220407-J-S Rutgers-The Narwhal-17

(Industry) Friendly Manitoba

On a Sunday in March, when the gas stations ran dry in Winnipeg, people had questions about the supply chain. Manitoba reporter Julia-Simone was on the quest to find out other answers, she writes in this week’s newsletter
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It had all happened very suddenly. It only took a few days for gas stations to run dry. The province warned everyone not to panic as they raced to secure fuel via truck and rail.

On a Sunday in March, Winnipeggers found out our main gasoline, diesel and jet fuel pipeline had been shut down — and would stay that way for months. 

The good news? Nothing had spilled. 

Imperial Oil had shut the pipeline down proactively after its inspectors noticed the shifting banks of the Red River were putting strain on the decades-old pipes. Understandably, everyone was focused on the supply chain, but I had other questions. 

How serious were these safety concerns? What — and when — did the province know about them? What was being done to keep land and water safe?

I rattled off a handful of freedom of information requests (five in all). Months later, the responses started trickling in — and there was a surprise. 

My request for four years’ worth of inspection reports for the pipeline had turned up … nothing. 

Weird, right? Yeah … I thought so too.

Many, many phone calls and emails later, the picture started coming together. Government inspectors had visited the pipeline a few times, but hadn’t formally documented any inspections. There were some years no one from the government had visited the pipeline at all. 

I dug up provincial spill records stretching back to 2008. A lot of number crunching later, I found some 6.5 million litres of oil and related fluids had leaked from Manitoba’s pipelines in the last 16 years. Not a single company had been fined. 
 

Two crew members in high visibility safety clothing stand along the path of Imperial Oil's Winnipeg Products Pipeline in southern Manitoba during repairs in March 2024
Falling behind: oversight ‘gaps’ for 5,000 km of pipeline in Canada’s little-known oilpatch

There’s an important caveat here: Manitoba’s oilpatch is small. There are just a fraction of the pipes and wells you’d find in, say, Alberta. But oil still brings in a lot of money for Manitoba, and it seemed the province had few eyes on this messy, billion-dollar business.

The department eventually confirmed it lets industry take the lead on monitoring. As one expert put it, Manitoba has been letting industry “mark its own homework.” 

That comes with risks. As we’ve seen time and time again, it only takes one spill to make a big impact. 

Auditors across the country have urged governments to step up pipeline monitoring and enforcement. In many cases, that’s led to change. Not so in Manitoba. 

Manitoba’s new environment minister told me the government was itself pretty surprised by the oversight “gaps” it found after the Imperial pipeline shut down. The government has already made a few policy changes and says it’s looking to keep improving. 

There’s still a lot of work to do to ensure the oil industry is effectively regulated in Manitoba. I’ll be keeping an eye on what steps the government takes next.
 
Take care and watch out for leaks,

Julia-Simone Rutgers
Manitoba reporter
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Tracking B.C.’s summer norm: wildfires


British Columbia’s forests are burning up. Year after year, wildfires of increasing size and intensity displace thousands and reshape the province’s landscapes. Smoky skies have become the summer norm. Fire season is now inescapably part of living in B.C.

So, we’re keeping track of the fires — with a map to show you where they are, how big they are and what kind of threat they pose. We also have a quick guide to some fire terminology you might see from official sources. Check out the real-time info here, and bookmark it to your browser so you have it on hand!

Matt Simmons, northwest B.C. reporter

Jacqueline Ronson sits on a park bench, surrounded by green grass, purple camas flowers and trees with yellow blossoms

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Meet Jacqueline Ronson, our new assistant editor! 


Coming to The Narwhal from The Discourse, Jacqueline Ronson is one of our newest podmates, and we’ve been blessed with an eagle-eyed editor. From fact-checking stories to her big-picture ideas on community engagement, Jacqueline has hit the ground running and made our journalism better, already. That’s part of why we lovingly call her “Jaqueen.” (Or “Jacqueen” — in true Narwhal fashion, we love an irreconcilable argument over the finer points of spelling and grammar!)

We chatted with Jacqueline to learn more about her — go read our Q&A to get to know this Narwhal better!


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This week in The Narwhal

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READ MORE

TFW you get to mark your own homework. While you’re riding high on a win, why not share the love by sharing this newsletter with a friend?
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