Info czar gets Canada pipeline regulator to cough up details of secret Enbridge reports
A federal probe by a parliamentary watchdog has prompted Canada’s national pipeline safety agency to cough up new details about internal Enbridge Inc. environment reports that officials previously tried to keep secret.
The new information, released to National Observer on Tuesday, shows that the Calgary-based company had internal reports showing a flurry of environmental problems in both its central and western regions. Prior to the release, no one had disclosed the full scope of Enbridge’s environmental problems and where they were occurring. These included issues such as difficulties in ensuring adequate environmental inspections in its western region as well as regarding its efforts to safely handle hazardous materials.
The federal agency, Canada's National Energy Board (NEB), concealed its knowledge of the existence of these reports when it publicly released a 2015 audit that concluded Enbridge was violating several pipeline safety rules, while taking steps to improve its performance.
Responding in 2016 to a formal request under Canada's access to information law, the NEB later disclosed that it had reviewed the secret Enbridge reports as part of its audit. But, following the advice of Enbridge, the federal agency censored the names of the reports.
The revelations contrast with previous statements by both the company and the federal regulator suggesting that the public should trust them because they are transparent. The new information will also feed into criticism from environmental groups, First Nations and landowners that allege that the NEB is too cozy with industry and unable to do its job effectively.
No comments:
Post a Comment