Pipeline Safety Act (S.C. 2015, c. 21)
Full Document:
Assented to 2015-06-18
16. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 48:
Marginal note:Abandoned pipelines
48.1 (1) No person shall, without the Board’s leave, make contact with, alter or remove an abandoned pipeline.
Marginal note:Terms
(2) The Board may, on granting an application for leave under this section, impose any terms that it considers proper.
Marginal note:Exception
(3) The Board may make orders or regulations governing the circumstances in which or conditions under which leave is not necessary.
Polluter Pays Principle
Marginal note:Purpose
48.11 The purpose of sections 48.12 to 48.17 is to reinforce the “polluter pays” principle by, among other things, imposing financial requirements on any company that is authorized under this Act to construct or operate a pipeline.
Liability
Marginal note:Recovery of loss, damage, costs, expenses
48.12 (1) If an unintended or uncontrolled release from a pipeline of oil, gas or any other commodity occurs, all persons to whose fault or negligence the release is attributable or who are by law responsible for others to whose fault or negligence the release is attributable are jointly and severally, or solidarily, liable for
(a) all actual loss or damage incurred by any person as a result of the release or as a result of any action or measure taken in relation to the release;
(b) the costs and expenses reasonably incurred by Her Majesty in right of Canada or a province, any Aboriginal governing body or any other person in taking any action or measure in relation to the release; and
(c) all loss of non-use value relating to a public resource that is affected by the release or by any action or measure taken in relation to the release.
Marginal note:Contribution based on degree of fault
(2) The persons who are at fault or negligent or who are by law responsible for persons who are at fault or negligent are liable to make contributions to each other or to indemnify each other in the degree to which they are respectively at fault or negligent.
Marginal note:Vicarious liability
(3) The company that is authorized under this Act to construct or operate the pipeline from which the release occurred is jointly and severally, or solidarily, liable with any contractor — to whose fault or negligence the release is attributable — that performs work for the company for the actual loss or damage, the costs and expenses and the loss of non-use value, described in paragraphs (1)(a) to (c).
Marginal note:Absolute liability
(4) If an unintended or uncontrolled release of oil, gas or any other commodity from a pipeline occurs, the company that is authorized under this Act to construct or operate that pipeline is liable, without proof of fault or negligence, up to the applicable limit of liability that is set out in subsection (5) for the actual loss or damage, the costs and expenses and the loss of non-use value, described in paragraphs (1)(a) to (c).
Marginal note:Limits of liability
(5) For the purposes of subsection (4), the limits of liability are,
(a) in respect of a company that is authorized under this Act to construct or operate one or more pipelines that individually or in the aggregate have the capacity to transport at least 250,000 barrels of oil per day, one billion dollars or, if a greater amount is prescribed by the regulations, that amount; and
(b) in respect of a company that is authorized under this Act to construct or operate any other pipeline, the amount prescribed by the regulations.
Marginal note:Regulations — limits of liability
(6) The Governor in Council may, by regulation, on the Minister’s recommendation,
(a) prescribe an amount greater than one billion dollars for the purposes of paragraph (5)(a); and
(b) prescribe an amount for the purposes of paragraph (5)(b) in respect of a company or class of companies.
Marginal note:Liability under another law — subsection (4)
(7) If a company is liable under subsection (4) with respect to a release and it is also liable under any other Act, without proof of fault or negligence, for that release, the company is liable up to the greater of the limit of liability referred to in subsection (5) that applies to it and the limit up to which it is liable under the other Act. If the other Act does not set out a limit of liability, the limits referred to in subsection (5) do not apply.
Marginal note:Costs and expenses not recoverable under Fisheries Act
(8) The costs and expenses that are recoverable by Her Majesty in right of Canada or a province under this section are not recoverable under subsection 42(1) of the Fisheries Act.
Marginal note:Proceedings — loss of non-use value
(9) Only Her Majesty in right of Canada or a province may institute proceedings to recover a loss of non-use value described in paragraph (1)(c).
