Good morning, and thank you for the opportunity. I wish I were there. I'll be there next week, but couldn't make it today.

I'm going to speak on behalf of the Canadian Energy Pipeline Association. The association represents the 12 major energy pipelines crossing Canada. About 119,000 kilometres move 97% of Canada's oil and natural gas liquids energy.

I want to mention at the beginning that CEPA will be actively participating in all of the federal regulatory reviews under way, including the Fisheries Act, CEAA, and NEB modernization, but today I'll confine my comments to the review at hand, the Navigation Protection Act. First, there are some fundamental principles of good regulation that apply equally to all of those reviews and you will hear us talking about that in the months ahead.

The most effective and efficient regulatory framework for all stakeholders is one that is clear, efficient, and comprehensive. In particular, the process should be science and fact based, be conducted by the best-placed regulator, avoid duplication, outline clear accountabilities, contain transparent rules and processes, allow for meaningful participation of those who have valuable contributions to make, and balance the need for timeliness with other objectives. CEPA supports any efforts the government makes to achieve these outcomes. We are in the process of finalizing our written submission and technical background for this review, which we will be filing by the deadline next week.

My comments today will focus briefly on the purpose of the legislation, the changes made over the past few years that relate to our industry, and how these changes are working today.

Overall, the previous reforms were aimed at modernizing the legislation, reducing duplication and inefficiencies, and clarifying the purpose of the NWPA, Navigable Waters Protection Act, relative to other legislation. With that in mind, the primary intent of the Navigation Protection Act is to ensure that navigation is protected and to balance navigation rights with the need to construct infrastructure.

The NPA is intended to provide oversight of works and undertakings that can interfere with navigation and its priority is to ensure that development can be done safely and with minimal impact on navigation. Other legislation that is also under review by parliamentary committees or expert panels, namely, CEAA 2012, the National Energy Board modernization, the Fisheries Act, consider the impact to habitat and the environment and how pipelines are regulated.

Given the broad mandate of other environmental legislation, we do not believe that environment protection has been watered down or impaired by changes in the NPA. Rather, the pipeline industry project reviews under other legislation, and particularly by the NEB, fully consider the environmental impact of pipelines crossing water bodies.

In addition, the changes implemented in 2012 reduce duplication and allow government, industry, and stakeholders to improve outcomes by focusing assessments on key areas of impact and allocating resources more efficiently. These changes have strengthened, focused, and clarified the purpose of the NPA and other environmental legislation and set the scene for enhanced environmental outcomes going forward.

We are hopeful that this review of the NPA will be mindful of not duplicating the regulations and protections available under other legislation. We are also hopeful that this review will look at the intent and purpose of the changes under the NPA, with a view to which changes are working and which require modification.

Before talking about these changes, I think it would be helpful to understand how pipelines cross watercourses. During construction, there are some, albeit often temporary, disturbances to the water body from both an environmental and navigation perspective. Sometimes it may be necessary to install a temporary bridge, culvert, ice, snow or log fill in the water to allow construction vehicles a safe place to cross. These are fully removed after construction is complete.

Also, we would point out that CEPA members employ world-class watercourse crossing methodology that combines safety, engineering, and environmental expertise. We use the latest available technologies to minimize environmental impacts and, where necessary, employ mitigation measures that are grounded in science to address any remaining concern.

Importantly, for our purpose here, once the crossing is completed, things go back to normal in the watercourse, and there is generally no impact on navigation.

There are three key changes in the legislation that impact the pipeline industry.

The first is delegating authority to the NEB to assess impacts on navigation for federally regulated pipelines. These changes require the NEB to take into account effects on navigation and navigation safety before recommendations or decisions are made for new pipelines. Previously, this was the responsibility of Transport Canada post-NEB approval.

Second, narrowing the scope of the act from all waterways in Canada to a schedule covering 162 rivers, lakes, and oceans is important.

The third is the minor works order of 2009. Provincially regulated pipelines that are not regulated by the NEB are still subject to Transport Canada authorization if they cross a scheduled waterway. However, some of these crossings meet the minor works order criteria for pipelines, so they don’t need a specific authorization.

We believe that these changes have had a positive impact, without watering down navigation protection or environmental protection.

Previously, there was duplication of authority, with the NEB having authority to regulate pipelines under the NEB Act, and the Minister of Transport having duplicate authority under the NWPA for water crossings. The 2012 changes consolidated that authority, with the NEB as a one window or best-placed regulator. CEPA believes this is a positive step that will create not only a more efficient permitting process, but also a better outcome by reinforcing accountability with a single regulator. It also builds on the industry's record of safety and performance in construction and operation of watercourse crossings. An integrated approach, taking into account the full range of safety and environmental concerns of a pipeline watercourse crossing, allows the industry and the regulator to work together more effectively to achieve the best results.

The NEB takes navigation and navigation safety into account with the same rigour as previously carried out by Transport Canada. The NEB conducts an independent, fair, and publicly accessible regulatory review process. It employs experts on staff who are familiar with pipeline construction and operation. They have the expertise to identify safety and environmental effects that are potentially significant. Although other federal government departments have specific expertise, none have experience related to pipelines.

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