M I N U T E S FOURTH ELECTRICAL SUB-COUNCIL MEETING OF 2015

Transcription

1 DATE: November 2, 2015 M I N U T E S FOURTH ELECTRICAL SUB-COUNCIL MEETING OF 2015 TIME: LOCATION: PRESENT: REGRETS: RECORDER: 9:00 a.m. to 1:55 p.m. Radisson Hotel Edmonton South Sub-Council Members Stan Misyk, Chair Scott Bassinger John Briegel (arrived at 9:10 am) Larry DeWald Clem Gratton (arrived at 9:10 am) Glenn Hedderick Rene Leduc Bill McAllister Allan Nagel Stewart Purkis Darcy Teichroeb Gerry Wiles, Vice Chair Safety Codes Council Peter Thomas, Erin Stroud, Brittany Smith Alberta Municipal Affairs Clarence Cormier, Bob Hall, James Orr, Colin Robertson Ron Derworiz Roy Etwaroo Shane Hoogenboom Jim Porth, Vice Chair - South James Rivait Daryl Schmidt Sandi Orr 2016 MEETINGS: Monday, Feb. 22 Edmonton 9:00 a.m. Friday, May 13 Red Deer 9:30 a.m. Monday, Sept. 12 Calgary 9:30 a.m. Monday, Nov. 7 Edmonton 9:00 a.m.

2 A. Call to Order The Chair called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m. and a round table introduction was held. B. Adoption of Agenda Clarification was provided regarding the addition of agenda items. Although the Bylaws state that agenda items must be submitted 14 days prior to the meeting, this was before electronic circulation. The following items were added to the agenda: CEC 6 and CEC 20 added to the STANDATA list E Application of Variance STANDATA for use of AEUC E CSA Field Certification Darcy Teichroeb / Gerry Wiles moved to adopt the agenda, as amended, with a flexible order of business; CARRIED C. (a) Adoption of Minutes of the September 14, 2015 Meeting The minutes were corrected to read the Vice Chair chaired the meeting. Rene Leduc / Bill McAllister moved to adopt the minutes of the September 14, 2015 meeting, as corrected; CARRIED (b) Review of Action Items It was reported that the Errata for the AEUC has been issued and posted on the AMA website. All other action items were either completed or listed on the agenda. D. Business Arising from the Minutes F Items for discussion from CEC Jan. 13/14 Meeting Rule Automobile Receptacles It was reported that this item was discussed at the last CEC Working Group. The recommendation to submit a proposed code change was viewed on screen. Rene Leduc reported that a discussion has held at the national level relative to the load determining how much electricity the device will draw. Rene Leduc / Scott Bassinger moved to accept the Working Group s recommendation and to forward the proposed change to the Canadian Electrical Code; CARRIED MINUTES: Electrical Sub-council November 2, 2015 Page 2 of 13

3 E Food Trucks Although it is understood that Food Trucks likely fall under Transportation, there are concerns within some municipalities that no inspections are happening. It was further clarified that the City of Edmonton uses a third-party for their inspections of food trucks and it was suggested consistency across municipalities and disciplines is needed. It was explained that feedback is being sought from other sub-councils relative to their disciplines. The Chief Electrical Inspector reported on his research on how other provinces deal with Food Trucks and he will forward this feedback to the Manager of Stakeholder Relations. [Cormier] E. Standing Agenda Items F Electrical Utility Code Working Group update The Vice Chair of the EUC Working Group reported the following: The existing code continues to be reviewed for proposed changes 4-column documents will be available on the portal in the AEUC working group folder for review by the sub-council The intent is to bring the proposed changes to the sub-council at the February 2016 meeting for consideration of recommending its adoption in the summer of 2016 Ran Li was appointed as a new member representing small municipal utilities Work continues on incorporating wording into the scope in order to retire the current province-wide variance F Oil & Gas Code Working Group update The Chair of the Oil & Gas Code Working Group reported that the editing has been completed and this will be going to the publisher right away. The Oil & Gas Code will be available by its in force date on January 1, A brief discussion was held regarding future consideration of harmonizing with the national code by requiring engineering for all area classification. E Canadian Electrical Code Working Group The Chair of the CEC Working Group reported on their meeting held earlier this week. Highlights of the report included: Several subjects were closed A new submission form has been adopted where all requests must come through the sub-council Recommendations were determined and included throughout the agenda of today s meeting MINUTES: Electrical Sub-council November 2, 2015 Page 3 of 13