Marginal note:Claims
(10) All claims under this section may be sued for and recovered in any court of competent jurisdiction in Canada and shall rank, firstly, in favour of persons incurring actual loss or damage described in paragraph (1)(a), without preference, secondly, to meet the costs and expenses described in paragraph (1)(b), and, lastly, to recover a loss of non-use value described in paragraph (1)(c).
Marginal note:Saving
(11) Subject to subsections (8) and (9), nothing in this section suspends or limits
(a) any legal liability or remedy for an act or omission by reason only that the act or omission is an offence under this Act or gives rise to liability under this section;
(b) any recourse, indemnity or relief available at law to a person who is liable under this section against any other person; or
(c) the operation of any applicable law or rule of law that is consistent with this section.
Marginal note:Limitation period or prescription
(12) Proceedings in respect of claims under this section may be instituted within three years from the day on which the loss, damage or costs and expenses were incurred but in no case after six years from the day on which the release occurred.
Financial Requirements
Marginal note:Financial resources
48.13 (1) A company that is authorized under this Act to construct or operate a pipeline shall maintain the amount of financial resources necessary to pay the amount of the limit of liability referred to in subsection 48.12(5) that applies to it or, if the Board specifies a greater amount, that amount.
Marginal note:Types of financial resources
(2) The Board may, subject to the regulations made under subsection (7), order a company, either individually or as a member of a class of companies authorized under this Act to construct or operate a pipeline, to maintain the amount of financial resources that is referred to in subsection (1) in the types that the Board specifies, including types that shall be readily accessible to the company and, if the Board specifies types of financial resources, it may specify the amount that the company is required to maintain under each type.
Marginal note:Duty to satisfy Board
(3) At the Board’s request, the company shall satisfy the Board that it meets the requirement to maintain the amount of financial resources referred to in subsection (1) and that it complies with any order made under subsection (2). The Board may consider, among other things, the company’s financial statements, letters of credit, guarantees, bonds or suretyships and insurance.
Marginal note:Greater amount
(4) The Board may, by order, specify an amount for the purposes of subsection (1).
Marginal note:Loss of non-use value
(5) When the Board specifies an amount for the purposes of subsection (1), it is not required to consider any potential loss of non-use value relating to a public resource that is affected by an unintended or uncontrolled release of oil, gas or any other commodity from a pipeline or by any action or measure taken in relation to the release.
Marginal note:Continuing obligation
(6) A company that is authorized under this Act to construct or operate a pipeline shall maintain the amount of financial resources referred to in subsection (1) and shall comply with any order made under subsection (2) and any regulation made under subsection (7) only until it obtains leave from the Board to abandon the operation of its pipeline.
Marginal note:Regulations
(7) The Governor in Council may, on the Minister’s recommendation, make regulations
(a) providing for the types of financial resources from which the Board may choose if it specifies types of financial resources under subsection (2), including those from which the Board may choose if it specifies types of financial resources that shall be readily accessible to the company; and
(b) respecting the amount of financial resources that shall be readily accessible to a company individually or as a member of a class of companies.
Marginal note:Pooled fund
48.14 (1) Subject to subsection (2), a company may meet all or a portion of its financial requirements under subsection 48.13(1) by participating in a pooled fund that is established by companies which are authorized under this Act to construct or operate a pipeline, that meets the requirements established by the regulations and from which the Board may withdraw any amount under subsection 48.16(6).
Marginal note:Difference
(2) If a company meets only a portion of its financial requirements by participating in a pooled fund and the amount of funds in the pooled fund to which it has access — in the event that there is an unintended or uncontrolled release of oil, gas or any other commodity from a pipeline that the company is authorized under this Act to construct or operate — is less than the amount of financial resources referred to in subsection 48.13(1), the company shall maintain an amount equal to the difference between those amounts.
Marginal note:Regulations
(3) The Governor in Council may, on the Minister’s recommendation, make regulations respecting a pooled fund referred to in subsection (1), including regulations
(a) specifying the minimum amount of the pooled fund and the minimum amount of the pooled fund that shall be readily accessible;
(b) specifying any condition that a company shall meet in order to participate in the pooled fund, including the minimum amount that a company shall contribute to the pooled fund;
(c) specifying the maximum amount that a company may withdraw from the pooled fund; and
(d) specifying the maximum portion of a company’s financial requirements that may be met by participating in the pooled fund.
