Enbridge Technical Meeting Fields Questions

By 250 News

Prince George, B.C.- Enbridge  has held what it calls a technical meeting  in the community of Burns Lake to  address  questions and concerns   about the proposed twin pipeline from Bruderheim Alberta to Kitimat.  The  west bound pipeline would carry 525 thousand barrels of crude oil per day to  a marine terminal at Kitimat,  the east bound pipeline would carry 193 thousand barrels a day of condensate from the Marine terminal to Bruderheim Alberta.

It is clear  the recent events in Michigan,  which  saw  oil from a burst Enbridge pipe  flow into a creek that feeds into the Kalamazoo river, were top of mind.  The proposed twin line  would cross more than 700 rivers and streams.  Some  wanted to know how Enbridge assesses what  will be the best way to cross  a river.   Jason Harris  said  each river is  assessed  for its  sensitive factors, such as  fish habitat and the  species of fish "For instance, Endako.  We  had a site visit and talked about  the sensitivities and  we are looking at moving that crossing to another area  which is less sensitive."   That new  crossing area is just south of Decker Lake.  Ray Doering says  there will be a detailed response plan for each and every water crossing, specific to that water crossing should  something  happen.

The issue of pipeline monitoring  was raised  and  why  did the Michigan  line  leaked so much when monitoring was supposed to be so good?  The answer  was that  pipelines of today are much better than they have been in the past, Enbridge 's Mike McManus  said  "Just because a pipeline is old doesn't mean its in poor condition, the key is on going maintenance." He says the new  in-line system of  monitoring will help in that on-going maintenance plan he also adds there have been significant improvements in the coatings.

The opportunities for construction and operations of the pipeline specifically for Burns Lake  have not yet been determined.  It is  expected there will be 165 permanent jobs in B.C., but how that will  boil down to Burns Lake is not known.  The temporary construction  jobs pose the  most opportunity as  locals with a certain skill set would be  required for  the construction of the line, and  the  construction of the pump station in Burns Lake. 

Enbridge's Michele Perret noted the pipeline and pump stations will be required to pay property taxes to  4 Regional Districts in B.C.,  and those taxes are expected to amount to about $29 million dollars.

Doering says  the  route for the pipeline has not yet been  finalized, but the  route  will make use of  existing  "disturbances" to the  natural beauty of the area, such as  previously logged areas and  following existing  logging roads.  "We are looking at route revision'R' so we have already gone thorough 20 versions and we are looking at Route  revision 'S' so  there are plenty of changes."

It is expected it will be a further two years before there is any decision on the  possible approval of the twinned line, and  construction would not likely start until late 2013  and  the line would not be ready to use until 2016.

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