Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Earlier in my Member’s statement, I talked about the diesel fuel spill in Trout Lake. In my opinion, this contamination was avoidable. Northland Utilities knew that the tank was sitting on unstable ground. Why was there no berm in place and why wasn’t a flexible feeding pipe used from the beginning? The community of Trout Lake is most concerned about avoiding anything similar happening again.
My question to the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources concerns the planning and preparedness of such emergency situations, where the goal is to prevent situations like this from happening again. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister explain what safety features, like shut-off valves, are currently required for fuel tanks and for feeding pipes, to prevent fuel spills, and what other features like berms are required to control contamination, should there be a release of fuel? Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My understanding was that the fuel tank in question was a double-walled tank, which is supposed to preclude the need for a berm. Clearly, there was a failure not with the tank itself but the connection from the valve to the tank and from that valve to the hose.
Clearly, the Member has raised some good points. Environment and Natural Resources is dealing with the cleanup, but we’re going to be working as the government, with ENR as the lead agency, to do a debriefing and review to make sure, in this circumstance, what happened and why, to preclude that it ever happens again — and to make sure that we check our other facilities so that we don’t have any other of these types of circumstances just waiting to happen.
Mr. Speaker, it’s been my experience that double-walled tanks…. There are certainly reasons for having double-walled tanks — they’re meant for temporary installations. Maybe the Minister can clarify this for me: I think that double-walled tanks, if they’re intended to be permanent, that there indeed be a berm attached. As well, with any tanks there, we’ve got lots of unstable ground, and all the tanks should have at least the minimal flexible coupling. Can the Minister advise me of the current regulations? Mahsi.
Mr. Speaker, I’ll check on those specific details and provide that information to the Member.
The NWT has an Environmental Protection Act. Under this act, we also have a consolidation of spill contingency planning and reporting regulations. Anyone who stores more than 20,000 litres of contaminants above ground needs to file a spill contingency plan with the department. Can the Minister confirm that Northland Utilities had filed a spill contingency plan for the Trout Lake power station operation that accounts sufficiently for the circumstances and remoteness of that community? Mahsi.
Mr. Speaker, clearly, once this spill was discovered and the notification was made, there was a full response from ATCO, Northland Utilities, ENR, and all the other involved government agencies, to make sure that it was handled in the most appropriate way. There will be a debriefing and review of this whole incident once remediation has been dealt with, and all those issues and items raised by the Member will be addressed.
I’m very glad to hear that the situation will be adequately assessed and a determination to review the regulations. I’m looking for that as well. Small and remote communities, even more so, need adequate protection measures, and I’d like to see our current existing legislation certainly accommodate that, Mr. Speaker. Mahsi.
I will commit to sharing that information, as it comes ready, with the Member and with the appropriate committee, so that we can all have our input into this particular situation.
The Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.
