Trans Mountain failed its pre-construction audit earlier this year, but has since got back on track, the National Energy Board announced Thursday.
Between April 13 and June 14, 2017, the NEB interviewed Trans Mountain employees and reviewed internal documents like training manuals and company procedures.
The goal of a pre-construction audit is to see whether all the necessary measures to manage construction-related safety and environmental protection for the construction of the project have been established.
After reviewing 37 items in the Trans Mountain audit, the national energy regulator found 15 items to be non-compliant.
Trans Mountain was provided with the audit results on Aug. 4, and on Aug. 11, the company submitted what’s known as a corrective action plan (CAP) to address the board’s findings.
“The company was very quick to file its correction action plan, which has been approved by the NEB, and therefore, the company can proceed with its construction (where all requirements have been met),” NEB spokesperson James Stevenson told the NOW.
Of the 15 non-compliant items, 13 have been rectified with the CAP and the remaining two are expected to be approved by the end of this month, added Stevenson.
At the time, non-compliant items included things like not identifying the hazards related to the pipeline project (this has since been addressed with the CAP) and failing to set up a process to manage changes that occur during pipeline construction, including design, regulatory and procedural changes.
“These are not like the conditions,” Stevenson said of the 157 conditions the NEB attached to the project in May 2016 when it recommended the federal government approve the expansion project. “The audit, it wasn’t about duplicating what the conditions are set to monitor.”
Rather, it’s about checking the procedures a company has in place, he said.
The NEB reviews compliance on an ongoing basis, Stevenson noted, and has the authority to stop work if compliance is not maintained.
“We are keeping a very close watch on the company as they proceed. ... If we thought that these issues, that the outstanding corrective actions would create any unsafe conditions or environmental concerns, we wouldn’t allow them to proceed, period. If we find out later that we’re not happy, there will be consequences,” he explained.
Construction on the twinning of the $7.4-billion, Edmonton-to-Burnaby pipeline is expected to start this month, according to Trans Mountain’s website.
In an emailed statement, Trans Mountain spokesperson Ali Hounsell said, "safety is Kinder Morgan's first priority and we are committed to building the Trans Mountain expansion project in a way that ensures the safety of our workers, communities and the environment. We are pleased the NEB has confirmed we have put in place the necessary documentation, processes and systems to move forward with construction."
