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Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery Procurement

Norfolk County is asking the Province to address growing concerns around aging, privately owned natural gas infrastructure that are creating serious risks related to safety, liability, and municipal responsibility.

Where we're at

In many rural areas, including parts of Norfolk, privately owned natural gas infrastructure is aging and often lacks clear ownership, particularly when it was historically installed through community or regional partnerships or when records were not properly maintained during past service transitions. This creates significant uncertainty regarding:

Who is responsible for inspections, maintenance, and upgrades?
Who is liable in the event of a safety failure?
Whether municipalities or private landowners may be held accountable for systems they neither control nor benefit from directly

Norfolk asks that the Province work with TSSA to:

Clarify ownership responsibilities for legacy and orphaned gas infrastructure, particularly in rural and unincorporated areas.
Establish a process to review and resolve disputed infrastructure ownership cases in a timely and coordinated manner.
Provide support to municipalities that may be facing financial or liability risks through no fault of their own due to unclear historical records.