Reimbursement by Company
Marginal note:Reimbursement — measures taken by government institution
48.15 If an unintended or uncontrolled release of oil, gas or any other commodity from a pipeline occurs, the Board may order the company that is authorized under this Act to construct or operate that pipeline to reimburse any federal, provincial or municipal government institution, any Aboriginal governing body or any person the costs and expenses that the Board considers reasonable that they incurred in taking any reasonable action or measure in relation to the release even if the costs and expenses are more than the amount of the limit of liability referred to in subsection 48.12(5) that applies to that company.
Designated Company
Marginal note:Designation
48.16 (1) The Governor in Council may, on the Minister’s recommendation, designate any company that is authorized under this Act to construct or operate a pipeline from which an unintended or uncontrolled release of oil, gas or any other commodity has occurred if
(a) the Governor in Council is of the opinion that the company does not have or is not likely to have the financial resources necessary to pay
(i) the costs and expenses incurred, or to be incurred, in taking any action or measure in relation to the release, and
(ii) the compensation that might be awarded for compensable damage caused by the release; or
(b) the company does not comply with an order of the Board with respect to any action or measure to be taken in relation to the release.
Marginal note:Measures to be taken
(2) If the Governor in Council designates a company under subsection (1), the Board or any of its officers or employees — or class of officers or employees — that the Board authorizes may take any action or measure that they consider necessary in relation to the release or they may authorize a third party to take any such action or measure.
Marginal note:No liability
(3) No action lies against the Board or an officer or employee of the Board or against Her Majesty in right of Canada or an employee of Her Majesty for anything done or omitted to be done in taking any action or measure in relation to the release.
Marginal note:Third party liability
(4) A third party that is authorized under subsection (2) to take any action or measure referred to in that subsection is not liable in respect of any act or omission committed in taking those actions or measures unless it is shown that the third party did not act reasonably in the circumstances.
Marginal note:Reimbursement — measures taken by government institution
(5) If the Governor in Council designates a company under subsection (1), the Board may reimburse any federal, provincial or municipal government institution, any Aboriginal governing body or any person the costs and expenses that the Board considers reasonable that they incurred in taking any reasonable action or measure in relation to the release.
Marginal note:Withdrawal from pooled fund
(6) If the Governor in Council designates a company under subsection (1) and that company participates in a pooled fund described in subsection 48.14(1), the Board may withdraw any amount from the pooled fund that is necessary to pay the costs and expenses incurred in taking any action or measure under subsection (2) and to reimburse the costs and expenses referred to in subsection (5).
Marginal note:Regulations imposing fees, etc.
48.17 (1) Subject to the Treasury Board’s approval, the Board shall, for the purposes of recovering the amounts paid out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund under subsection 48.46(1), even if those amounts are more than the amount of the limit of liability referred to in subsection 48.12(5) that applies to a designated company, make regulations
(a) imposing fees, levies or charges on a designated company and companies that are authorized under this Act to construct or operate pipelines that transport the same commodity or a commodity of the same class as the commodity that was released from a pipeline constructed or operated by the designated company; and
(b) prescribing the manner of calculating the fees, levies and charges and their payment to the Board.
Marginal note:Interest on late payments
(2) A regulation made under subsection (1) may specify the rate of interest or the manner of calculating the rate of interest payable by a company either individually or as a member of a class of companies on any fee, levy or charge not paid by the company on or before the date it is due and the time from which interest is payable.
Marginal note:Debt due to Her Majesty
(3) Fees, levies or charges imposed under this section and any interest payable on them constitute a debt that is due to Her Majesty in right of Canada and may be recovered as such in any court of competent jurisdiction.
Pipeline Claims Tribunal
Establishment
Marginal note:Establishment of Tribunal
48.18 (1) The Governor in Council may, by order, after a designation is made under subsection 48.16(1), establish a pipeline claims tribunal whose purpose is to examine and adjudicate, as expeditiously as the circumstances and considerations of fairness permit, the claims for compensation made under this Act in relation to the release that occurred from the designated company’s pipeline and specify the location of its head office.
