Canadian Energy Regulator Processing Plant Regulations (SOR/2003-39)

• 27 (1) A company shall develop and implement a construction safety manual and shall submit it to the Regulator within the time specified by the Regulator.

• (2) A company shall keep a copy of the construction safety manual or the relevant parts of it at its processing plant, in a location where it is readily accessible to every person engaged in construction at the plant.

PART 4Testing and Examination

• 28 (1) A company shall ensure that each pressure test conducted at its processing plant is performed under its direct supervision or the direct supervision of its agent or mandatary.

• (2) A company shall ensure that the agent or mandatary referred to in subsection (1) is independent of any contractor that conducts the pressure test or any contractor that participated in the fabrication of the work to be tested.

• (3) The company, or the agent or mandatary who supervised the test, shall prepare, date and sign a record of the test.

• 29 (1) A company shall develop and implement a program for the non-destructive examination of welded joints for the purpose of determining their suitability and shall ensure that the program meets the requirements of this section.

• (2) Subject to subsection (3), the program shall include a requirement for the mandatory non-destructive examination of the entire weld volume of all piping welds.

• (3) The program may allow for examination of fewer than all piping welds provided that the program is based on a documented risk analysis.

• (4) If a company proposes to implement a program referred to in subsection (3) or a modification to that program, the company shall submit the program or modification and the risk analysis on which the program or modification is based to the Regulator prior to implementation.

• (5) Visual examination alone is not an accepted form of non-destructive examination for the purposes of this section.

PART 5Operation

• 30 (1) A company shall

  • (a) develop, implement and regularly review and update operations manuals that provide information and procedures to promote safety and environmental protection in the operation of its processing plant,

  • (b) keep a current copy of the operations manuals or the relevant parts of them at its processing plant, in a location where they are readily accessible to every person engaged in operations at the plant.

• (2) A company shall ensure that the operations manuals contain safe-work procedures for all tasks that present risks to the safety of persons or that may be detrimental to the environment.

• 31 (1) In this section, “safe-work permit” means a written authorization granted by a company that permits an activity to be carried on in or around its processing plant, subject to any conditions on the authorization.

• (2) A company shall develop and implement a safe-work permit system to manage and regulate all work at its processing plant.

32 A company shall ensure that its processing plant is staffed at all times with at least the number of employees set out in the report referred to in section 50.

33 A company shall take all reasonable steps to ensure that

• (a) maintenance activities at its processing plant do not create a detriment to the environment or a hazard to the safety of persons that is greater than the detriment or hazard normally associated with identical activities carried on elsewhere in Canada; and

• (b) persons at a maintenance site are informed of the practices and procedures that are to be followed for their safety and for the protection of the environment.

34 No company shall operate any equipment with a hazard-detection alarm or shutdown device bypassed or rendered inoperable, unless other means are used to achieve an equivalent level of safety.

35 A company shall

• (a) develop, implement and regularly review an emergency procedures manual and, when required by a review, update the manual;

• (b) submit the emergency procedures manual to the Regulator sufficiently in advance of the initial processing of fluids to allow for a thorough review by the Regulator; and

• (c) submit to the Regulator any updates that are made to the manual.

36 A company shall establish and maintain a liaison with the agencies that may be involved in an emergency response activity at its processing plant and shall consult with them in developing and updating the emergency procedures manual.

37 A company shall take all reasonable steps to inform persons who may be associated with an emergency response activity at its processing plant of the practices and procedures to be followed and make available to them the relevant information from the emergency procedures manual.

38 A company shall develop and implement a continuing educational program for the police, fire departments, medical facilities, other appropriate organizations and agencies and the public residing adjacent to its processing plant to inform them of the location of the plant, potential emergency situations involving the plant and the safety procedures to be followed in the event of an emergency.

