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Pipelines and Risk Management How Safe is Safe?

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... one or more large earthquakes in the San Francisco Bay Area region between 1990 and 2000. ... be over safety, environment, fairness, property value, lack of ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Pipelines and Risk Management How Safe is Safe?


1
Pipelines and Risk ManagementHow Safe is Safe?
  • Pipeline Safety Trust Conference
  • Denise Hamsher
  • Enbridge Energy Company
  • November 2006

2
  • Over 14,000 miles of natural gas gathering,
    transmission and crude oil pipelines
  • Operating since 1950
  • Expanding pipeline systems to meet market
    transport needs

3
How Safe is Safe?
  • Can we eliminate risk?
  • Or is question What is acceptable risk?
  • Scientific and technical answer?
  • Government policy?
  • Regulatory decision?
  • Community concern?
  • There may be no single answer to question of How
    Safe is Safe?
  • But there are approaches to improve understanding
    and communicate risk

4
Technical Scientific Answer
  • Risk Probability X Consequence
  • Probability
  • a revised USGS report concluded that a 33
    percent probability now exists for one or more
    large earthquakes in the San Francisco Bay Area
    region between 1990 and 2000..
  • Based on fact-finding and data
  • But whose facts?
  • Consequence
  • Safety of public and workers
  • Environmental impact
  • Upsets and reliability in service
  • Costs and liability

5
Risk
  • As seen by engineer regulator
  • Risk probability x consequence
  • As seen by others
  • Risk hazard x concern
  • Hazard may be actual or perceived
  • Concern may be over safety, environment,
    fairness, property value, lack of information,
    lack of trust

6
Why we havedifferent perceptions of risk
  • Familiar versus Unknown
  • Benefit versus Burden
  • Fair versus Unfair
  • Controlled versus Out of my control
  • Trusted source versus Suspicious source

7
Government Regulatory Answer
  • Public Health and OSHA standards on acute or
    long-term exposure limits to certain chemicals
  • Prescribed frequency of inspections or
    maintenance of pipelines
  • Gas operations class locations and designation
    of liquid pipeline HCAs, each requiring special
    safety measures
  • All true.all based on factbut does policy make
    everyone feel safe?

8
Community Perspective
  • Public definition of risk
  • Risk Hazard X Concern
  • We all expect zero risk for ourselves and loved
    ones
  • Sometimes hazard is high and concern low and
    sometimes concern is high and scientific facts
    indicate a low risk

9
So how do we manage the interface among technical
assessments, government policy and public concern?
10
Approaches that help
  • Accept responsibility
  • Encourage fact finding and sharing
  • Reduce and mitigate risks
  • Basis of regulatory and consensus standards
  • All parties act with respect and be trustworthy
  • Principled leadership
  • Acknowledge risk issue-management is function of
    investment in communications and involvement

11
Example Regulatory Policies for Pipeline
Operations
  • Public Involvement
  • Fact finding and research rather than reactive to
    unusual, rare event
  • Flexibility to ensure effective practices
  • Education, awareness, dialogue

12
Example Planning a New Pipeline
  • Early planning and dialogue with community
  • County
  • Farm Bureaus
  • Landowners, etc.
  • Fact finding
  • Route alternative considerations
  • Review route with landowner, adjusting as
    possible
  • Trustworthy dialogue
  • Knowledgeable, trained company representatives
  • Commitment by all to reach solutions
  • Two-way public consultation requires investment

13
Planning New Pipeline (contd)
  • Mitigate Risks
  • Design and routing carefully planned
  • Special construction practices
  • Protect farmlands with special soil handling
    techniques
  • Special river crossing techniques. . .etc.
  • Additional safeguards near some areas may require
    consideration of
  • Thicker wall pipe under rivers
  • Supplemental patrols or inspections
  • Warning tape to warn excavators
  • Route deviations

14
How Safe is Safe?A few observations..
  • Risk and safety is all in the eye of beholder
  • We all know there is no such thing as zero risk,
    but we want assurances we are safe
  • Risk communications must be interactive
  • Each party should commit to
  • Increasing knowledge and understanding
  • Enhancing trust and credibility
  • Resolving conflict
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