Pipelines in the Community
Introduction
Pipelines are the safest and most efficient means of transporting crude oil and natural gas from producing fields to refineries and processing plants and of distributing petroleum products and natural gas to the consumer.
Because pipelines are located in urban as well as in wilderness and rural settings, they may be located very close to human activity. Pipeline operators take every precaution to ensure safe, reliable and efficient operations, but it is important that the community is aware of pipeline locations and pipeline safety. Pipeline companies strive to ensure everyone knows the precautions to take when excavating near pipelines, how to recognize a pipeline leak, and the measures to be taken if a leak occurs.
Compensation for Access
Most jurisdictions provide for compensation to landowners for use of their land by pipeline companies. In most cases, it is up to the landowner to negotiate an agreement with the company, and in situations where an agreement can not be reached, there is provision for mediation and arbitration through a government agency. The provisions of an agreement may include compensation for damage due to pipeline maintenance, the number of pipelines under the agreement, ownership of the pipeline when a company wants to abandon it and any other appropriate matter.
Compensation may cover such things as
- entry fee – a flat settlement per acre, for each acre of land in the easement or right-of-way agreement
- value of land – the market value of the land times the number of acres taken
- general disturbance – compensation for the time involved in negotiating the right-of-way agreement and other inconveniences related to the installation of the pipeline. It is common to lump the value of the land and general disturbance together.
- damages – compensation for loss of crop or pasture and adverse effect such as having to farm around an open pipeline trench or relocate livestock.
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More information can be obtained at the following web sites.
British Columbia
Alberta
Saskatchewan
Manitoba
Ontario
Yukon
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Pipeline Security
Pipeline security begins with diligent operational standards developed by pipeline companies in concert with regulators. To ensure public safety, pipeline operators operate above regulatory standards.
The National Energy Board (NEB) regulates more than 45,000 kilometres of pipeline crossing interprovincial and/or international boundaries of all the provinces and territories west of the Atlantic region. Pipeline systems which are wholly contained within a province typically fall under that province’s regulatory jurisdiction.
The primary responsibility for the safety of pipelines rests with the facility owner. To ensure that companies design, construct, operate and abandon their facilities in a safe manner, the Board assesses pipeline and associated facility applications, develops and maintains regulations, conducts regular safety inspections, and audits and investigates accidents.
The NEB’s Onshore Pipeline Regulations (OPR) set out minimum requirements for safety in all stages of a pipeline’s lifecycle. The Canadian Standards Association pipeline standards (CSA pipeline standards) provide a technical basis for the OPR by setting out the minimum technical requirements for the design, construction, operation and abandonment of pipelines. Industry participates with the NEB and other government agencies in the development and maintenance of these standards. If the NEB finds that a CSA pipeline standard requirement is not sufficient for pipelines under its jurisdiction, it may impose more stringent requirements within its own regulations.
The two most visible aspects of pipeline security are warning signs and right-of-ways.
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Warning Signs
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Warning signs, as regulated by the NEB and appropriate provincial regulatory bodies, are placed on each side of highway, road, railway or watercourse crossings and at suitable intervals along the pipeline to clearly and continuously mark the pipeline’s location through urban areas and along the right-of-ways of roads or highways. It is important to note that signage is not always directly over the buried pipeline. Consequently, it is imperative to contact a “first call service” and have the pipeline location flagged by appropriate agencies. |
Right-of-Way
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The right-of-way (ROW) is a strip of land beneath which the pipeline is installed. Pipeline companies acquire rights to use the land for construction, operation, inspection and maintenance of pipelines, but do not actually own the land. ROWs are generally 18 to 20 metres wide and may contain more than one pipeline. Although there are no regulations governing the dimensions of an ROW, there are regulations pertaining to the Safety Zone, which extends 30 metres on either side of the ROW. Anyone excavating within the Safety Zone requires approval from the pipeline company.
ROWs can be recognized as corridors which are clear of trees, buildings and other structures and are clearly marked by warning signs. |
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Monitoring
Most pipeline systems are monitored remotely from computerized control centres. Control valves located at regular intervals along the line close automatically if pressure drops are detected to limit the amount of throughput released. Pipelines are also monitored by low-flying aircraft and ground crews with specialized detection equipment. In-line inspection equipment, sometimes referred to as “smart pigs,” is also used to detect potential problems with the pipe and joints or welds.
