Evidence of meeting #14 for Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was spill.
A recording is available from Parliament.
9:50 a.m.
Operations Manager, Operational Response Readiness, Western Canada Marine Response Corporation
I'm sorry, I don't have that information immediately available, but it's certainly in the millions of dollars.
9:50 a.m.
NDP
Kennedy Stewart NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
Can you elaborate on what the substance was that was spilled? Was it conventional crude? Was it bitumen-based crude?
9:50 a.m.
Operations Manager, Operational Response Readiness, Western Canada Marine Response Corporation
It was a synthetic bitumen. It was an albian synbit, I believe. The response techniques we used with that particular product were no different from the response techniques we use on other products that we respond to. The oil behaved very similarly to all the other oils, the bunkers that we've responded to in the past.
9:50 a.m.
NDP
9:50 a.m.
Operations Manager, Operational Response Readiness, Western Canada Marine Response Corporation
Bitumen is not being shipped through the pipeline. It's a diluted bitumen. Certainly bitumen and diluted bitumen do have different properties. There have been many studies on diluted bitumen and the effects in the environment and its floating or sinking abilities.
9:55 a.m.
Conservative
9:55 a.m.
Operations Manager, Operational Response Readiness, Western Canada Marine Response Corporation
No, I'm fine.
9:55 a.m.
NDP
Kennedy Stewart NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
The reason I'm asking about whether or not bitumen floats or sinks is that there is a plan to build a new 590,000 barrel per day oil pipeline from Edmonton to Burnaby, which I'm sure you're well aware of, because you—
9:55 a.m.
Conservative
Jeff Watson Conservative Essex, ON
Mr. Chair, while pipelines are interesting, unless we're talking about oil handling facilities or HNS response, I'm waiting for him to get to that point. We're several minutes into questioning now. This is not a study generally about pipelines and other things. This is about the specifics of a bill.
9:55 a.m.
Conservative
9:55 a.m.
NDP
Kennedy Stewart NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
That's right.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
At the end of this pipeline there is, of course, brand new oil handling facilities that are being built. There will be two additional docks that'll be added to the Burnaby facilities. Those facilities will be handling bitumen-based crude oil exclusively, according to the company. This is why I'm wondering whether or not this bitumen floats or sinks, because I imagine if it sinks, as you said some studies allude to, then you'll have to have different response capacities.
Could you perhaps comment on that?
9:55 a.m.
Operations Manager, Operational Response Readiness, Western Canada Marine Response Corporation
That's correct. We will adjust our capabilities and our equipment based on the products that move through our area.
9:55 a.m.
NDP
9:55 a.m.
Operations Manager, Operational Response Readiness, Western Canada Marine Response Corporation
Well, the project is still in the proposal phase. It's still being looked at; it's not a done deal. As I said before, we continue to move and we're adding 16 new full-time people, so that's an increase of 50% in staff. We're adding $6.5 million in equipment this year, which is probably one of the biggest years in our history. We're continuing to grow our capabilities.
9:55 a.m.
Conservative
9:55 a.m.
NDP
Kennedy Stewart NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
I'm just wondering on costs. If we had an Aframax-size spill in the Burrard Inlet, about 750,000 barrels, how much do you estimate that would cost to clean up?
9:55 a.m.
Professor, University of British Columbia, Fisheries Economics Research Unit, As an Individual
It would be huge, I can tell you that. There is a per barrel rate that I don't remember. Right away I could just multiply this for you, but I can find out. I'm trying hard to get a study going to do just that, because it's important to have that information.
Regarding your earlier question about sinking or not sinking, the Kalamazoo spill is diluted bitumen and it was so difficult to clean. This is what some of the officials of the U.S. EPA say. No one expected sunken oil to be so difficult to clean up. This is a quote I took from officials when it happened. It's a big issue.
9:55 a.m.
Conservative
Lawrence Toet Conservative Elmwood—Transcona, MB
I'd like to begin with Mr. O'Connor.
I want to get clarification on a couple of points you made in your opening remarks and make sure I understood them correctly. In your opening remarks you talked about the 2010 HNS convention. If I understood correctly, you strongly believe in that convention, that it is a very well put together international convention. In fact, if I understood correctly, you said your organization and you yourself have worked very hard to promote the HNS convention. Did I get that correctly?
9:55 a.m.
President, Canadian Maritime Law Association
Yes, you did. In fact, although the committee may not have been made aware of this, Canada, not my association, was the spearhead internationally, I guess you could say, for the creation of the 1996 HNS convention.
I won't waste your time with the details of the 1996 HNS convention, but it was agreed to. There were a few loose ends that had to be tied up. They were tied up with a protocol in 2010 which created the new title of HNS 2010 convention.
Canada was very much involved. Canada was actually very much a leader—not my association, by the way. I'm talking about Canadian civil servants from Transport Canada. It was very much not just a Canadian initiative, but something that Canada supported.
Our association, through our committees on the environment and oil and HNS, was very much in support of the convention as it was going forward. Transport Canada brought out different discussion papers. We attended different meetings that were held with Transport Canada as to the progress on the HNS convention.
No international convention is perfect, obviously, and maybe it could have been better, but we think it's good and we support it.
10 a.m.
Conservative
Lawrence Toet Conservative Elmwood—Transcona, MB
Thank you.
I want clarification on the ship-source oil pollution fund. You said that would add an additional $165 million in liability. Is that it? Is it $165 million over and above what the HNS convention would have in liability coverage?
