National Energy Board issues Safety Order to Plains Midstream ULC

CALGARY, March 1, 2016 /CNW/ - The National Energy Board (NEB) has issued a Safety Order to Plains Midstream Canada ULC (Plains). The Safety Order directs the company to retain the NEB-directed operating pressure reduction within the Windsor to Sarnia pipeline, and to file a depth of cover survey and engineering assessment within 90 days for NEB approval along the length of the pipeline.

Issuance of the Safety Order follows a Plains' filing that requested an increase in operating pressure within the pipeline. A subsequent NEB field inspection observed unsatisfactory depth of cover along the operating pipeline.

The NEB requires pipeline companies to maintain minimum depth of cover for all NEB-regulated pipelines. Adequate depth of cover upholds public safety and environmental protection by reducing the risk of third party damage to pipelines.

Additional Safety Order Requirements:

• Plains must notify affected landowners, occupants and land users of the pipeline's shallow depth of cover.
• Plains must correct depth of cover and file evidence of such within 90 days.
• Plains must conduct daily ground patrols (walking or driving) along the pipeline until an engineering assessment has been approved by the NEB.
• Plains must submit quarterly damage prevention results for the period February 1, 2016 to January 31, 2017.

Associated Links:
Plains Midstream Canada ULC Safety Order 

NEB Safety and Damage Prevention web page 

Quick Facts:

• Pipelines are normally located between one and three metres below the surface.
• Company markers indicate the presence of a pipeline in the area. A professional locate is necessary to know the exact location of a pipeline.
• Landowners with questions regarding buried pipelines in their vicinity should contact a provincial One Call Centre.

The National Energy Board is an independent federal regulator of several parts of Canada's energy industry with the safety of Canadians and protection of the environment as its top priority. Its purpose is to regulate pipelines, energy development and trade in the Canadian public interest. For more information on the NEB and its mandate, please visit www.neb-one.gc.ca.

SOURCE National Energy Board

Darin Barter, Communications, National Energy Board, Tel: [phone], Email: [email protected]