Emergency Response Plans
The Onshore Pipeline regulations stipulate that pipeline companies must “develop, regularly review and update as required, an emergency procedures manual” for each pipeline. The purpose of an emergency procedures manual or emergency response plan (ERP) is to ensure a quick, effective response to emergencies in order to protect the public from fatalities and irreversible health effects as well as to limit facility damage and reduce impact to the environment. An ERP addresses worst-case emergency scenarios, potential hazards to the public, and systems required for adequate response.
Provincial regulations provide direction as to the development and implementation of an ERP. For example, a comprehensive ERP:
- must be well organized to ensure quick access to critical information;
- coordinates activities among industry responders, emergency services, local authorities, governments, and others who have a role in providing an effective response;
- ensures communication with all parties involved in or potentially affected by the emergency;
- assists personnel in determining and performing remedial actions;
- clearly establishes roles and responsibilities of all responders;
- identifies response organizations and command control structures;
- identifies predetermined resources, required personnel, equipment, and services; and
- increases public confidence in the ability of industry to handle emergencies.
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Safety and Health
There are two types of pipeline failure – immediate, where the failure occurs because of sudden damage due to natural causes such as landslides or human activity such as careless digging, and time-dependent failure which occurs due to gradual deterioration of the pipeline material.
With respect to the pipelines regulated by the NEB (mostly inter-provincial trunk lines), about 70 per cent of the ruptures resulted from time-dependent failure such as external corrosion or stress corrosion cracking.
However, when it comes to natural gas distribution systems, the vast majority are caused by individuals digging post holes, planting trees, driving stakes into the ground, excavating or generally changing the landscape.
Call Before You Dig
Excavation and construction activities near pipelines call for extreme caution.
The NEB provides a safety checklist for anyone contemplating such activities in its booklet Living and Working Near Pipelines
www.neb-one.gc.ca
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Safety Checklist
- Plan your activity — identify the precise location of your work; check records for evidence of pipeline easements or other buried facilities.
- Visit the site and look for pipeline warning signs or pipeline marker posts.
- Contact the pipeline company and obtain a copy of the pipeline company’s guidelines for ground disturbances.
- Obtain the pipeline company’s written approval for the crossing.
- Make a locate request (by calling the one-call centre where a one-call centre exists or by calling the pipeline company where there is no one-call centre) to have the pipeline located.
- Be on site when the pipe is located and know the meaning of the pipeline markers.
- Give three working days notice to the pipeline company prior to the commencement of the approved activity unless otherwise agreed on by the pipeline company and the applicant.
- Hand expose the pipe prior to any ground disturbance within three metres of the pipe.
- Notify the pipeline company one working day before backfilling over the pipe.
- Immediately notify the pipeline company if you come in to contact with the pipe.
- ALWAYS follow the instructions of a pipeline company representative.
Pipeline companies and provincial jurisdictions have similar publications and web pages.
Most jurisdictions have implemented a call-before-you-dig program or one-call systems. These require anyone disturbing the ground to call a toll-free number to have all buried utilities located prior to digging, usually within 48 to 72 hours of making the call. The one-call centre notifies all owners and operators of buried utilities, including natural gas distributors so they can mark their facilities with spray paint or flags.
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Canadian One Call Systems
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By law, approvals are required from the appropriate pipeline company before construction and excavation activities may take place on or near its right-of-way.
Provincial regulatory bodies determine minimum depth of earth over a pipeline, however, due to human activity and/or erosion, the depth may be shallower, so extreme caution must be taken when excavating near a pipeline.
Any part of the excavation that comes within one metre of the location marks must be carefully excavated by hand.
Indications of a Pipeline Leak
- dead or discoloured vegetation, isolated vapour or mist clouds, a build-up of frost on the ground, pools of liquid along an otherwise dry right-of-way, bubbles rising in free-standing water
- unusual whistling, hissing or roaring sounds
- smell of petroleum or mercaptan, the chemical put in natural gas, which is otherwise odourless, to give it a sulphur-like odor to warn of a leak
Responding to Pipeline LeaksIn the event of a leak, people should
- leave the area immediately, walking into the wind if possible for at least 750 metres
- warn others to evacuate
- extinguish all fires, smoking materials and other sources of ignition or spark such as cell phones, on/off switches
- call 911
- call the pipeline company – emergency numbers are listed on pipeline markers
- warn others to stay away