Now under development is Encana's Deep Panuke offshore gas development project. It involves the production of natural gas from an offshore field located approximately 250 kilometres southeast of Halifax, and it's also in shallow water. Production is scheduled to begin in the last quarter of 2011. The Nova Scotia offshore area is predominantly a gas-prone region; only small amounts of light oil have been discovered to date.
In authorizing any work activity to be conducted offshore in Nova Scotia, the board holds operators accountable for taking the steps necessary to prevent the occurrence of hazardous incidents or spills. However, should a major accident, spill, or uncontrolled release of hydrocarbons occur during an authorized activity, the operator would be fully accountable and responsible for attending to any consequences and for any resulting damages. The CNSOPB would normally lead the government response in such situations and would coordinate with other federal and provincial government departments and agencies as appropriate. The exception is in cases of a leak from an export pipeline, for which the government response would be jointly led by our board and our colleagues at the National Energy Board.
Both the Sable project and the Deep Panuke project produce natural gas. Some of the producing fields do, however, contain some associated light hydrocarbon liquids called condensate. Given the properties of condensate, which is like a blend of kerosene and naphtha, the resultant surface sheen, should there be a release, would have a thickness measured in microns. It is very thin. Its overall size would be limited, given that it would rapidly dissipate through evaporation and through dispersion within the upper water column. This is very different from a crude oil spill.
All operators have a contract with an environmental response organization, such as Eastern Canada Response Corporation, to provide additional resources and expertise as and when necessary in responding to a spill. The regulatory regime in place for preventing the occurrence of hazardous incidents and spills and for assuring an appropriate response to such incidents is comprehensive and robust.
It is interesting to note that the U.S. government, in response to the Deep Water Horizon incident, has recently issued two new sets of rules for oil and gas operations being conducted on their outer continental shelf. The first rule requires operators to develop and implement safety and environmental management systems, something the offshore boards have required of operators for many years. The requirement for safety and environmental management systems has been ingrained in the new offshore drilling and production regulations promulgated here in Canada last December. These regulations actually go further, in that they also require operators to develop and implement safety plans and environmental protection plans that, among other things, describe how the operator's safety and environmental management systems will be applied to the actual activities that are to be carried out.
The second new set of rules in the U.S. amends drilling regulations related to well control. Board staff are currently reviewing these new U.S. requirements in detail to determine if there are any changes we need to make on a go-forward basis.
The new offshore drilling and production regulations make operators fully accountable for safety and environmental performance and drive them to adopt best standards and practices for conducting their work. A key element of our legislation is the ability of the board to issue comprehensive guidelines to aid operators in understanding and interpreting how they may achieve regulatory compliance. A set of four guideline documents has been issued for comment and interim use in association with the recently promulgated drilling and production regulations. These guidelines identify, among other things, recognized best standards and practices for conducting work, along with the requirements for regulatory filings when seeking board authorizations and approvals.
Another important update I wish to deliver to you today pertains to the international regulatory response to the Gulf of Mexico incident. The CNSOPB and the CNLOPB are members of the International Regulators' Forum, which is a group of nine regulators from around the world that regulate health and safety in most of the largest offshore oil- and gas-producing regions, including the U.K., Norway, Australia, and the U.S. This international regulators forum, which we refer to as the IRF, has been operating since 1994 for the purpose of driving forward improvements in health and safety in the sector through collaboration and joint programs and through the sharing of information and best practices. The National Energy Board has also stayed abreast of IRF initiatives, having been actively involved in three of the IRF conferences that this group has put together since 2005.
In September the IRF had a two-day extraordinary meeting hosted by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement, the new division of MMS in Washington. This meeting was the first extraordinary meeting convened in the forum's 17-year history and was called specifically to address issues related to recent offshore oil and gas incidents, particularly the loss of well control related to the Montara well off Australia and the Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico. During the meeting, IRF members discussed how to best respond to these incidents from a regulatory perspective. Additionally, many of the industry associations talked to the forum or briefed the forum on initiatives to improve the safety of offshore operations.
At the conclusion of this meeting the IRF confirmed its commitment to improving the safety of offshore operations and to providing leadership in global offshore safety regulations. These matters were also discussed at the third IRF offshore safety conference that was held in Vancouver, British Columbia, in early October. Hosted by Canada, the conference saw close to 200 delegates representing industry and regulators from 17 different countries, who came together for three days of productive discussions on a range of offshore safety topics. Following this conference, IRF members met and approved the strategic agenda focusing on the following topics: safety, culture, leadership, blowout preventer integrity, operational issues, performance indicators, operator competency, capacity criteria, the use of standards, and industry best practices.
In closing, I hope this update serves to maintain your confidence and that of the Canadian public in Canada's offshore regulatory regime.
Thank you for this opportunity.