4 It was suggested that all submission forms be included on the Council website. [Stroud] F Master Electrician Advisory Group Update Darcy Teichroeb reported that last month s meeting was cancelled and will be rescheduled toward the end of this month. F Variances (b) Variances Spreadsheet There was nothing to report as the Council is still working on IT issues. E Ampacity of Circuits There was nothing to report. [Hoogenboom] F CEC 6 Services and Service Equipment Rule Installation of Underground Consumer s Services (0-750v) As directed by the sub-council, the CEC working group reviewed the STANDATA and recommended the following proposed changes: Underground Service Entrance (Use) Cables In order to comply with Rule (2), feeders supplying buildings housing livestock shall have a dedicated bonding conductor included with the feeder. The grounded circuit conductor (neutral) supplying buildings housing livestock shall be grounded at the supply end only and not at the buildings housing livestock. At the point of supply, it may not be practical to isolate the bare neutral conductor of a USEB-90 sub-service feeder cable from ground as per Rule (1)(d) An accepted isolation of the grounded conductor (neutral) must be provided at the load end (e.g. insulated boot, heat shrink, rated rubber tape, or equivalent) to a point of termination on the neutral lug in accordance with (3), 4-030(1) and The proposed changes were reviewed and the final wording in the STANDATA relative to Rule 6-300(i)(b) was revised to read: In order to comply with Rule (2), feeders supplying buildings housing livestock shall have a dedicated bonding conductor included with the feeder. The grounded circuit conductor (neutral) supplying buildings housing livestock shall be grounded at the supply end only and not at the buildings housing livestock only at the source or main service. MINUTES: Electrical Sub-council November 2, 2015 Page 4 of 13

5 An accepted isolation of the grounded conductor (neutral) must be provided at the load end (e.g. insulated boot, heat shrink, rated rubber tape, or equivalent) to a point of termination on the neutral lug in accordance with (3), 4-030(1) and It was recommended that a reference regarding Section 6 be added to Section 10. [Hall] Rene Leduc / Gerry Wiles moved to accept the recommendation from the CEC Working Group for changes to STANDATA CEC-6, as revised; CARRIED F Rule (1)(g) & J18-154(1)(g) - update It was reported that clarification has not yet been received from CSA. F. New Business F STANDATA Street Lighting Operations re: Traffic Signals A discussion was held regarding traffic signals relative to the STANDATA that allows utilities to use the AEUC. Background was provided on the original development of the STANDATA as a result of deregulation. Gerry Wiles moved that traffic signals be included in the STANDATA; with no seconder, the motion was not considered. After further discussion of the issue, the following action was determined: Gerry Wiles / Rene Leduc moved that the STANDATA Section 0 Object Scope, and Definition, be reviewed by CEC Working Group and recommendations be brought back to the Electrical Sub-council for consideration; CARRIED F STANDATA for Photoluminescent EXIT Signs Correspondence was included in the portal and reviewed. It was reported that Photoluminescent EXIT Signs need back-up (e.g. batteries). As some buildings shut off their lights at night and it takes time to charge up in the morning, it is believed that a Variance proving an equal or greater level of safety is not possible without the necessary back-up. Relative to the requests, the following was determined: Request 1 the code is very clear and an Information STANDATA is not required Request 2 the Variance request would be less safe that the prescriptive code MINUTES: Electrical Sub-council November 2, 2015 Page 5 of 13

