees to bring forward, without fear of reprisals, hazards and risks they may encounter during their work activities.

The regulations rename the “Onshore Pipeline Regulations, 1999” as the “National Energy Board Onshore Pipeline Regulations.”

Contact Christopher E. Smith at [email protected].