Bomb Trains, Crude By Rail, Derailment, DeSmog Blog, Federal deregulation, Keeping Watch on Earth News, Oil trains, Trump administration

Latest bomb train accident shows failures of Trump deregulation

Another Bomb Train Accident Highlights Regulatory Failures

Desmogblog.com, by Justin Mikulka, December 23, 2020
Image: Oil train “pipeline on wheels” rolls through Watertown, Wisconsin. Credit: Justin Mikulka

A train carrying over 100 cars of volatile Bakken oil derailed in Washington state, causing the evacuation of the town of Custer. At least two of the train cars ruptured and the oil ignited and burned — reminding us once again why these dangerous trains are known as bomb trains. 

Matt Krogh of Stand.earth has been leading efforts to keep these dangerous trains off the tracks for years, so he was well aware of the potential deadly consequences of oil train accidents in populated areas. Krogh could see the smoke from this latest accident from his home in Bellingham, Washington.

“I think we got lucky today,” Krogh told the Associated Press, echoing the words of others after previous close calls with oil trains — several of which were highlighted in the DeSmog piece Luck Rides the Rails. 

It’s easy to feel lucky after a near miss with an oil train derailment and fire near a populated area because in 2013 an oil train full of Bakken oil derailed and caused catastrophic fires and explosions in the Canadian town of Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, — killing 47 people and destroying much of the downtown area. Downtown Lac-Mégantic has yet to be rebuilt more than seven years later.

Regulators Argue Safety Is Not A Pretext for Regulation

The state of Washington is well aware of the dangers the oil trains pose to the public and the environment and have attempted to address this issue with state regulations. Washington has five oil refineries that all are highly dependent on Bakken crude by rail. Crude-by-rail movements in the U.S. and Canada fluctuate significantly based on market conditions, but the Washington refineries are one destination for Bakken oil that maintain consistent demand for the oil, and rail is the only option to get it to Washington — so the risks to Washington residents who live near the train tracks are ever present.

In 2016 a Bakken oil train derailed in Mosier, Oregon along the Columbia River highlighting the risk the trains pose in the Pacific Northwest. Many trains bring the Bakken oil through Oregon and the Columbia River gorge to Washington.

In my 2019 book Bomb Trains: How Industry Greed and Regulatory Failure Put the Public at Risk I explain why the trains carrying highly volatile Bakken oil are dangerous and the simple steps the oil and rail industries could take to remove these dangers. All are steps the industries have successfully lobbied against despite the risks to the public and the 47 fatalities in Lac-Mégantic.

Washington regulators and politicians tried to take the most important safety step by passing a law that limited the volatility of the crude oil being moved by rail through Washington, a move that would greatly reduce the risk of fires and explosions during derailments. A rule proposed at the end of the Obama administration to limit the volatility was officially withdrawn by the Trump administration in May of 2020.


“If the federal government won’t act to protect public safety and adopt a safer nationwide standard, we will adopt our own,” state Sen. Andy Billig (D-Spokane) said in March 2019 of the bill he sponsored. “There is just too much to lose — for people and our environment.”

As DeSmog reported in May, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) did act, but that action was to overrule Washington’s proposed regulation with the argument that safety regulations could not get in the way of markets — arguing that a state can not use “safety as a pretext for inhibiting market growth.”

New Administration May Offer Chance at Safety Regulations

The act by the Trump administration’s regulators of withdrawing the proposed federal rule to limit oil volatility for transportation of crude oil by rail by was consistent with the official stated policy of deregulation with regards to rail safety.

This policy led to the removal of the most important safety regulation for oil-by-rail transportation that was enacted during the Obama era, which would have required oil trains to have modernized braking systems. The Trump administration removed that regulation in December of 2017.

The incoming Biden administration will have the opportunity to finally address the known dangers of moving hazardous oil, ethanol and liquefied natural gas (LNG) by rail. Reinstating the braking requirement and regulating oil volatility would be important first steps. Two other areas that would improve safety would be limiting train lengths and requiring tank cars that weren’t easily punctured in derailments.

DeSmog has reported on how longer trains derail more often and yet there are no regulations for train length for trains moving hazardous materials. Most of the major derailments involving oil trains have involved trains with more than 100 cars, like the train in Custer.

The 2015 regulations for new tank cars for oil trains required the use of new DOT-117 model tank cars. As they did in this latest derailment, these tank cars have failed in all of the major derailments involving the cars hauling oil and ethanol.