6 Rene Leduc / Bill McAllister moved that the correspondence be received as information, the requests denied and the subject closed; CARRIED F STANDATAS: RE: 2015 CE Code Proposed revisions to the STANDATA, based on the 2015 CE Code, were viewed on screen and each of the proposed changes was reviewed. The following decisions were made: - CEC 6 Services and Service Equipment Rene Leduc / Clem Gratton moved to request that the CEC Working Group develop a proposal change for Rule for submission to Part 1 for consideration by the Electrical Sub-council and to request the Chief Electrical Administrator consider the release of a Province-wide Variance to replace the current accepted practice for Rule Attachment of Overhead Service Conductors in the existing information STANDATA; CARRIED Rene Leduc / Gerry Wiles moved to endorse the proposed changes, as presented, for the Rule STANDATA; CARRIED - CEC 8 Circuit Loading & Demand Factors Rene Leduc / Bill McAllister moved to leave Rule as is and to delete Rule in the Section 8 STANDATA; CARRIED - CEC 10 Grounding & Bonding Rene Leduc / Gerry Wiles moved to accept all changes to the CEC Section 10 STANDATA and to request that the Chief Electrical Administrator consider the issuance of a province-wide variance relative to the accepted practice for the Number of Rods Required for an Electrode Rule ; CARRIED - CEC 12 Wiring Methods Bill McAllister / Clem Gratton moved that the Conductors General Section remain as currently worded and that all other proposed changes to the CEC Section 12 STANDATA be accepted as proposed; CARRIED - CEC 18 Hazardous Locations Gerry Wiles / Larry DeWald moved to delete the Grain Elevators, Feed Mills and Seed Cleaning Plants sections and to accept all other proposed changes to the CEC Section 18 STANDATA; CARRIED MINUTES: Electrical Sub-council November 2, 2015 Page 6 of 13

7 - CEC 20 Flammable liquid and gasoline dispensing, service stations, garages, bulk storage plants, finishing processes, and aircraft hangars Darcy Teichroeb / Glenn Hedderick moved to keep the first sentence as is, to leave the term Class 1 throughout the STANDATA including the diagram, to leave the Gasoline Dispensing Station Diagram as is and to accept all other proposed changes to the CEC Section 20 STANDATA; CARRIED - CEC 32 Fire Alarm Systems, Fire Pumps & Carbon Monoxide Alarms Rene Leduc / Bill McAllister moved to accept all proposed changes to the CEC Section 32 STANDATA; CARRIED - CEC- 62 Fixed Electric Space & Surface Heating Systems Rene Leduc / Clem Gratton moved to accept all proposed changes to the CEC Section 62 STANDATA; CARRIED F Administrative Penalties Colin Robertson provided a presentation on the work being done to create a regulation for Administrative Penalties as a result of recent changes to the Safety Codes Act. Highlights of the presentation included the following: Two key roles: To compel compliance To punish non-compliance The Administrator would be a government employee appointed by the Minister. Administrative Penalties: Are not tickets Will not be issued by safety codes officers or municipalities Are not to be used in lieu of charges under the Act Criteria from other Acts and Regulations are being reviewed as potential criteria for issuing Administrative Penalties. An appeals process will be needed but the Council s appeal process cannot be used as they may have already adjudicated an appeal from an order relative to the non-compliance. The New Home Buyer Protection Board s appeal process would be used. Methods of issuing an administrative penalty would include: Administrator issues Municipality request an Administrator issue Administrative penalty issued to enforce an existing order MINUTES: Electrical Sub-council November 2, 2015 Page 7 of 13

8 Deadline for serving a regulated person with written notice is three years from the date of the offence. The floor was opened for questions or comments and the following was noted: It was questioned regarding the definition of contravention and clarified that it would be any non-compliance of the Safety Codes Act and its related regulations, codes or standards. An overview was provided of next steps with the goal being to have the regulation presented to Cabinet in the spring of F Code Development & Adoption Process A presentation was provided that will be given to each of the sub-councils to gain feedback on the evolution of the sub-council s roles in the code review and adoption process. Highlights of the presentation included: An overview of the previous process An overview of the new process Areas for input Next steps The goal is to create harmonization with the national model codes. Albertaspecific codes will become an anomaly and a great deal of justification will be required to create Alberta-specific amendments. The Safety Codes Act was changed to allow for timely code adoption by adopting the code upon being published at the national level and the code would be in force 12 months after publication. Regulations need to be amended so this new automatic adoption will occur for the next code cycle. It was reported that the Electrical Code Regulation was the first regulation that included the new wording so that the next AEUC will automatically be adopted and in force one year from the date of publication. A recommendation can be made to the Minister for an earlier or later adoption and if accepted, would be done by Ministerial Order, through a recommendation to the Council s Board of Directors. Sub-councils are being encouraged to become more involved at the national level to influence changes. More proactive involvement will also be needed in the national proposed code change consultation process. When AMA gets material from the national level, this information will be provided to the sub-councils at the same time to allow the review and stakeholder consultation to occur as there is a need to be engaged earlier. This new process will also allow more time for training of SCOs before the code is in force. There is also an opportunity to enhance input at the national level by collectively making recommendations to the national level as the sub-council s input is much more powerful than a single individual voice. MINUTES: Electrical Sub-council November 2, 2015 Page 8 of 13

