Primary school surrounded by a pipeline at risk

photo anne-caroline desplanques
The oil pipeline Trans-Northern form an ” L ” along the fence of the schoolyard of école Adélard-Desrosiers, in the borough of Montréal-Nord. All along the pipeline, there are small yellow signs that warn of the presence of danger.

Anne Caroline Desplanques

Thursday, 12 October, 2017 06:30

UPDATE
Thursday, 12 October, 2017 06:30

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A school in Montreal-North is surrounded by the oldest pipeline in the city, the closing of which has been claimed by two experts from the national energy Board because of the risks it poses.

Two lines of the pipeline Trans-Northern, dating back to ages of 45 and 65, and they spend literally along the two sides of the schoolyard of école Adélard-Desrosiers. The lines form a ” L ” around the school.

All along the pipeline, yellow signs signal the presence of danger. However, the school’s director, Lucie Aylwin, was not aware that his students lived side by side with a line of transportation of petroleum products before the call of the Journal.

“That is a clue that if he gets something serious, it’s going to be chaos “, is concerned about Luc Falardeau, environmental engineer, retired, and a member of the committee of citizens Pipeline Laval Upstream.

“If people are not prepared, this is the recipe for a disaster,” says Patrick Bonin of Greenpeace. Without being alarmist, there is a risk and the consequences could be extremely serious. “

Wanting reassuring, Ms. Aylwin states that ” contingency measures are standardized to the school board with the firefighters “.

“We, we are responsible to learn and apply,” she said.

Risk of explosion

However, she acknowledges that it is of general plans and not specific to the pipeline. The two assembly points in case of evacuation are also located in the courtyard of the school, less than two meters of the pipeline, noted The Journal.

One of these points is more along the line of the sewer, it-even a few inches of the pipeline. However, “in the event of a leak, there is a possibility that the gas fumes seeping into the sewer through the joints and cause an explosion,” said Mr. Falardeau.

Trans-North ensures that ” the area near the school Adélard-Desrosiers is patrolled daily, Monday to Friday “. “We also make regular use of specialized tools for internal inspection,” adds the company.

“Misfires major “

But Mr. Bonin stressed that Trans-Northern has not a balance sheet reassuring. “The company has had misfires major in terms of security,” he says.

Trans-Northern is responsible for six of the 13 incidents related to the operation of pipelines in Quebec, since 2008. In addition, ” there are concerns as to the ability of the pipe to resist the pressure “, added the ecologist.

In 2016, the national energy Board (NEB) imposed on Trans-North a decrease of pressure in the pipeline and still has not lifted the sanction.

At the same time, two board members of the NEB have requested the temporary closing of the drive, because in six years, Trans-Northern has failed to perform multiple jobs required by the Board to ensure the safety of the infrastructure.

The pipeline in focus

• Year of construction: 1952
• 850 km between Nanticoke, Ontario and Montreal-Is
• 172 900 barrels per day of refined petroleum products (kerosene, gasoline, oil, etc)

Two years for urgent work

It will take two years to Trans-North to begin work on a portion of risk of the pipeline, near Vaudreuil-Dorion, not far from the Ottawa river.

The spokesman of the MRC de Vaudreuil-Soulanges, Simon Richard, denounces the lack of due diligence of the company.

“When talking about an emergency,” growls he.

This is Sylvie Rozon, owner of a woodlot in Saint-Lazare who has discovered the issue in June 2016 on a walk around his property.

Erosion

Due to erosion, the pipeline is completely dug up at the same place where it crosses the stream Payment, which empties into the Ottawa river. It should, however, be buried three feet below ground.

Ms. Rozon immediately contacted Trans-North, but it took months before the company was involved, ” she said. The company has first covered the pipeline rocks, ” says dr. Rozon. Then she was informed a few days ago that a segment of 500 metres of pipe will be replaced.

“This replacement is necessary to preserve the integrity of the pipeline,” says the letter of Trans-North Ms. Rozon. “Realistically, we believe that this (work) will be during the summer of 2018,” says the business Journal.

However, “there is a risk that seems to us imminent,” says Mr Richard. The company ensures that the rip-rap current protects the pipeline and the environment.

Drinking water

Patrick Bonin of Greenpeace, points out that a spill in the creek could have dramatic consequences, given the proximity of the Ottawa river.

A spill at this location would contaminate the 26 drinking water sources in the region of Montreal in only 12 hours, according to a report published in 2015.

Mr. Bonin is concerned that Trans-Northern has never replaced the portion of its pipeline that crosses the Ottawa river for 65 years. It has yet done in the Oka park, 13 years ago.

The sections that cross the river of the Thousand Islands and those of the Prairies have not been replaced, nor the one in front of the école Adélard-Desrosiers, in the borough of Montréal-Nord.