Bill 67, Pipeline Excavation Safety and Accountability Act, 2004

Versions

Bill 67 2004

An Act to provide
for greater safety and accountability
in pipeline excavations and to amend
the Technical Standards and Safety
Act, 2000 to require annual reports
in the pipeline sector and to increase
penalties for offences under the Act

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Definitions

1. (1) In this Act,

"operating company" includes an individual, partnership, corporation, joint venture, consortium, public agency or other entity operating a gas or oil pipeline system; ("société exploitante")

"pipeline" means a pipe or pipeline that is used for the transmission or distribution of oil or gas, and includes fittings, valves, controls, compressor stations, pressure regulating stations, meter stations and pump stations; ("pipeline")

"professional engineer" means a person licensed under the Professional Engineers Act. ("ingénieur")

Interpretation

(2) A reference in this Act to an activity, use of equipment, process or procedure includes, but is not limited to, design, construction, erection, maintenance, alteration, repair, service or disposal.

Use of pipelines

2. (1) Before using a pipeline, an operating company shall obtain a declaration from a professional engineer specifying the location of the pipeline.

Duty of engineer

(2) In providing the declaration referred to in subsection (1), a professional engineer shall exercise the care, diligence and skill of a reasonably prudent engineer.

Ascertaining pipeline locations

3. (1) No person shall dig, bore, trench, grade, excavate or break ground with mechanical equipment or explosives or engage in any other activity, use of equipment, process or procedure which may interfere with a pipeline without first ascertaining from the operating company the location of any pipeline that may be interfered with.

Duty of operating company

(2) The operating company shall provide as accurate information as possible on the location of any pipeline within a reasonable time in all the circumstances.

Excavation procedures

4. (1) No person shall dig, bore, trench, grade, excavate or break ground with mechanical equipment or explosives or engage in any other activity, use of equipment, process or procedure which may interfere with a pipeline in an unsafe or unskilled manner.

Same

(2) Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), no person shall engage in an activity referred to in that subsection without having due regard for any guidelines for safe excavations near pipelines that have been established by a designated administrative authority or director under the Technical Standards and Safety Act, 2000.

Duty of employer

5. Every person who employs a person to dig, bore, trench, grade, excavate or break ground with mechanical equipment or explosives or engage in any other activity, use of equipment, process or procedure which may interfere with a pipeline shall,

(a) ascertain from the operating company the location of any pipeline that may be interfered with;

(b) ensure that the employee is aware of the location of the pipeline; and

Offence

6. A person who contravenes or fails to comply with this Part is guilty of an offence and on conviction is liable,

(a) in the case of an individual, to a fine of not more than $100,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than two years less a day, or to both; and

(b) in the case of a body corporate, to a fine of not more than $2,000,000.

Amendments to the
Technical Standards and Safety Act, 2000

Technical Standards and Safety Act, 2000

7. (1) The Technical Standards and Safety Act, 2000 is amended by adding the following section:

Annual Reporting Duties

Annual report

36.1 (1) Every designated administrative authority and every director who has not been appointed by a designated administrative authority with responsibility for administering the oil and gas pipeline sector in Ontario shall report to the Minister on the state of public safety in that sector within 60 days after the end of each calendar year.

Same

(2) Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), the annual report shall include,

(a) an overview of the sector and how it is regulated;

(b) details on the number and type of safety-related incidents that were reported under the Act, the regulations or a Minister's order;

(c) details on the number and type of incidents that were investigated and, if different from the total number of reported incidents, the criteria used to determine whether an incident would be investigated;

(d) details of incidents in which there were injuries, fatalities, property damage, an explosion, an evacuation, environmental damage or impact or other public safety concerns;

(e) details on the causes of investigated incidents, including the significance of human error;

(f) details of prosecutions initiated under the Act, including ongoing prosecutions from previous years;

(g) statistical information which compares the annual state of the sector to its state in previous years, including information on the number and type of incidents, incidents which involved injuries or fatalities, the causes of incidents and details on the significance of any changes that occurred over the comparison period; and

(h) details of actions taken to reduce the number of incidents and to improve public safety in the sector generally.

Tabling of report

(3) The Minister shall submit each report to the Lieutenant Governor in Council and shall table it in the Legislative Assembly within 30 days of its receipt if the Assembly is sitting or, if not, as soon as practicable after the start of the next session.

(2) Subsection 37 (1) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

Offences

(1) Every person who,

(a) contravenes or fails to comply with any provision of this Act, the regulations or a Minister's order;

(b) knowingly makes a false statement or furnishes false information under this Act, the regulations or a Minister's order;

(d) contravenes or fails to comply with an order or requirement of an inspector or obstructs an inspector,

is guilty of an offence and on conviction is liable to a fine of not more than $100,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than two years less a day or to both, or, if the person is a body corporate, to a fine of not more than $2,000,000.

(3) Subsection 37 (3) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

Offence

(3) Every director or officer of the body corporate who has a duty under subsection (2) and who fails to carry out that duty is guilty of an offence and on conviction is liable to a fine of not more than $100,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than two years less a day, or to both.

Commencement

8. This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

Short title

9. The short title of this Act is the Pipeline Excavation Safety and Accountability Act, 2004.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The Bill places a duty on the operators of pipelines to obtain declarations from professional engineers specifying the location of their pipelines and it places a duty on engineers to provide those declarations with care and skill. Anyone engaged in an activity that may interfere with a pipeline is required to first ascertain the location of the pipeline from the operator and then to engage in the activity that may interfere with a pipeline safely and with skill.

The Bill also provides that it is an offence to breach any of the various duties imposed with respect to safe pipeline excavation and establishes maximum penalties for those offences.

In addition, the Bill amends the Technical Standards and Safety Act, 2000 to require designated administrative authorities and directors to submit annual reports to the Minister on the state of public safety in the oil and gas pipeline sector. The Minister is required to submit each report to the Lieutenant Governor in Council and to table it in the Legislative Assembly.

The penalties for offences under the Act are increased, and the penalties for a director or officer of a body corporate who fails to take reasonable care to prevent the body corporate from committing an offence under the Act are increased.