Compensation cheques have begun flowing to landowners along a proposed pipeline route expansion stretching from Hardisty, Alta., to Gretna, Man., into the United States.
Dan Hacault, a spokesperson for the Manitoba Pipeline Landowners Association (MPLA), said that a year of negotiations wrapped up last fall ahead of the construction of the 1,600-kilometre Alberta Clipper and the Southern Lights extension projects, which are set to begin in August. Both pipelines are scheduled for completion by 2010.
Included in the deal, which has secured Enbridge an expansion to its existing right-of-way first built in the 1950s, was a five-year, up-front crop damage settlement, and an addition to the existing agreement to cover the possibility of pipeline abandonment.
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Concerns over liability for landowners who may need to cross the pipe with heavy equipment were also addressed, with a “blanket right” to cross the pipe included in the deal.
A depth-of-coverage survey is also in the works, Hacault added. If the pipe is found to be lying too shallow under the surface, the company will either bury it deeper or pay additional compensation for the inconvenience caused to farmers who may have to take the long way around when crossing.
Although the 190-member MPLA and its Saskatchewan counterpart have so far failed to secure a commitment from Enbridge to remove old, obsolete pipelines and pay for any cleanup, the company has put in writing a promise to not sell the pipeline to any company with a poor credit record.
“The addendum means that they can’t sell the pipeline to some fly-by-night guy who is just going to walk away from it,” said Hacault. “It’s a little better.”
Other concessions won from Enbridge include the provision for an independent construction monitor paid for by the pipeline company to oversee the work when it begins in early fall.
Cleaning stations to prevent the spread of weeds will also be included in a new list of environmental requirements that workers must follow, he added.
The cash settlement is 2.5 times higher than Enbridge’s original offer, he added, and at $45 per metre trenched, it amounts to $65,000 or higher per quarter section along the route.
But since the pipe runs through much of the three provinces on an angle, the amounts paid to landowners may vary.
“For some, the pipe only goes through 200 feet, while on others, it goes through the whole thing. It’s pretty hard to put a value on it,” Hacault said, adding that some members with large landholdings along the route may receive cheques for as much as $1 million.
Gina Jordan, a spokesperson for Enbridge, said the company would not comment on specific financial compensation details because they are private agreements between the company and landowners.
“We are pleased to have reached a settlement with both the Manitoba and Saskatchewan landowner associations,” said Jordan.
“Those agreements really formalize some of our key pipeline construction, safety and operating and integrity practices and certainly facilitate stronger communications and relationships with landowners.”
Landowners who did not join the associations – mainly Albertans and a handful in Saskatchewan and Manitoba – and accepted Enbridge’s original offer on an individual basis will have their payments bumped up to match the collective deal, said Hacault.
However, Jordan would not confirm this, citing confidentiality.