Marginal note:Reasons
(2) However, the Governor in Council may establish a pipeline claims tribunal only if, having regard to the extent of the compensable damage caused by the release, the estimated cost of paying compensation in respect of that damage and the advantages of having claims dealt with by an administrative tribunal, the Governor in Council is of the opinion that it is in the public interest to do so.
Marginal note:Claims treated equitably
(3) A Tribunal shall exercise its powers and perform its duties and functions with respect to claims for compensation in an equitable manner, without discrimination on the basis of nationality or residence.
Marginal note:Jurisdiction of courts
48.19 For greater certainty, nothing in sections 48.18 and 48.2 to 48.48 is to be construed as restricting the jurisdiction of a court of competent jurisdiction with respect to the release referred to in subsection 48.18(1).
Marginal note:Public notice
48.2 Immediately after a Tribunal is established, the Board shall notify the public, in a manner that the Tribunal considers appropriate, of the Tribunal’s purpose and the manner in which to obtain information on making a claim for compensation and shall publish in the Canada Gazette a notice setting out that purpose and the manner in which to obtain that information.
Marginal note:Members of Tribunal
48.21 (1) A Tribunal consists of at least three members, each of whom is to be appointed by the Governor in Council, on the Minister’s recommendation, to hold office for a term of not more than five years.
Marginal note:Members’ qualifications
(2) The members of the Tribunal are to be appointed from among persons who are retired judges of a superior court or members of at least 10 years standing at either the bar of a province or the Chambre des notaires du Québec.
Marginal note:Replacing member
(3) If a member is absent or becomes incapacitated, resigns or dies, the Governor in Council may appoint a replacement for that member.
Marginal note:Remuneration
(4) The Board shall pay the members the remuneration and expenses that are fixed by the Governor in Council.
Marginal note:Tenure
48.22 (1) Each member of a Tribunal shall hold office during good behaviour, but may be removed by the Governor in Council for cause.
Marginal note:Termination of Tribunal
(2) The Governor in Council may terminate the appointment of the members of the Tribunal if the Governor in Council is satisfied that the Tribunal has no work to carry out.
Marginal note:Immunity
48.23 No action lies against any member of a Tribunal for anything done or omitted to be done by the member in the exercise or purported exercise of a power or in the performance or purported performance of a duty or function of the Tribunal.
Chairperson and Staff
Marginal note:Chairperson
48.24 (1) The Governor in Council shall, on the Minister’s recommendation, designate one of the members of a Tribunal to be the Chairperson of the Tribunal.
Marginal note:Chairperson’s powers, duties and functions
(2) The Chairperson apportions work among the members of the Tribunal and, if he or she establishes a panel, assigns members to the panel and designates a member to preside over it. The Chairperson also has supervision over and direction of the work of the Tribunal’s staff.
Marginal note:Tribunal staff
48.25 A Tribunal may employ the staff that it considers necessary for the proper exercise of its powers and performance of its duties and functions, prescribe their duties and, subject to any regulations, their terms and conditions of employment and, with the Treasury Board’s approval, fix their remuneration.
Marginal note:Technical or specialized knowledge
48.26 A Tribunal may engage, on a temporary basis, the services of counsel or notaries and other persons having technical or specialized knowledge to assist it in its work, prescribe their duties and the terms and conditions of their employment and, with the Treasury Board’s approval, fix their remuneration and expenses.
Marginal note:Payment by Board
48.27 The Board shall pay the remuneration and expenses referred to in sections 48.25 and 48.26.
Marginal note:Staff and facilities
48.28 The Board shall provide a Tribunal with any professional, technical, secretarial, clerical and other assistance and any facilities and supplies that, in the Board’s opinion, are necessary to enable the Tribunal to exercise its powers and perform its duties and functions.