Four years of the Trump administration overseeing the rail industry has put the public at even greater risk. The administration’s reckless approval of LNG-by-rail without proper safety testing or new regulations greatly increases the future danger to the public if the LNG industry starts using rail as a major mode of transportation.

Pete Buttigieg has been nominated to be the next Secretary of Transportation where he will have oversight of rail safety. At the very least Buttigeig could begin to protect the public by simply reinstating the oil-by-rail safety regulations that have been repealed, and then moving forward with the proposed regulations to limit the volatility of any crude oil moved by rail.

Until the oil and rail industries are properly regulated, the public will continue to be at great risk from bomb trains and will have to trust in luck to keep them safe.

Benicia, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Dixon CA, Fairfield CA, Keeping Watch on Earth News, Rio Vista CA, Solano County CA, Suisun City CA, Vacaville CA, Vallejo CA

Solano County sets single-day record for new positive COVID-19 cases, 486 reported ill today

By Roger Straw, December 24, 2020  [Sources: see below.]

Thursday, December 24: 486 new cases overnight, no new deaths.  Since Feb: 17,330 cases, more than 725 hospitalized, 95 deaths.Compare previous report, Wednesday, Dec. 23:Summary

    • Solano County reported 486 (!!) new cases overnight, A NEW SINGLE-DAY RECORD INCREASE IN POSITIVE CASES.  In just the last 14 days, Solano has seen an increase of 4,764 new cases.  We’re averaging 340 (!!) new cases every day! (source: covid19.ca.gov)  Total of 17,330 cases since the outbreak started.
    • Deaths – No new deaths reported today, a total of 95 Solano deaths since the pandemic began.
    • Active cases – Solano reported 135 more active cases today for a total of 1,555 active cases.  Solano’s average number of Active Cases during October was 284, average in November was 650 – and TODAY we are at 1,555!  Is the County equipped to contact trace so many infected persons?  Who knows?  To my knowledge, Solano has offered no reports on contact tracing.
    • Hospitalizations – CAUTION ON SOLANO HEALTH DEPARTMENT REPORTING: According to Solano Health Officer Dr. Bela Matyas, the County “occasionally” updates Age Group hospitalizations retroactively, adding substantial numbers.  Thus, many hospitalizations are never reported as CURRENTLY hospitalized.  Today, Solano reported 4 fewer CURRENTLY hospitalized persons, total of 118.  And among the age groups, the County reported no change in hospitalization numbers, for a continuing total of 728 persons hospitalized since the outbreak began.  [For the numbers used in my manual calculation of total hospitalizations, see age group stats below.  For COVID19-CA.GOV numbers, see BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County.]
    • ICU Beds – Solano County reported only 21% available today, up from 15% yesterday, still in the YELLOW DANGER ZONE.  COVID19-CA.GOV reported today that Solano hospitals had 12 available ICU beds as of yesterday, December 23.  (For COVID19-CA.GOV info see BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County, and for REGIONAL data see COVID-19 ICU Bed Availability by REGION.)
    • Testing – The County report on COVID-19 testing today showed “UNAVAILABLE.”  As of yesterday, Solano had tested a total of 159,358 unduplicated residents since the outbreak began.  35.6% of Solano County’s 447,643 residents (2019) have been tested.
Positive Test Rate – 1 IN EVERY 5 TESTED IS POSITIVE – VIRUS SPREADING LIKE WILDFIRE

Solano County reported our 7-day average positive test rate today at 20.9%, up from yesterday’s 18.6%, far and away over the State’s purple tier threshold of 8%.  Average percent positive test rates are among the best metrics for measuring community spread of the virus.  The much lower and more stable California 7-day average test rate has also been on an alarming rise lately, down from yesterday’s 12.6% to 12.1% today.  (Note that Solano County displays past weeks and months in a 7-day test positivity line graph which also shows daily results.  However, the chart does not display an accurate number of cases for the most recent days, as there is a lag time in receiving test results.  The 7-day curve therefore also lags behind due to unknown recent test results.) 

