Valero proposes to offload 100 tanker cars every day. Each car will undergo highly technical and potentially dangerous operations where safety caps are manually removed and valves are tested before hoses can be attached, relief valves opened, and the offload valve is fully opened. At each step in this complicated procedure, fugitive emissions can be added to the air, and minor test spills are intentional and routine. Question: will Valero follow the guidelines of the Federal Department of Transportation, Bureau of Explosives? How much do 100 such offloading procedures every day add to the toxic pollutants in our air, especially as compared to fewer connect/disconnect procedures for marine and pipeline supplies of crude oil?
I know there are a few intrepid citizens out there who want to know more in technical detail, and who will devote themselves to the sorts of tech analysis of protocols that inevitably point to issues of both worker and public safety / public health. Please take a look at the attached document from the DOT / Bureau of Explosives: Pamphlet 34 – Recommended Methods for the Safe Loading and Unloading of Non-Pressure (General Service) and Pressure Tank Cars. (Pay close attention to the highlighted material on pages 11-13.)
[NOTE: original source of this pamphlet and other informative documents is http://boe.aar.com/boe-download.htm.] Roger StrawEditor, The Benicia Independent