A longitudinal study of the natural gas pipeline industry in British Columbia
department or school: Science, Irving K. Barber Faculty of (Okanagan)
department or school: Earth, Environmental and Geographic Sciences, Department of (Okanagan)
data provider: DSpace
degree campus: UBCO
creator: Reimer, Karaline
issued: 2022-09-28T15:18:44Z
issued: 2022
related degree: Master of Science - MSc
degree grantor: University of British Columbia
description: The natural gas pipeline industry in British Columbia can appear to be a complicated patchwork of agencies and organizations working in jurisdictional silos that prevent the easy transfer of information. Even life-cycle agencies can appear to work within their mandated zones of control, with little impact on the broader evolution of the industry. This thesis helps determine and define what the regulatory and interagency framework of the natural gas pipeline industry in BC looks like, how the agencies and industry groups communicate on both formal and informal levels, and how they learn and share information to further the safety of the industry as a whole. To identify the roles that pipeline organizations and agencies play in the industry, a detailed examination was conducted of the key agencies involved in the pipeline regulatory life-cycle, describing their history, mandates, roles and responsibilities in the province. Communication between these groups was examined through focus groups with the two dominant regulators (BC Oil and Gas Commission and the Canadian Energy Regulator) in the province. The evolving tolerances for risk and how learning from lessons has been applied over time was studied through a timeline of incidents and policy changes in the province, and in five case studies that showcased some causes of pipeline failure and the evolving nature of incident investigation. The results of this study suggest that the regulatory landscape for the natural gas pipeline in British Columbia is evolving towards one with a lower tolerance for risk, higher safety standards, and a better understanding of how to mitigate issues. Regulators and industry organizations maintain extensive communication, both formal and informal, through various channels and mechanisms, which enhance their effectiveness (the ability to meet mandates and achieve system efficiency and public safety) and cooperation (the sharing of information, coordination of activities to maximize effect…
aggregated CHO: https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/82775
note: A LONGITUDINAL STUDY OF THE NATURAL GAS PIPELINE INDUSTRY IN BRITISH COLUMBIA by Karaline Reimer B.Sc., The University of Victoria, 2012 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE in THE COLLEGE OF GRADUATE STUDIES (Earth and Environmental Sciences) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Okanagan) September 2022 © Karaline Reimer, 2022 ii The following individuals certify that they have read, and recommend to the College of Graduate Studies for acceptance, the thesis entitled: A longitudinal study of the natural gas pipeline industry in British Columbia submitted by Karaline Reimer in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Science. Dr. Kevin Hanna, Irving K.Barber Faculty of Science, Dept. of Earth, Environmental and Geographic Sciences, UBC Okanagan Supervisor Dr. Edouard Asselin, Faculty of Applied Science, Dept. of Materials Engineering UBC Vancouver Supervisory Committee Member Dr. Kasun Hewage, Faculty of Applied Science, School of Engineering, UBC Okanagan Supervisory Committee Member Dr. Alon Eisenstein, Faculty of Applied Science, School of Engineering, UBC Okanagan University Examiner iii Abstract The natural gas pipeline industry in British Columbia can appear to be a complicated patchwork of agencies and organizations working in jurisdictional silos that prevent the easy transfer of information. Even life-cycle agencies can appear to work within their mandated zones of control, with little impact on the broader evolution of the industry. This thesis helps determine and define what the regulatory and interagency framework of the natural gas pipeline industry in BC looks like, how the agencies and industry groups communicate on both formal and informal levels, and how they learn and share information to further the safety of the industry as a whole. To identify the roles that pipeline organizations and agencies play in the industry, a detailed examination was conducted of the ke…
has type: Thesis/Dissertation
date issued: 2022-11
is shown at: 10.14288/1.0421019
language: eng
degree discipline: Earth and Environmental Sciences
provider: Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
publisher: University of British Columbia
rights: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
rights URI: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
scholar level: Graduate
contributor: Hanna, Kevin S. (Kevin Stuart), 1961-
type: Text
identifier URI: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/82775