Emergency Procedures Manuals

Emergency Procedures Manuals [PDF 162 KB]

File OF-Surv-CompMan 01
26 March 2015

To: All Oil and Gas Companies under the Jurisdiction of the National Energy Board and Interested Persons

Emergency Procedures Manuals

The purpose of this letter is to inform you of important updates related to Emergency Procedures Manuals (EPMs) that are filed under subsection 32(2) of the National Energy Board Onshore Pipeline Regulations (OPR) and section 35 of the National Energy Board Processing Plant Regulations (PPR).

  1. Effective 30 April 2015, companies are directed to file both one hard copy and one electronic copy of their respective EPMs with the National Energy Board. The hard copy will be considered the official record. The electronic copy may be filed on an electronic storage device (for example, jump drive). This replaces the current practice of companies filing three hard copies of their respective EPMs.
  2. Further, when filing EPM updates as required by subsection 32(2) of the OPR and paragraph 35(c) of the PPR, companies shall file a new, complete EPM in both electronic and hard copy incorporating all updates.
  3. Companies are also directed, at minimum, to file annual EPM updates by 1 April of each year or alternatively, file a letter indicating that there have been no changes to their EPM.

Prior to filing any EPM or update, companies should review the content of their EPM to ensure it contains the required information as set-out in Appendix A of this letter.

For further information, please do not hesitate to contact Chris Finley, Director, Emergency Management and Security Program 403-299-3118.

Yours truly,

Original signed by

Sheri Young
Secretary of the Board

Attachment

Appendix A

Emergency Procedures Manual (EPM) Information

The contents of an EPM required under the National Energy Board Onshore Pipeline Regulations (OPR) should include, but not be limited to, the information as set-out in Annex A, #2 of the Guidance Notes for the OPR.

Additionally, EPMs filed under both the OPR and the National Energy Board Processing Plant Regulations (PPR) must include the following:

1. A 24/7 emergency number where incidents can be reported;

2. The Transportation Safety Board (TSB) Incident line 819-997-7887,
facsimile 819-953-7876 and e-mail address PipelineNotifications@tsb.gc.ca;

3. The National Energy Board (NEB) Incident line 403-299-2773;

4. Instructions to call the TSB line to report significant incidents on National Energy Board (NEB) regulated pipelines and facilities, report all events in the NEB’s Online Event Reporting System (OERS) (https://apps.cer-rec.gc.ca/ERS/Home/Index/) and the kinds of events to report. For example this might include:

A significant incident is an acute event that results in:

  • death;
  • missing person (as reportable pursuant to the Canada Oil and Gas Drilling and Production Regulations (DPR) under the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act (COGOA) or the Oil and Gas Operations Act (OGOA));
  • a serious injury (as defined in the OPR or TSB regulations);
  • a fire or explosion that causes a pipeline or facility to be inoperative;
  • a LVP hydrocarbon release in excess of 1.5 m³ that leaves company property or the right of way;
  • a rupture; or
  • a toxic plume as defined in CSA Z662.

Note: A “rupture” is an instantaneous release that immediately impairs the operation of a pipeline segment such that the pressure of the segment cannot be maintained.

Where an event qualifies as a significant incident and must be reported immediately, companies are required to notify the TSB Reporting Hotline at 819-997‐7887. Subsequently, the company is required to input the details required by both the TSB (see TSB regulations) and the NEB for each significant incident into the NEB’s OERS.

For all other events that must be reported immediately, companies must report within twenty‐four hours of occurrence or discovery to the online reporting system.

The events that are reportable using the online reporting system are:

  • incidents under the OPR, PPR, and DPR/Oil and Gas Drilling Regulations;
  • unauthorized activities under the National Energy Board Pipeline Crossing Regulations Part II;
  • emergency burning or flaring under the PPR;
  • hazard identification under the PPR;
  • suspension of operations under the PPR;
  • near-misses under the DPR;
  • serious accidents or incidents under the Canada Oil and Gas Geophysical Operations Regulations/Oil and Gas Geophysical Operations Regulations;
  • emergencies or accidents under the Canada Oil and Gas Installation Regulations/Oil and Gas Installation Regulations; and
  • accidents, illnesses, and incidents under the Canada Oil and Gas Diving Regulations/Oil and Gas Diving Regulations.

In the event that OERS is unavailable, companies are directed to report events to the TSB Reporting Hotline at 819-997-7887.

The NEB and the TSB have adopted a single window reporting approach. However, in some areas, the TSB reporting requirements are somewhat different than the NEB requirements. For additional details on the TSB reporting requirements, companies should refer to the TSB website.

Transportation Safety Board of Canada
Place du centre, 4th Floor
200 Promenade du Portage
Hull, Quebec  K1A 1K8
Facsimile 819-953-7876

5. The NEB roles and responsibilities during an emergency. For example, this might include:

As lead regulatory agency, the NEB:

  • Monitors, observes and assesses the overall effectiveness of the company’s emergency response in terms of:
    • Emergency Management
    • Safety
    • Security
    • Environment
    • Integrity of operations and facilities; and
    • Energy Supply.
  • Investigates the event, either in cooperation with the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, under the Canada Labour Code, or as per the National Energy Board Act or COGOA (whichever is applicable)
  • Inspects the pipeline or facility
  • Examines the integrity of the pipeline or facility
  • Requires appropriate repair methods are being used
  • Requires appropriate environmental remediation of contaminated areas is conducted
  • Coordinates stakeholder and Aboriginal community feedback regarding environmental clean-up and remediation
  • Confirms that a company is following its Emergency Procedures Manual(s) commitments, plans, procedures, and NEB regulations and identifies non-compliances
  • Initiates enforcement actions as required
  • Approves the restart of the pipeline.

6. The TSB’s roles and responsibilities and reportable incidents. Refer to the TSB’s website at www.tsb.gc.ca.

7. Confirmation that a company has maps or mapping that clearly identifies NEB-regulated facilities.

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