National Energy Board

www.neb-one.gc.ca

Common menu bar

• Français
• Home
• Contact Us
• Help
• Search
• canada.gc.ca

Breadcrumb

LMCI Information Session - Members of the Public - 11 April 2008

11 April 2008
1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Community: Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec
Number of Attendees: 41

Stream 1 - Company Interactions with Landowners

• Improve the process for gathering comments for project approvals: the NEB should be in direct contact with landowners.
• Establish landowner compensation requirements and guidelines for companies.
• Prior agreements require follow-up to ensure that commitments are adhered to.
• Consult landowners about pipeline routes and alternativess.
• Use permanent numbered highways and public utility corridors to avoid agricultural lands.
• The NEB should participate in, co-ordinate and attend open houses for project applications.
• Recognize the impacts of regulations on landowners.
• The companies and the NEB should clarify regulations and standards concerning heavy equipment crossing pipelines.
• There should be permanent crossings.
• There should be a frame of reference.
• The number of parallel pipelines should be limited.
• Landowners should have the right to refuse a project.
• The NEB should develop guidelines in order to standardize mechanisms for dealing with complaints between various companies and crossing agreements.
• The NEB should set deadlines for companies to respond to landowners.
• Companies should rehabilitate land more quickly.
• The NEB should standardize easement forms.
• Landowners should not be held responsible for problems that could arise over the long term or at sites some distance from the pipeline (off the right-of-way, for example, pollutants carried by drainage lines). dans le lointain
• The NEB should impose more stringent requirements on companies in terms of follow-up and solving problems.
• The companies should use standard forms and justify the amount paid for the easement.
• The NEB should now have a list of the landowners affected by the various projects and contact them every two to three years.
• The NEB should notify landowners as soon as a company files an application for a project.
• A direct link should be established between NEB and UPA inspectors and landownerset .
• Minimum pipeline depth of 1.5 metres on agricultural land to make farming possible.
• Advocate greater respect for landowners (making appointments for visits, etc.).
• Adapt pipelines to new technology and realities (pipeline depth, heavy equipment).
• Have farmers participate in construction plans (e.g., trench width).
• The NEB should supervise companies and ensure that they deliver on their promises (e.g., when a company uses terms like “fair and equitable” and commitments (special clauses).
• Companies should pay better compensation.
• Regular payments should be made to landowners, rather than lump sum payments at the outset.
• Landowners should have complete immunity so that companies can be held liable (even outside the right-of-way) and have to ensure the integrity and security of landowners and make assurances as to pipeline depth.

Stream 2 - Improving the Accessibility of NEB Processes

• Timing: the NEB should take farming activities into account.
• Process deadlines are too tight; poor timing.
• Process is too complicated.
• Companies should pay legal costs.
• During hearings, negotiations, preparation of files, consultations, etc., there should be compensation for experts' fees (lawyers, notaries, specialists) and landowners' time.
• Reimbursement of appropriate costs (like the Régie does).
• Access to oral hearings (like BAPE).
• Make landowner participation more flexible; right now they have to participate in writing.
• The NEB should simplify its documents and write them in plain language.
• The NEB should not communicate with landowners via the companies.
• The NEB should communicate directly with producers and landowners on new projects, to demonstrate respect and to ensure better understanding.
  • Post public information on the NEB website.
  • Inform landowners of their rights.
  • Distribute NEB documents and publications.
  • Have a user-friendly website.
• Standing liaison committees (provincial or regional) could be developed (like with Hydro-Québec), and could include representatives of UPA, NEB, ALLAF, associations and all interested individuals. There should be funding for the committee.
• Need for more information on the location of rights-of-way, and landowners should be consulted on the choice of route.
• The NEB should play a bigger role in supervising negotiations with companies.
• Companies who provide access to legal services should pay for those legal services.
• The NEB should give landowners on-site access to its engineers and specialists or to engineers and experts specialising in soil, drainage and other issues, before, during and after the construction of a pipeline.
• Section 87 - Companies should be required to explain the importance of documents.
• Section 88 - appointment of negotiator does not work.
• Use the same level of assessment, regardless of project scope.
• Landowners want better and more information from the Board:
  • NEB's role
  • Make it easy to contact the NEB.
• Need for NEB staff on site (e.g., inspections).
• The NEB should have expertise specific to the Province of Quebec.
• Landowners like BAPE processes, including having BAPE representatives at the first information session.
• Need for information from an NEB employee who attends open houses held by the companies.
• The NEB should produce a guide or organizational chart to improve understanding and use of the legislation.
• The NEB should communicate information on landowners' rights.
• The NEB should regularly update its Guide for Landowners.
• The NEB should consider short-term applications or projects only, otherwise applications should be updated and re-evaluated (short-term orders).
• The consultation process should have rapid and real impacts (no "File 13").
• The NEB and companies should recognize the importance of land to landowners and how they feel about their land (their lands are like their children).

Stream 4 - Pipeline Abandonment - Physical Issues

• Impacts on the right-of-way are permanent, whether or not the pipeline is removed. How do we ensure that pipeline companies take responsibility for these impacts?
• Pipeline companies' responsibilities should be transferred with any sale of infrastructure to another company.
• Future generations should not be imposed on by leaving the pipeline in the ground.
• Once a pipeline is no longer in operation, the land should be restored to the same condition is was in before the pipeline was built, and all rehabilitation should be at the expense of the pipeline company.
• All costs of removing the easement should be covered by the pipeline company (notarial, legal, surveying and other costs).
• The land should be transferred directly to the landowner.
• The environmental impacts of removing the pipelines should be compared with the environmental impacts of leaving it in the ground.
• Once the pipeline is no longer in operation, it cannot be filled with cement (this is prohibited by provincial legislation).
• The terms and conditions for abandonment of a pipeline are already set out in the order and/or section 87 notice. This could cause problems.
• Once the transfer of the easement has been completed, if the landowner has work to do, the cost of dismantling the pipeline should be paid by the pipeline company.
• All decontamination costs should be paid by the pipeline company.

Primary navigation (left column)

Date Modified:

2011-10-28