The survey work conducted by Kinder Morgan over the past several days has found that Burnaby Mountain is stable enough to support a tunnel for a new pipeline route.
The reason for of the ongoing survey work is to determine if the mountain is stable enough to support a pipeline, and early indications show a tunneling option is possible.
"At this point, we are able to say a trenchless alternative is feasible," said Alex Baumgard, of BCG Engineering.
Kinder Morgan was considering either tunneling or using horizontal directional drilling through Burnaby Mountain to connect the tank farm to the Westridge Marine Terminal. Tunneling is a more expensive option and would cost roughly $47 million, while horizontal directional drilling, which involves boring a hole through the mountain and pulling the pipeline though with the drill, would cost the company an estimated $24 million.
Core samples and early analysis indicate tunnelling would be preferable, which means there would be enough space to also deactivate the existing Westridge line and run that through the mountain instead.
One of the major concerns with the mountain route was earthquakes and fault lines, but Baumgard said data from his company and SFU indicates the area is seismically stable.
"A fault has never been observed on the south side of the Burrard Inlet," he said.
Kinder Morgan contracted SFU professors John Clague and Doug Stead, who are using the company's data for a new a study examining earthquake fault lines for the entire Lower Mainland.
Kinder Morgan's survey work marks the first time core samples have been taken from this deep in the mountain. Kinder Morgan contractors have been working around the clock for the past five days, taking core samples from two locations on Burnaby Mountain. Those samples pulled up a mix of sandstone, siltstone, conglomerate and traces of coal, which is what they expected.
The mountain route was not in Kinder Morgan's original application to the National Energy Board, so the board extended the hearing to allow for further studies on Burnaby Mountain but gave the company a December 1 deadline. BCG Engineering has been drilling, while police have been holding protesters back with a court injunction. At press time, the total number of arrests was at least 79, as people chose to cross the injunction line.
Baumgard's crews have been working in the midst of ongoing protests.
"The verbal abuse that's been said at people can increase the stress levels out there," Baumgard said. "But essentially we are trained to do the work and get it done."
Kinder Morgan opted for the mountain route because it was considered less invasive than following the existing line, which runs through Burnaby's Westridge neighbourhood.
Kinder Morgan still needs the NEB's approval before expanding the Trans Mountain pipeline.