9 The matrix will be even more critical to ensure all the necessary industry segments are involved in the process ensuring that information is going back and forth both ways between the sub-council representative and the representative industry sector. Project plans will be developed identifying each of the key checkpoints and this will ensure that there is no rush to review the final publication for recommendation because sub-councils will be involved throughout the process. The floor was opened for questions and the following was noted: It was questioned regarding the Alberta Codes (Oil and Gas, and Electrical Utilities) and clarified that the Council would print these supplements as a recognized code writing body and these would be included in the automatic adoption process. If a new code were to be developed, this would first have to go to Cabinet to be recognized and then included with the automatic adoption process. It was questioned regarding province-wide variances and clarified that since variances provides an alternative solution to the code (not changing the code), this process will not change. It was clarified that the automatic adoption is only relative to codes. The Standards adopted for use in Alberta will be as identified within the adopted codes. It was noted that AEUC makes mandatory reference to CEC Part 3 and suggested that consideration be given to why Alberta needs to be different. It was questioned whether the new process will create additional work for the sub-councils and clarified that the workload will be similar, but focussed on the national model codes instead of Alberta-specifics. This could affect the time of the year that meetings are scheduled. An overview of the Governance Review was provided, beginning with the Board reaffirming their governance model, then reviewing the sub-councils processes. A review of each sub-councils matrix will be part of this review to ensure that all relevant industry stakeholders are at the table, contributing and providing feedback between the sub-council and their representative industry sector. The Chief Electrical Administrator provided an overview of each of the parts of the CEC and suggested that the CEC Working Group could be considered for researching and providing recommendations to the sub-council on subjects brought forth for deliberation. F Reappointment of Al Nagel to Jan. 31, 2019 Bill McAllister / John Briegel moved to recommend to the Board the reappointment of Al Nagel to the Electrical sub-council for a term until January 31, 2019, effective February 1, 2016; CARRIED MINUTES: Electrical Sub-council November 2, 2015 Page 9 of 13

10 F CE Code Section 24 & AFCI Protection A discussion was held regarding medical equipment and whether AFCI is required for dialysis machines in residences for personal use. It was clarified that Section 24 is mandatory and that Section 26 requires it unless Section 24 specifically deletes it. The subject was closed and will be removed from the agenda. [Paches] F Application of Variance STANDATA re: use of EU Code It was questioned regarding whether an accredited corporation could use the Alberta Electrical Utility Code if it is not specifically in their scope of accreditation. It was noted that this determination remains with the Administrator of Accreditation. The Administrator of Accreditation could be invited to the next meeting for further clarification. It was further noted that this matter has been presented to the Administrator of Accreditation as well as the Director of Operations. The QMPs are being reviewed and it is likely this will be addressed at the same time. F Field Certification The Chief Electrical Administrator reported on an sent on Friday from CSA regarding Field Certification for hazardous areas. With the specific sticker not referenced in the STANDATA, it was unclear whether this would be recognized in Alberta. It was suggested that since the sticker includes the CSA mark, this should be considered sufficient for recognition in Alberta. Further discussion was held regarding the scope of accreditation when conducting Field Certification. It was suggested that the scope of certification should be dealt with at the national level. The report was received as information. G. Technical Coordinating Committee Report The Chair reported on discussions being held at the Technical Coordinating Committee: Levy Review SCO Professional Development Non-waterborne toilets Care Facilities BSC/FSC Working Group Safety Management for LNG Distribution & Sales Temporary Propane Installations Municipal QMP Working Group Alberta Safety Codes Authority Alternative Solutions for Water Reuse residential only MINUTES: Electrical Sub-council November 2, 2015 Page 10 of 13