Tribunal’s Powers, Duties and Functions
Marginal note:Hearings
48.29 A Tribunal shall conduct its hearings in Canada at the times and locations that it considers appropriate.
Marginal note:Powers — witnesses and documents
48.3 (1) A Tribunal has, with respect to the attendance, swearing and examination of witnesses, the production and inspection of documents, the enforcement of its orders and other matters that are necessary or proper for the exercise of its jurisdiction, all of the powers, rights and privileges that are vested in a superior court.
Marginal note:Evidence at hearings
(2) The Tribunal is not, in the hearing of any matter, bound by the legal rules of evidence; however, it shall not receive as evidence anything that would be inadmissible in a court by reason of any privilege under the law of evidence.
Marginal note:Examinations
48.31 For the purposes of adjudicating a claim for compensation or an application for reconsideration, a Tribunal may require a claimant or applicant to undergo medical or other examinations that are, in the Tribunal’s opinion, reasonably necessary.
Marginal note:Frivolous or vexatious claims
48.32 A Tribunal may refuse to hear any claim for compensation or application for reconsideration that it considers to be frivolous or vexatious.
Marginal note:Written submissions
48.33 A Tribunal may examine and adjudicate claims for compensation or application for reconsideration based only on written submissions.
Marginal note:Rules
48.34 A Tribunal may make the rules that it considers necessary for the exercise of its powers and the performance of its duties and functions, including rules respecting
(a) procedures for making a claim for compensation and those for making an application for reconsideration;
(b) the information that shall be included with a claim for compensation or an application for reconsideration;
(c) the conduct of its examination of claims for compensation and applications for reconsideration, including the conduct of its hearings;
(d) the form and manner in which evidence shall be submitted; and
(e) a quorum.
Claims for Compensation
Marginal note:Application
48.35 (1) Any person, partnership or unincorporated organization or federal, provincial or municipal government or any Aboriginal governing body may, within the prescribed period, make to a Tribunal a claim for compensation for compensable damage caused by the release that occurred from a designated company’s pipeline.
Marginal note:Panel
(2) As soon as feasible after the day on which the claim is made, the Chairperson shall
(a) assign the claim to the Tribunal;
(b) establish a panel of the Tribunal and assign the claim to that panel; or
(c) assign the claim to an existing panel.
Marginal note:Notice
(3) The Chairperson shall notify the claimant, the designated company and the Board that the claim has been assigned.
Marginal note:Powers and duties
(4) A panel has the powers, other than the power described in section 48.34, and the duties and functions of the Tribunal with respect to any claim for compensation that is before that panel.
Marginal note:Public hearings
48.36 Tribunal hearings are to be held in public. However, a Tribunal may hold all or part of a hearing in private if, in its opinion,
(a) a public hearing would not be in the public interest;
(b) a person’s privacy interest outweighs the principle that hearings be open to the public; or
(c) confidential business information may be disclosed.
Marginal note:Interim award of compensation
48.37 If it is authorized to do so by the regulations, a Tribunal may award interim compensation in respect of a claim for compensation. If the Tribunal awards interim compensation, it shall advise the Board, by notice, of the amount awarded.
Marginal note:Determining compensation
48.38 (1) A Tribunal shall decide whether to award a claimant compensation for the compensable damage that is referred to in their claim for compensation. If it decides to award compensation, it shall, having regard to any other amount of compensation that the claimant has been paid for that damage, determine the amount of compensation in accordance with the regulations and, if it is authorized by the regulations to award costs with respect to a claimant’s claim for compensation and it decides to do so, it shall determine the amount of those costs.
Marginal note:Notice — decision
(2) The Tribunal shall advise the claimant and the designated company, by notice, of its decision with respect to the claim for compensation, and if compensation or costs are awarded, it shall also advise the Board by that notice.
Marginal note:Content of notice
(3) The notice shall indicate
(a) the amount of any compensation or costs determined under subsection (1);
(b) any reduction in the amount of compensation provided for by the regulations; and
(c) any amounts that have already been paid to the claimant for the compensable damage that is referred to in their claim.
