At Nova Scotia Power, we track any incidents occurring in our daily business that could have an impact on the environment. We record this information in our incident tracking and ranking system. We also use this system to track safety-related issues.
We place incidents into four categories. In three of these categories, something actually happens, and it is ranked as minor, moderate or significant, depending on what takes place. The fourth category deals with ‘close calls’. We track incidents to identify risks, gaps or weakness in our Environmental Management System, to learn from problems and to adjust our actions to prevent any recurrences.
The top two levels of incidents are reported to our Leadership Team and Board of Directors every quarter. All incidents are reported on an annual basis. We track incidents to see if we can learn from them. We also use our tracking system as a mechanism to show things that may not be serious, but which represent trends that we can address before any problems arise.
These top two levels of incidents are also reported to government and action is taken to clean up, when required, and prevent a recurrence. All incidents that do occur are rectified and action is taken to prevent the same thing from happening again.
Nova Scotia Power had 22 moderate environmental incidents and no significant environmental incident in 2010.
Fourteen moderate incidents took place in our Integrated Customer Service division. Eleven of these incidents were associated with oil releases. Two were the result of working without all necessary permits in place. One moderate incident was the result of a contractor crossing a watercourse incorrectly. A number of minor and high potential incidents were also identified. These tended to be related to small leaks from electrical equipment or the identification of the potential for leaks due to condition of equipment. There were more ‘close call’ incidents because staff members are placing a greater focus on reporting potential environmental issues.
Nova Scotia Power’s Power Production division reported seven moderate events. All involved releases to watercourses including silt, oil and untreated water.