By Age Group – Continuing the post-Thanksgiving surge, especially in age groups 18-49 and 50-64 years
  • Youth 17 and under – 42 new cases today, total of 1,931 cases, representing 11.2% of the 17,330 total cases.  No new hospitalizations reported today among this age group, total of 17 since the outbreak began.  Thankfully, no deaths have ever been reported in Solano County in this age group.  But cases among Solano youth rose steadily over the summer, from 5.6% of total cases on June 8 to 11% on August 31 and has plateaued at over 11% since September 30.  Youth are 22% of Solano’s general population, so this 11.x% may seem low.  The significance is this: youth are SERIOUSLY NOT IMMUNE (!) – in fact at least 14 of our youth have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.
  • Persons 18-49 years of age – 237 (!!) new cases today, total of 9,945 cases. This age group is 41% of the population in Solano, but represents nearly 60% of the total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups.  The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today.  A total of 233 are reported to have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.  Solano recorded no new deaths in this young group today, total of 7 deaths.  Some in this group are surely at high risk, as many are providing essential services among us, and some may be ignoring public health orders.  I expect this group is a major factor in the spread of the virus.
  • Persons 50-64 years of age – 142 (!!) new cases today, total of 3,552 cases.  This age group represents just over 20% of the 17,330 total cases.  The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today.  A total of 196 are reported to have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths in this age group today, a total of 16 deaths.
  • Persons 65 years or older – 65 (!) new cases today, total of 1,828, representing 10.9% of Solano’s 17,330 total cases.  The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today.  A total of 282 have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths were reported in this age group today.  A total of 72 of our elders have died of COVID, accounting for 76% of Solano’s 95 total deaths.
City Data
  • Benicia added 9 new cases today, total of 469 cases since the outbreak began. 
  • Dixon added 19 new cases today, total of 1138 cases.
  • Fairfield added 91 (!) new cases today, total of 4,957 cases.
  • Rio Vista added 4 new cases today, total of 143 cases.
  • Suisun City added 27 new cases today, total of 1,207 cases.
  • Vacaville added 265 (!!!) new cases today, total of 4,185 cases.  Something is happening in Vacaville – stay tuned!
  • Vallejo added 71 new cases today, total of 5,170 cases.
  • Unincorporated areas remained steady today, total of 61 cases.
Race / Ethnicity

The County report on race / ethnicity includes case numbers, hospitalizations, deaths and Solano population statistics.  This information is discouragingly similar to national reports that indicate significantly worse outcomes among black and brown Americans.  Note that all of this data surely undercounts Latinx Americans, as there is a large group of “Multirace / Others” which likely is composed mostly of Latinx members of our communities.

  • Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 10% of cases, 12% of hospitalizations, and 18% of deaths.
  • Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 11% of cases, but 16% of hospitalizations, and 21% of deaths.
  • Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 18% of cases, 25% of hospitalizations, and 17% of deaths.
  • White Americans are 39% of the population in Solano County, but only account for 28% of cases, 29% of hospitalizations and 32% of deaths.
More…

The County’s Coronavirus Dashboard is full of much more information, too extensive to cover here on a daily basis.  The Benicia Independent will continue to summarize daily and highlight significant portions.  For more, check out the Dashboard at https://doitgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=055f81e9fe154da5860257e3f2489d67.

Source
Source: Solano County Coronavirus Dashboard (posted on the County website late today, around 8pm).  For a complete archive of County updates, see my Excel ARCHIVE.  ALSO see important daily updates from the state of California at COVID19.CA.GOV, embedded here on the BenIndy at Cases and Deaths AND Hospitalizations AND ICU Beds by REGION.
Bakken Crude, Crude By Rail, Crude Oil, Derailment, Fire, Keeping Watch on Earth News, Oil spill, Oil trains, Tar sands crude, Washington State

Oil train derailed near site of earlier terrorist attempt, officials say

KIMA News Yakima, by LISA BAUMANN | Associated Press, Wednesday, December 23, 2020

BELLINGHAM, Wash. (AP) — Federal and local authorities were investigating a fiery oil car train derailment north of Seattle near where two people were arrested last month and accused of attempting a terrorist attack on train tracks to disrupt plans for a natural gas pipeline.

Seven train cars carrying crude oil derailed and five caught fire Tuesday, sending a large plume of black smoke into the sky close to the Canadian border. There were no injuries in the derailment about 100 miles (161 kilometers) north of Seattle

Officials were asked about recent attempts to sabotage oil trains, but they said the investigation was just beginning.

“We’ve not been able to get close enough to the site to make an evaluation,” Whatcom County Sheriff Bill Elfo said late Tuesday.

Officials with the National Transportation Safety Board along with the FBI and other federal, state and local agencies were on the scene.

During a news conference Wednesday, officials spoke about their disaster planning they had done to prepare for incidents similar to what occurred with the train derailment. They also spoke about how the impact of the derailment to the surrounding environment could have been worse.

“As far as crude oil derailments and fires, this could not have occurred in a better location with regard to minimizing environmental impact,” said David Byers, who manages disaster response for the Washington Department of Ecology.