Payment by the Board
Marginal note:Amount to be paid
48.39 (1) The Board shall, subject to section 48.4 and within the prescribed period, pay to the claimant
(a) the amount of interim compensation indicated in the notice referred to in section 48.37;
(b) subject to the regulations, the amount of compensation and costs indicated in the notice referred to in subsection 48.38(2) and any interest payable on that compensation; and
(c) if the amount of compensation and costs indicated in the notice referred to in subsection 48.44(2) is more than the amount paid by the Board under paragraph (b), subject to the regulations, an amount equal to the difference between those amounts.
Marginal note:Interest on claim
(2) If the regulations provide for interest with respect to a claim for compensation, the interest accrues at the rate prescribed under the Income Tax Act for amounts payable by the Minister of National Revenue as refunds of overpayments of tax under that Act that are in effect from time to time.
Marginal note:Fees and travel expenses
(3) If it is authorized to do so by the regulations, a Tribunal may, in accordance with the regulations, award fees and travel expenses. If the Tribunal awards fees and travel expenses, it shall advise the Board, by notice, of the amount awarded and the Board shall pay that amount.
Marginal note:Total amount
48.4 The total amount that the Board pays under subsection 48.39(1) shall not be more than the portion established by the Minister of Finance under subsection 48.46(2).
Marginal note:Recovery of overpayment
48.41 The following are debts that are due to Her Majesty in right of Canada and may be recovered in accordance with section 155 of the Financial Administration Act:
(a) any overpayment to a claimant by the Board under subsection 48.39(1);
(b) any amount paid to a claimant under paragraph 48.39(1)(b) in respect of a Tribunal’s decision that is rescinded; and
(c) if the amount paid by the Board under paragraph 48.39(1)(b) in respect of a Tribunal’s decision that is amended under subsection 48.44(1) is more than the amount of compensation and costs indicated in the notice referred to in subsection 48.44(2), the amount that is equal to the difference between those amounts.
Marginal note:Report
48.42 Three months after the day on which a Tribunal is established, and every three months after that, the Board shall submit to the Minister and the Minister of Finance a report with respect to the amount of compensation and costs awarded by the Tribunal and the amount that the Board has paid under subsections 48.39(1) and (3).
Reconsideration
Marginal note:Reconsideration
48.43 (1) A Tribunal may, on its own motion or on the application of a claimant, reconsider its decision with respect to a claim for compensation and may either confirm the decision or amend or rescind the decision if the Chairperson is of the opinion that because of extraordinary factors a reconsideration of the decision outweighs the public interest in the finality of decisions of the Tribunal.
Marginal note:Notice
(2) The Chairperson shall notify the applicant, the designated company and the Board that the Tribunal or a panel of the Tribunal will reconsider its decision.
Marginal note:Determining compensation
48.44 (1) If, on reconsideration, a Tribunal decides to amend its decision, it shall decide whether to award the claimant compensation for the compensable damage that is referred to in their claim for compensation. If it decides to award compensation, it shall, having regard to any other amount of compensation that the applicant has been paid for that damage, determine the amount of compensation in accordance with the regulations and, if it is authorized by the regulations to award costs with respect to a claimant’s claim for compensation or the reconsideration of that claim and it decides to do so, it shall determine the amount of those costs.
Marginal note:Notice — decision
(2) The Tribunal shall advise the applicant, the designated company and the Board, by notice, of its decision with respect to the application for reconsideration.
Marginal note:Content of notice
(3) If the decision is amended, the notice shall indicate
(a) the amount of any compensation or costs determined under subsection (1);
(b) any reduction in the amount of compensation provided for by the regulations; and
(c) any amounts that have already been paid with respect to the claim in accordance with this Act.
Judicial Review
Marginal note:Grounds
48.45 Subject to section 48.43, every decision of a Tribunal is final and conclusive and is not to be questioned or reviewed in any court except in accordance with the Federal Courts Act on the grounds referred to in paragraph 18.1(4)(a), (b) or (e) of that Act.
