VANCOUVER — The National Energy Board will conduct a comprehensive audit of emergency response and safety plans for energy pipeline giant Kinder Morgan .
The audit will only focus on existing facilities and won't include the companies planned Trans Mountain pipeline expansion between Alberta and the British Columbia coast.
Both Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson and B.C. Premier Christy Clark have called for Kinder Morgan's full emergency response plan for the Trans Mountain project to be made public.
A spokesman for the federal regulator says the board intends to carefully review Kinder Morgan's current practices and scrutinize how executives and employees view safety.
Tom Neufeld said the audit will take about a year and is part of NEB Chairman Peter Watson's efforts to respond to concerns raised about emergency response plans of the energy infrastructure giant.
Watson will address Metro Vancouver mayors today about pipeline safety, as part of the board's national outreach initiative that started earlier this year.
Kinder Morgan did not immediately return a request for comment. The company is considered the largest energy infrastructure firm in North America with 135,000 kilometres of pipelines and 180 terminals.