39 A company shall

• (a) maintain communication facilities for the safe and efficient operation of its processing plant and for emergency situations;

• (b) retain, in accordance with the record retention and handling program referred to in section 55, data recorded at the processing plant for analysis in the event of an incident;

• (c) if practical, clearly mark the open and closed positions of main emergency shutdown valves;

• (d) post along the boundaries of its processing plant signs indicating the name of the company and the telephone number to call in the event of an emergency at the processing plant; and

• (e) post signs warning of potential hazards.

40 A company shall

• (a) operate all hazard-detection devices as part of regular maintenance activities to test whether they are functional; and

• (b) document all tests, repairs and replacement of parts in the hazard-detection devices and retain, in accordance with the records retention and handling program referred to in section 55, the documents.

41 A company shall develop and implement a processing plant integrity program that sets out management systems, records systems and methodologies for monitoring the processes and components and for mitigating identifiable hazards at the plant.

• 42 (1) If a company proposes to deactivate a processing plant or part of one for 12 months or more, has maintained a processing plant or part of one in a deactivated mode for 12 months or more or has not operated a processing plant or part of one for 12 months or more, the company shall notify the Regulator of that fact.

• (2) The company shall set out in the notification the reasons, and the procedures that were or are to be used, for the activity that is the subject of the notification.

• 43 (1) If a company proposes to reactivate a processing plant or part of one that has been deactivated for 12 months or more, the company shall notify the Regulator of that fact before the reactivation.

• (2) The company shall set out in the notification the reasons, and the procedures that are to be used, for the reactivation.

• 43.1 (1) If a company proposes to decommission a processing plant or part of one, the company shall submit an application for the decommissioning to the Commission.

• (2) The company shall include in the application the reasons, and the procedures that are to be used, for the decommissioning.

• 44 (1) A company shall develop and implement a training program for persons who are directly involved in the operation of its processing plant.

• (2) The company shall ensure that the training program instructs those persons on

  • (a) the safety regulations and procedures applicable to the day-to-day operation of the processing plant;

  • (b) responsible environmental practices and procedures in the day-to-day operation of the processing plant;

  • (c) the proper operating procedures for the equipment that the persons could reasonably be expected to use; and

  • (d) the emergency procedures set out in the manual referred to in section 35 and the operating procedures for all emergency equipment that the persons could reasonably be expected to use.

45 The company shall ensure that all visitors to its processing plant are made familiar with the components of the safety program necessary for their personal safety before they enter the plant.

PART 6Reporting

46 A company shall immediately notify the Regulator of any incident relating to the construction, operation or abandonment of its processing plant and shall submit to the Regulator a preliminary incident report as soon as practicable and a detailed incident report as soon as practicable.

47 A company shall

• (a) immediately notify the Regulator of any hazard that renders or may render its processing plant unsafe to operate; and

• (b) as soon as practicable provide the Regulator with a report assessing the hazard identified in paragraph (a) including a proposed contingency plan and a description of the cause, duration and potential impacts of the hazard, of repairs to be made and of measures to prevent future failures.

48 A company shall report to the Regulator, and to the appropriate authorities of the province in which its processing plant is located, any burning of either hydrocarbon gas or a byproduct of the processing of hydrocarbon gas that occurs as a result of an emergency condition.

• 49 (1) In this section, suspend means to interrupt the operation of the whole or a portion of a processing plant due to an unforeseen event or to conduct scheduled maintenance, repairs or replacements.

• (1.1) A company shall, as soon as practicable, notify the Regulator and the appropriate authorities of the province in which its processing plant is located of any decision made by the company to suspend

  • (a) the operation of the whole plant for a period exceeding 24 hours; or

  • (b) the operation of any portion of the plant for a period exceeding seven days.

• (2) In addition to the notification under subsection (1.1), the company shall provide the following information to the Regulator and to the appropriate authorities of the province in which its processing plant is located:

  • (a) details of the operations to be suspended;

  • (b) the reason for the suspension;

  • (c) the duration of the suspension; and

  • (d) the effect of the suspension on the throughput of the plant, on the safety of persons or on the environment.