What would a "major incident" at Trans Mountain's Burnaby Mountain tank farm or Westridge Marine Terminal look like and what risks would it pose to local residents?
The City of Burnaby knows, but it says it can't make the information public.
In 2021, the municipality paid $400,000 for a consultant to prepare a risk assessment and computer animation simulation of a hypothetical major incident atop the mountain and at the marine terminal by the Burrard Inlet, according the city’s public affairs manager Chris Bryan.
He said the report, completed in 2021, includes static and dynamic 3D models and scenario development for emergency response planning around the tank farm and terminal.
In a news release Wednesday, the city said it had intended to release those materials this week as part of its preparations and public engagement for a "full-scale emergency exercise" on Burnaby Mountain in 2027 – but it can't because of Trans Mountain.
The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIPPA) protects the release of third party business information, and the company has not consented to the release of information in the consultant's report that is related to Trans Mountain, according to the city.
Under the legislation, Trans Mountain has 20 business days to respond to a request for the materials to be released.
The city will then tell the company how it plans to proceed.
One way or another, however, Bryan told the Burnaby NOW the emergency exercise planned for Burnaby Mountain could go ahead without the materials in question being made public.
‘Confidential corporate information’
Trans Mountain, meanwhile, said it "looks forward to working with Burnaby on emergency management exercises now and into the future," including the full-scale exercise on the mountain in 2027.
In an emailed statement, the company said the city "recently" informed Trans Mountain it intended to release information about the safety of the company's Burnaby facilities and emergency capabilities to someone who had filed a FOIPPA information request for the consultant’s report.
"As a responsible company we have an obligation to review the materials in advance of their release to ensure confidential corporate information is not improperly released," read the Trans Mountain statement.
The company said it is in the process of reviewing the records.
"We want to ensure that any third-party information provided to the public is accurate, does not contain any confidential corporate information and reflects the high measures of integrity and safety built into Trans Mountain facilities," the statement said.
'Enhancing our emergency response capacity'
Burnaby city council approved the emergency exercise on July 22, according to a city's news release.
Although the city has had the consultant's risk assessment and computer models for three years, plans for a full-scale emergency exercise on Burnaby Mountain have not made it into the city's community safety plan and have not been discussed publicly.
The July 22 decision from city council to go ahead with the idea was made in camera.
"The work by the consultant was done primarily for internal purposes, to inform our investments in enhancing our emergency response capacity," Bryan told the NOW.
When asked why the city wanted to release the information now, he said it was because someone had applied for access through an FOIPPA request.
The NOW asked how that squares with the news release, which said the city wanted to publish the information this week as "part of exercise preparation and public engagement," but has not yet received a response.
To find out more about the plans for an emergency exercise on Burnaby Mountain, visit the City of Burnaby's webpage.
Follow Cornelia Naylor on X/Twitter @CorNaylor
Email [email protected]
