The National Energy Board has requested additional documentation from the company proposing the Sundre Crossover Pipeline.
In light of concerns expressed by some landowners, the NEB recently struck a three-member panel to look into claims the project has been improperly rushed through without sufficient consultation and engagement with landowners whose properties stand to be affected by the large 42-inch pipeline.
When the NEB hears from landowners or anyone who could be affected by a proposed project, the board can pause the process for further investigation, said Sarah Kiley, an NEB spokesperson.
"What we've done in this case is to initiate a review," she told the Round Up.
NOVA Gas Transmission Ltd. (NGTL), which is a subsidiary of TransCanada, was asked to provide requested documentation by Friday, July 7 or to contact the board with a revised date as well as an explanation for an extension if meeting that deadline was not possible.
"In examining evidence submittedÖ, the NEB has found that additional information is required," wrote Sheri Young, secretary of the investigative panel.
"The board requires additional information about the project route selection methodology and related consultation in order to consider NGTL's application," reads a document that is publicly available on the NEB's website.
Among the lengthy list of requested information is "a description of how NGTL has addressed or will address any concerns raised to the extent possible, or an explanation as to why no further action is required to address the concerns; or justification why it was not necessary to carry out consultation with directly affected and immediately adjacent landowners with respect to damage prevention, emergency management, and safety of the project."
The proposed project calls for a 21-kilometre stretch of a natural gas pipeline that will deliver volumes from two existing pipelines. The plan is essentially to connect the Edson main line located northeast of Sundre and to deliver that gas onto the western Alberta main line system just south of the municipality.
Lance Greer, a Bergen-area landowner who has expressed concerns, previously told the Round Up that while he is not opposed to the pipeline, he was not satisfied by the consultation process nor the compensation offered.
Kiley told the Round Up last week that the process to review the documentation that the company has been asked to submit could take upwards of two weeks from the time the information is received.
