News 

The world of training has changed for Locators, Excavators and Ground Disturbers. We now have the ability to show workers and the public how complex the Buried Utility Infrastructure looks like under their feet. Here is quick demo video of the training from Locate Management.

All feedback from the Bill S-233 Team is now posted on the CCGA website, take a look here. Bill S-233 is a Bill Enacting the Underground Infrastructure Safety Enhancement Act.

The report from the recently completed Guidelines for Coordination of Utility Relocation project has been approved by the Transportation Association of Canada’s (TAC) Chief Engineers’ Council (CEC). You can find out more information here

On June 17, 2015 Senator Grant Mitchell tabled legislation that will create a federal underground infrastructure notification system which is consistent with most other provincial jurisdictions across Canada.  See Bill S-233 in full.

The legislation will require owners and operators of federally regulated underground infrastructure to register with a provincial notification system. It also requires federally regulated entities to inform a notification centre if work results in a ground disturbance on federal lands, and for the ground location of the underground infrastructure to be marked following a locate request.

“This legislation has been a long time in the making,” said Alberta Senator Grant Mitchell. “During my time as deputy chair of the Standing Senate Committee on Energy, the Environment, and Natural Resources, we heard testimony during two of our Senate studies which urged the expansion of notification centres across Canada. This is really about filling a policy gap that exists in this country. We’re encouraged that provinces like Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario have developed either full or partial legislation requiring registration of buried infrastructure with the provincial notification system; however, we were amazed to learn that the federal government does not have similar requirements in place.”

Mike Sullivan, President of Alberta One-Call Corporation and Executive Director of the Canadian Common Ground Alliance (CCGA) commended Senator Mitchell for this initiative. “Securing damage prevention legislation and meaningful enforcement of same, across all jurisdictions in Canada has been a longstanding goal of the CCGA.”

Sullivan continued, stating that “we are very pleased with this initiative and believe it will contribute to safer digging practices and reduce damages to underground infrastructure across Canada. We look forward to working with the government of Canada to ensure the integrity of our country’s critical buried infrastructure is recognized and that workers and owners and operators of underground infrastructure are protected in every jurisdiction across the country.”

In spite of the upcoming end of the parliamentary session, Senator Mitchell chose to table this bill in order to initiate debate on this important issue. He intends to reintroduce it at the start of the next session. “This legislation will send a strong message to our provincial partners that the federal government takes safe digging practices seriously.”

For more information, please contact:

Kyle Johnston, Office of Senator Grant Mitchell 

Tel: 613-995-4254

Email: Kyle.Johnston@sen.parl.gc.ca

CAPULC sent out the draft Underground Facility Locator Competency Profile on May 26, 2015 requesting review and welcomed feedback. If you did not receive a copy, please contact admin@capulc.ca to receive a copy. We are accepting feedback until July 1, 2015. Please also contact us at competencies@capulc.ca if you are interested in joining our Competency Profile Committee, open to all industry stakeholders. Damage Prevention is a shared responsibility and all input is welcomed.

CSA Z247 is now published and is available for purchase HERE. French Translation will begin shortly with publication later this summer.

CSA Z247 is the first Damage Prevention Standard in Canada. It articulates the damage prevention process and elements that when consistently applied will reduce damages to Canada's underground infrastructure enhancing public, worker and community safety, preserving the environment and ultimately, saving lives.

Harper Government Introduces Legislation to Further Enhance Canada's World-Class Pipeline Safety System.

The Honourable Greg Rickford, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources, today announced the introduction of the Pipeline Safety Act. This Act introduces legislative measures to further enhance Canada’s world-class pipeline safety system.

More information can be found on the government website - new Pipeline Safety Act

Overview

Every year, thousands of buried facilities such as cables, wires, pipelines, water mains and sewer lines are accidently damaged by excavators. Services are interrupted in nearly every case and sometimes incidents lead to injury, death and/or significant environmental contamination. In its report tabled today entitled Digging Safely: One-call Notification Systems and the Prevention of Damage to Canada's Buried Infrastructure, the Standing Senate Committee on Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources has outlined four recommendations to the federal government to improve public and worker safety and to prevent damage to buried facilities in Canada.

Quotes

"Damage to buried infrastructure strains public resources such as emergency response personnel and can result in economic costs, such as construction delays, repairs and traffic congestion. These incidents are an unnecessary risk to the public, a waste of economic resources and a burden on taxpayers and ratepayers. Our Senate Committee is recommending that owners and operators of federally regulated buried infrastructure be required to become members of a provincial or territorial one-call service, where they exist. We believe our recommendation could help reduce these incidents and their negative impacts on the wider community."

– Senator Richard Neufeld, Chair of the Committee

"Our Committee was encouraged to learn during our hearings that a standard for the Damage Prevention for the Protection of Underground Infrastructure, also known as CSA Z247, is being developed through the Canadian Standards Association. Therefore, our report is recommending that the federal government reference the CSA Z247 standard in relevant federal legislation and encourage provinces and territories to reference the standard in their legislation."

- Senator Paul Massicotte, Deputy Chair of the Committee

Quick Facts

• Canada's first one-call centre began operating in Alberta in 1984.
• Today, six provinces have one-call centres (AB, QC, BC, ON, SK, MB).
• In 2012, nearly 8,000 damage incidents to buried infrastructure were reported in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia. This translates to 31 damages for every business day in 2012.

Associated Links

More information can be found under the news section of the Canadian Common Ground Alliance or your provincial chapter.

www.canadiancga.com


For more information, please contact:

Ceri Au Senate Communications 613-944-9145 Ceri.Au@sen.parl.gc.ca

Lynn Gordon Clerk of the Committee: 613-991-3620 Lynn.Gordon@sen.parl.gc.ca

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