Last month federal authorities in Seattle charged two people with a terrorist attack on train tracks, saying they placed “shunts” on Burlington Northern Santa Fe tracks. “Shunts” consist of a wire strung across the tracks, mimicking the electrical signal of a train. The devices can cause trains to automatically brake and can disable railroad crossing guards.

CUSTER, WA – DECEMBER 22: In this aerial view from a drone, a train carrying crude oil burns while derailed on December 22, 2020 in Custer, Washington. BNSF Railway Company released a statement saying the train was traveling north when seven tank cars derailed, resulting in a fire and evacuations of the area. (Photo by David Ryder/Getty Images)

Authorities said the pair were opposed to the construction of a natural gas pipeline across British Columbia when they interfered with the operation of a railroad in Washington state.

The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force has said there have been dozens of such cases involving BNSF tracks since January, with a message claiming responsibility posted on an anarchist website early this year.

In one, shunts were placed in three locations in northwest Washington on Oct. 11, prompting emergency brakes to engage on a train that was hauling hazardous materials and flammable gas. The braking caused a bar connecting the train’s cars to fail; the cars became separated and could have derailed, authorities said.

CUSTER, WA – DECEMBER 22: A train carrying crude oil burns while derailed on December 22, 2020 in Custer, Washington. BNSF Railway Company released a statement saying the train was traveling north when seven tank cars derailed, resulting in a fire and evacuations of the area. (Photo by David Ryder/Getty Images)

Home to five oil refineries, Washington state sees millions of gallons of crude oil move by rail through the state each week, coming from North Dakota and Alberta.

The seven cars derailed at about 11:46 a.m. Tuesday. Two people were on board the 108-car train headed from North Dakota to the Ferndale Refinery, owned by Phillips 66.

Critics of oil transport by rail car said Tuesday’s incident was another example of the dangerousness of the practice. They cited the 2013 fiery derailment of a train carrying crude in Lac Megantic, Quebec, which killed 47 people.

The scene in the Custer area after a train derailed Tuesday morning. (Photo: Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office)

Washington state passed a law that imposed safety restrictions on oil shipments by rail, but it was blocked earlier this year by the federal government.

The U.S. Department of Transportation in May determined federal law preempts the Washington law adopted last year, which mandated crude from the oil fields of the Northern Plains have more of its volatile gases removed prior to being loaded onto rail cars.

Matt Krogh, director of U.S. Oil & Gas Campaigns for the environmental group Stand.earth, said it is difficult for state and local officials to place restrictions on shipments of oil by train.

“Our hands are tied in many ways because of federal pre-emption,” Krogh said.

Coronavirus, Covid 19, Solano County CA

Solano County COVID update on December 23: another death, someone under 50 years of age

By Roger Straw, December 23, 2020  [Sources: see below.]

Wednesday, December 23: 276 new cases overnight, 1 new death.  Since Feb: 16,844 cases, more than 725 hospitalized, 95 deaths.Compare previous report, Tuesday, Dec. 22:Summary

    • Solano County reported 276 new cases overnight.  As of today, Solano has seen an average increase of 326 (!!) new cases per day over the last 14 days! (source: covid19.ca.gov)  Total of 16,844 cases since the outbreak started.
    • Deaths – 1 new death reported today, someone 18 to 49 years of age, a total of 95 Solano deaths since the pandemic began.
    • Active cases – Solano reported 763 fewer (!!) active cases today for a total of 1,420 active cases.  Even with that reduction it’s shocking: Solano’s average number of Active Cases during October was 284, average in November was 650 – and TODAY we are at 1,420!  Is the County equipped to contact trace so many infected persons?  Who knows?  To my knowledge, Solano has offered no reports on contact tracing.
    • Hospitalizations – CAUTION ON SOLANO HEALTH DEPARTMENT REPORTING: According to Solano Health Officer Dr. Bela Matyas, the County “occasionally” updates Age Group hospitalizations retroactively, adding substantial numbers.  Thus, many hospitalizations are never reported as CURRENTLY hospitalized.  Today, Solano reported 10 fewer CURRENTLY hospitalized persons, total of 122.  But among the age groups, the County reported no change in hospitalization numbers, for a continuing total of 728 persons hospitalized since the outbreak began.  [For the numbers used in my manual calculation of total hospitalizations, see age group stats below.  For COVID19-CA.GOV numbers, see BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County.]
    • ICU Beds – Solano County reported only 15% available today, up from 10% yesterday, and back into the YELLOW DANGER ZONE.  COVID19-CA.GOV reported today that Solano hospitals had 18 available ICU beds as of yesterday, December 22.  (For COVID19-CA.GOV info see BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County, and for REGIONAL data see COVID-19 ICU Bed Availability by REGION.)
    • Testing – The County reports today that 1,634 residents were tested overnight, a total of 159,358 unduplicated residents have now been tested for COVID-19 since the outbreak began.  35.6% of Solano County’s 447,643 residents (2019) have been tested.
Positive Test Rate – THREAT LEVEL REMAINS HIGH, 18.6%

