News 

The 2016 Western Canadian DIRT Report has been released and is available at the ABCGA website.

Highlights:

The largest number of reported incidents occurred in June with 603 reported events. The next highest months were August with 561 reported events and September with 534 reported events.

A significant number of incidents were reported during winter months: with 277 reported events from January to February and 562 reported events from November to December, for a total of 839 reported events during winter.

Almost 42 per cent of all reported incidents (1,824 reported events) occurred in the region of Edmonton, and 1,217 of those occurred in the municipal region of Leduc, which accounted for almost 28 per cent of all reported incidents in Alberta during 2016.

One out of every five incidents was reported as causing a service disruption, however more than 60 per cent of reported events listed the occurrence of a service disruption as "unknown."

The largest number of reported incidents occurred during construction and development work, with 1,797 reported events, which was followed by 1,711 reported events occurring during street work.

More information about DIRT can be found on our website under the DIRT Tab

Great news for the CCGA on Oct. 31! The Speaker of the House, Hon. Geoff Regan, passed his ruling on Bill S-229, allowing the bill to proceed to first reading.

For more information on the Speaker's Ruling on Bill S-229, click here.

This is great news for damage prevention across Canada. Federal damage prevention legislation will also be a big help in furthering our goal to introduce provincial damage prevention legislation in Alberta in the near future, helping to provide a model for provincial damage prevention legislation throughout Canada.

We are working on our legislation outreach plan and we will send you an update in the next couple weeks on how you can reach your MPs and request support for the bill.

If you would like to read the Speaker's Ruling, a full transcription is available to read on openparliament.ca. 

Event Start: September 19, 2017
Event End: September 21, 2017
Location: Delta Hotels Ottawa City Centre, Ottawa, Ontario

Be a part of Canada’s unified damage prevention voice at this event that attracts members from the many Canadian organizations and associations who share the responsibility of damage prevention and public safety solutions. An excellent opportunity to network with peers across Canada and share knowledge and ideas.

Topics under development include:

Ground Disturbance Standard
Abandoned Facility – A Panel Discussion
Excavating Effective Strategies
International Best Practices
Protecting the Infrastructure through Public/Private Partnerships
Municipal Best Practices – A Panel Discussion

For more information, and to register go to http://canadiancga.com/Annual-Symposium

The Senate of Canada voted last week to adopt Bill S-229, An Act respecting underground infrastructure safety, on Tuesday, May 2, 2017 following its third reading. The bill, which was introduced by Senator Grant Mitchell in September, will now proceed to the House of Commons where, if passed, it will receive Royal Assent and be made law.

“No doubt that today is a big day for the CCGA and damage prevention in Canada,” said Mike Sullivan, executive director of the CCGA. “We’ve never gotten this far in our goal to achieve damage prevention legislation.”

Inspired by the “Call or Click Before You Dig” principle, the bill will:

• Require operators of underground infrastructure that is federally regulated or on federal land to register that infrastructure with a notification centre.
• Require people who are planning to dig to first make a “locate request” with the relevant notification centre.
• Require operators of underground infrastructure to respond to locate requests by either locating and marking the ground, providing a clear description of the location of the underground infrastructure in the vicinity of the proposed excavation, or providing an all clear to proceed with the excavation.

“Bill S-229 represents very positive and unique public policy,” said Senator Grant Mitchell. “This bill will significantly reduce societal, economic and business costs, and significantly enhance public safety. And, it will do this at no appreciable cost to government.

I am very pleased that S-229 was passed by the Senate with vast support from all groups. Now that the bill has been sent to the House of Commons, I trust that it will be given due consideration in order to help ensure the safety of individuals, workers and the public in proximity to excavation work, and protect the integrity Canada’s underground infrastructure.”

We are still looking for your help in supporting Bill S-229 in the House of Commons. 

Providing your support is easy to do! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE DETAILS

The National Energy Board (NEB) is launching a one-year pilot program to make a key safety standard, known as CSA Z662 – Oil and Gas Pipeline Systems (CSA Z662), available online to the public free of charge.

CSA Z662 is incorporated by reference in the National Energy Board Onshore Pipeline Regulations (OPR) making it a regulation that applies to NEB-regulated oil and gas pipelines. It is also included in the NEB’s Filing Manual and companies must follow CSA Z662 when they submit an application for a new project. 

The pilot runs until March 2018 with the NEB covering the cost so Canadians can have full, digital access. 

https://www.canada.ca/en/national-energy-board/news/2017/04/important_pipelinesafetystandardnowpubliclyavailable.html

CSA Z662 web portal

The Canadian Common Ground Alliance harmonized Best Practices version 2.0 was released this week at their Annual Symposium. Please click HERE to get your electronic copy of the manual.

All CAPULC members have an opportunity to win a 2016 Grey Cup package in Toronto.

Working with the Canadian Football Hall of Fame, the CCGA is the Safety Sponsor for the 2016 Grey Cup in Toronto. The sponsorship promotes the CCGA's comprehensive "DigSafe / Creuser Sans Danger" over the Grey Cup weekend in Toronto and facilitates the appearance of the Grey Cup at six Canadian CGA Regional Partner events in 2017. 

The Grey Cup's intentionally unannounced appearance at the CCGA Damage Prevention Symposium in Banff generated a lot of excitement. Bridging awareness through partnerships is critical to expanding the knowledge of our national brand and safety message.

Please Visit the CCGA Link to View the Contest Rules. 

The Alberta Energy Regulator posted a notice to all licensees and operators who completed work for the protection of infrastructure and facilities during the Fort McMurray wildfires to report those activities to the AER. Click HERE to read the Bulletin.

Please click THIS LINK to read Senator Mitchell’s speech delivered on Tuesday, October 4, 2016.

The National Energy Board Regulations for Pipeline Damage Prevention came into force on June 19, 2016.

Please click here for the Letter and click here for a Copy of the the Regulations