11 Council Governance Review Administrative Penalties Regulation Code Adoption Process Permit Amendment Regulation Audit Program Findings and Plans A brief discussion was held regarding the new Energy Codes and whether Electrical SCOs should be inspecting relative to this. It was noted that Energy Codes are not in the Electrical SCO s designation of powers as those codes are under the jurisdiction of the Building discipline. H. Next Meeting The following 2016 meeting schedule was determined: Monday, Feb 22 Edmonton 9:00 a.m. Friday, May 13 Red Deer 9:30 a.m. Monday, Sep 12 Calgary 9:30 a.m. Monday, Nov 7 Edmonton 9:00 a.m. The meeting was adjourned at 1:55 p.m. -- ACTION ITEMS -- E Food Trucks The Chief Electrical Inspector reported on his research on how other provinces deal with Food Trucks and he will forward this feedback to the Manager of Stakeholder Relations. [Cormier] E Canadian Electrical Code Working Group It was suggested that all submission forms be included on the Council website. [Stroud] F CEC 6 Underground Service Entrance, CEC 6 Services, Feeders, and Service Equipment It was recommended that a reference regarding Section 6 be added to Section 10. [Hall] F CE Code Section 24 & AFCI Protection The subject was closed and will be removed from the agenda. [Paches] MINUTES: Electrical Sub-council November 2, 2015 Page 11 of 13

12 -- MOTIONS -- B. Adoption of Agenda Darcy Teichroeb / Gerry Wiles moved to adopt the agenda, as amended, with a flexible order of business; CARRIED C. (a) Adoption of Minutes of the September 14, 2015 Meeting Rene Leduc / Bill McAllister moved to adopt the minutes of the September 14, 2015 meeting, as corrected; CARRIED F Items for discussion from CEC Jan. 13/14 Meeting Rule Automobile Receptacles Rene Leduc / Scott Bassinger moved to accept the Working Group s recommendation and to forward the proposed change to the Canadian Electrical Code; CARRIED F CEC 6 Underground Service Entrance, CEC 6 Services, Feeders, and Service Equipment Rene Leduc / Gerry Wiles moved to accept the recommendation from the CEC Working Group for changes to STANDATA CEC-6, as revised; CARRIED F STANDATA Street Lighting Operations re: Traffic Signals Gerry Wiles / Rene Leduc moved that the STANDATA Section 0 Object Scope, and Definition, be reviewed by CEC Working Group and recommendations be brought back to the Electrical Sub-council for consideration; CARRIED F STANDATA for Photoluminescent EXIT Signs Rene Leduc / Bill McAllister moved that the correspondence be received as information, the requests denied and the subject closed; CARRIED F STANDATAS: RE: 2015 CE Code Rene Leduc / Clem Grattan moved to request that the CEC Working Group develop a proposal change for Rule for submission to Part 1 for consideration by the Electrical Sub-council and to request the Chief Electrical Administrator consider the release of a Province-wide Variance to allow the current accepted practice for Rule Attachment of Overhead Service Conductors in the Existing Information STANDATA; CARRIED Rene Leduc / Gerry Wiles moved to endorse the proposed changes, as presented, for the Rule STANDATA; CARRIED MINUTES: Electrical Sub-council November 2, 2015 Page 12 of 13

13 Rene Leduc / Bill McAllister moved to leave Rule as is and to delete Rule in the Section 8 STANDATA; CARRIED Rene Leduc / Gerry Wiles moved to accept all changes to the CEC Section 10 STANDATA and to request that the Chief Electrical Administrator consider the issuance of a province-wide variance relative to the accepted practice for the Number of Rods Required for an Electrode Rule ; CARRIED Bill McAllister / Clem Grattan moved that the Conductors General Section remain as currently worded and that all other proposed changes to the CEC Section 12 STANDATA be accepted as proposed; CARRIED Gerry Wiles / Larry DeWald moved to delete the Grain Elevators, Feed Mills and Seed Cleaning Plants sections and to accept all other proposed changes to the CEC Section 18 STANDATA; CARRIED Darcy Teichroeb / Glenn Hedderick moved to keep the first sentence as is, to leave the term Class 1 throughout the STANDATA including the diagram, to leave the Gasoline Dispensing Station Diagram as is and to accept all other proposed changes to the CEC Section 20 STANDATA; CARRIED Rene Leduc / Bill McAllister moved to accept all proposed changes to the CEC Section 32 STANDATA; CARRIED Rene Leduc / Clem Gratton moved to accept all proposed changes to the CEC Section 62 STANDATA; CARRIED F Reappointment of Al Nagel to Jan. 31, 2019 Bill McAllister / John Briegel moved to recommend to the Board the reappointment of Al Nagel to the Electrical sub-council for a term until January 31, 2019, effective February 1, 2016; CARRIED MINUTES: Electrical Sub-council November 2, 2015 Page 13 of 13