Appropriation and Repayment
Marginal note:Amount paid out of Fund
48.46 (1) There may be paid out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, from time to time, any amount established by the Minister of Finance, on the Minister’s recommendation,
(a) to pay the costs and expenses incurred in taking any actions or measures referred to in subsection 48.16(2);
(b) to reimburse the costs and expenses referred to in subsection 48.16(5);
(c) to pay the costs of publishing the notice referred to in section 48.2;
(d) to pay the remuneration and expenses of a Tribunal’s members;
(e) to pay the remuneration of a Tribunal’s staff;
(f) to pay the remuneration and expenses of the counsel or notaries and other persons referred to in section 48.26;
(g) to pay the costs of providing a Tribunal with any of the assistance, facilities or supplies referred to in section 48.28;
(h) to pay the amounts that the Board shall pay under subsection 48.39(1); and
(i) to pay the fees and travel expenses referred to in paragraph 48.39(3).
Marginal note:Amount appropriated for compensation
(2) The Minister of Finance may, by order, after consultation with the Minister, establish the portion of the amount paid out under subsection (1) that may be used solely to pay the amounts referred to in paragraph (1)(h).
Marginal note:Publication
(3) The Minister shall, without delay, publish in the Canada Gazette a notice setting out the portion established by the Minister of Finance.
Marginal note:Repayment
(4) The Board shall deposit the amounts paid out under subsection (1) to the credit of the Receiver General in accordance with the terms and conditions established by the Minister of Finance.
Regulations
Marginal note:Regulations — Tribunal
48.47 The Governor in Council may make regulations respecting a Tribunal, including regulations
(a) prescribing the terms and conditions of appointment of its members;
(b) respecting conflict of interest;
(c) prescribing the Chairperson’s powers, duties and functions;
(d) respecting the absence or incapacity of the Chairperson or another member;
(e) respecting the effects of replacing a member of the Tribunal, including on
(i) evidence and representations received by the Tribunal, or a panel of the Tribunal on which the member was sitting, before the replacement was appointed,
(ii) decisions made by the Tribunal or the panel before the replacement was appointed;
(f) respecting the hiring and terms and conditions of employment of the Tribunal’s staff; and
(g) generally, to enable the Tribunal to exercise its powers and perform it duties and functions.
Marginal note:Regulations — compensation
48.48 (1) The Governor in Council may make regulations establishing the costs, losses and damages for which a Tribunal may award compensation and regulations respecting that compensation, including regulations
(a) prescribing the period within which claims for compensation or applications for reconsideration shall be made to the Tribunal;
(b) authorizing the Tribunal to award interim compensation in respect of a claim for compensation;
(c) authorizing the Tribunal to award fees and travel expenses and costs with respect to claims for compensation and the reconsideration of those claims, as well as providing to whom the fees and travel expenses and costs may be awarded;
(d) establishing an order of priority among classes of compensable damage for the purpose of awarding compensation;
(e) providing for the reduction of the amount that the Board pays under subsection 48.39(1) and the criteria for such a reduction, including in respect of a class of compensable damage;
(f) fixing a maximum amount of compensation that may be awarded to a claimant, including in respect of a class of compensable damage;
(g) prescribing the period for the purposes of subsection 48.39(1);
(h) providing that a payment of any amount that the Board pays under subsection 48.39(1) be postponed;
(i) providing for the payment of any amount that the Board pays under subsection 48.39(1) in a lump sum or in payments of equal or different amounts over a period of time;
(j) providing for interest with respect to a claim for compensation or an application for reconsideration, as well as the period during which interest accrues; and
(k) generally, for carrying out the purposes of sections 48.18 to 48.48.
Marginal note:Exception
(2) A regulation made under subsection (1) is not to provide that the loss of non-use value in relation to damages to the environment caused by the release is a loss for which the Tribunal may award compensation.
Measures Related to Abandonment
Marginal note:Costs and expenses related to abandonment
48.49 (1) The Board may order a company to take any measure, including maintaining funds or security, that the Board considers necessary to ensure that the company has the ability to pay for the abandonment of its pipelines and any costs and expenses related to its abandoned pipelines.
Marginal note:Funds or security
(2) If the Board orders a company to maintain funds or security, the Board may
(a) order the company to use the funds or security to pay for the abandonment of its pipelines or the costs and expenses related to its abandoned pipelines; or
(b) withdraw the funds or realize the security to pay for that abandonment or pay those costs and expenses.
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