Solano County reported our 7-day average positive test rate today at 18.6%, down from yesterday’s 19.4%, yet far and away over the State’s purple tier threshold of 8%.  Average percent positive test rates are among the best metrics for measuring community spread of the virus.  The much lower and more stable California 7-day average test rate has also been on an alarming rise lately, down from yesterday’s 13.1% to 12.6% today.  (Note that Solano County displays past weeks and months in a 7-day test positivity line graph which also shows daily results.  However, the chart does not display an accurate number of cases for the most recent days, as there is a lag time in receiving test results.  The 7-day curve therefore also lags behind due to unknown recent test results.) 

By Age Group – Continuing the post-Thanksgiving surge in cases among all age groups
  • Youth 17 and under – 34 new cases today, total of 1,889 cases, representing 11.2% of the 16,844 total cases.  No new hospitalizations reported today among this age group, total of 17 since the outbreak began.  Thankfully, no deaths have ever been reported in Solano County in this age group.  But cases among Solano youth rose steadily over the summer, from 5.6% of total cases on June 8 to 11% on August 31 and has plateaued at over 11% since September 30.  Youth are 22% of Solano’s general population, so this 11.x% may seem low.  The significance is this: youth are SERIOUSLY NOT IMMUNE (!) – in fact at least 14 of our youth have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.
  • Persons 18-49 years of age – 137 new cases today, total of 9,708 cases. This age group is 41% of the population in Solano, but represents nearly 60% of the total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups.  The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today.  A total of 233 are reported to have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.  Solano recorded 1 new death in this young group today, total of 7 deaths.  Some in this group are surely at high risk, as many are providing essential services among us, and some may be ignoring public health orders.  I expect this group is a major factor in the spread of the virus.
  • Persons 50-64 years of age – 57 new cases today, total of 3,410 cases.  This age group represents just over 20% of the 16,844 total cases.  The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today.  A total of 196 are reported to have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths in this age group today, a total of 16 deaths.
  • Persons 65 years or older – 48 (!) new cases today, total of 1,828, representing 10.9% of Solano’s 16,844 total cases (an increase of 0.2% overnight).  The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today.  A total of 282 have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths were reported in this age group today.  A total of 72 of our elders have died of COVID, accounting for 77% of Solano’s 94 total deaths.
City Data
  • Benicia added 8 new cases today, total of 460 cases since the outbreak began. 
  • Dixon added 8 new cases today, total of 1119 cases.
  • Fairfield added 63 new cases today, total of 4,866 cases.
  • Rio Vista added 2 new cases today, total of 139 cases.
  • Suisun City added 18 new cases today, total of 1,180 cases.
  • Vacaville added 98 new cases today, total of 3,920 cases.
  • Vallejo added 79 new cases today, total of 5,099 cases.
  • Unincorporated areas remained steady today, total of 61 cases.
Race / Ethnicity

The County report on race / ethnicity includes case numbers, hospitalizations, deaths and Solano population statistics.  This information is discouragingly similar to national reports that indicate significantly worse outcomes among black and brown Americans.  Note that all of this data surely undercounts Latinx Americans, as there is a large group of “Multirace / Others” which likely is composed mostly of Latinx members of our communities.

  • Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 10% of cases, 12% of hospitalizations, and 18% of deaths.
  • Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 11% of cases, but 16% of hospitalizations, and 21% of deaths.
  • Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 19% of cases, 25% of hospitalizations, and 17% of deaths.
  • White Americans are 39% of the population in Solano County, but only account for 28% of cases, 29% of hospitalizations and 32% of deaths.
More…

The County’s Coronavirus Dashboard is full of much more information, too extensive to cover here on a daily basis.  The Benicia Independent will continue to summarize daily and highlight significant portions.  For more, check out the Dashboard at https://doitgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=055f81e9fe154da5860257e3f2489d67.

Source
Source: Solano County Coronavirus Dashboard (posted on the County website late today, around 8pm).  For a complete archive of County updates, see my Excel ARCHIVE.  ALSO see important daily updates from the state of California at COVID19.CA.GOV, embedded here on the BenIndy at Cases and Deaths AND Hospitalizations AND ICU Beds by REGION.