Tag Archives: Lac-Mégantic

Blast zone, Emergency Readiness & Response, Massive increase in crude-by-rail, Rail crossings

Study: rail crossings need safety upgrades

Repost from St. Cloud Times, St. Cloud MN
[Editor: Significant quote: “The MnDOT study recommends short-term upgrades at 10 grade crossings throughout the state. It also prioritizes more costly long-term upgrades, such as creating grade separations, at other crossings.”  IMPORTANT: The California Department of Transportation should take a few cues from Minnesota, commission a study and make similar recommendations.  See also Minnesota officials put price tag at $280M to upgrade oil train routes (MN Star-Tribune)  – RS]

Local rail crossings eyed for oil safety upgrades

Mark Sommerhauser, December 31, 2014
STC 0101 Train Crossings 1.jpg
A BNSF Railway freight train crosses East St. Germain Street as traffic waits Wednesday in St. Cloud. A study has recommended upgrading the crossing. (Photo: Kimm Anderson

Upgrades are on track for train crossings in St. Cloud and Clear Lake, part of a bid to improve safety on Minnesota’s main thoroughfares for shipping oil by rail.

The upgrades are recommended in a new Minnesota Department of Transportation study of rail lines that carry large volumes of oil freight.

As oil production in North Dakota has soared, state officials estimated eight to 13 oil trains go through Minnesota each day. State officials said Minnesota’s most heavily used rail artery for oil transport is the BNSF Railway line that goes through east St. Cloud and other area cities.

The MnDOT study recommends short-term upgrades at 10 grade crossings throughout the state. It also prioritizes more costly long-term upgrades, such as creating grade separations, at other crossings.

The study calls for medians to be installed at grade rail crossings at East St. Germain Street in St. Cloud and at Minnesota Highway 24 in Clear Lake.

The medians are meant to keep motorists from driving around lowered crossing arms. They would cost about $100,000 apiece, according to the study.

The study also calls for connecting and coordinating rail signals with traffic lights at the crossing on Sherburne County Road 11 near Big Lake. That would cost about $500,000, according to the study.

St. Cloud City Engineer Steve Foss said his office had preliminary talks with MnDOT about upgrading the East St. Germain Street crossing.

MnDOT will work with communities to finalize the study’s recommendations, according to a news release from the agency. MnDOT spokeswoman Sue Roe said the projects should move forward after that.

“They’re a ‘go,'” Roe said.

The MnDOT study stems from a 2014 state law directing the Minnesota Department of Transportation to study road crossings on rail lines carrying Bakken crude oil from North Dakota through Minnesota. The measure also appropriated $2 million to upgrade crossings.

About $244 million would be needed to implement the proposed grade separation projects. Those dollars aren’t currently available, Roe said.

The MnDOT news release said the study considers population, facilities and activity within a half-mile radius of each crossing. That distance represents the evacuation zone around an incident for a flammable material spill and fire.

The type of oil being transported from North Dakota, Bakken crude, has prompted particular safety concerns because of its volatility.

A string of rail disasters related to Bakken crude oil also has heightened awareness.

In July 2013, 47 people were killed in Lac-Megantic, Quebec, when a train carrying Bakken crude derailed. Five months later, an oil train crashed and burned after colliding with a derailed freight train near Casselton, North Dakota.

Alberta Canada, Coal, Derailment

Latest derailment: Coal ash spill in Alberta near Banff National Park

Repost from Shale Plays Media
[Editor: Significant quote: “In the last five years, 99 trains have derailed in Alberta alone, and Canada has collectively seen over 400 in the same period.”  See chart below with details for all Canadian provinces.  – RS]

Train derailment near Banff spills coal ash into creek

Marissa Hall | Shale Plays Media, December 31, 2014
Photo: Mary Schimke/Shale Plays Media
Photo: Mary Schimke/Shale Plays Media

A train derailed in Canada over the holiday weekend, pushing seven rail cars into a nearby creek. Although there was no volatile cargo to cause a flashback to Lac-Megantic, the train was carrying coal ash, which was spilled into the surrounding area.

The Canadian Pacific train derailed on December 26 at about 2 a.m. in Alberta near Banff National Park. A total of fifteen cars exited the track, seven of which were pushed into nearby 40 Mile Creek. Six cars were carrying fly ash, which is a byproduct of coal-fired power plants and an ingredient in cement. The train was also carrying lentils. Both the fly ash and the Mediterranean grain were spilled into 40 Mile Creek.

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BreakngVancouverNews, @iVancouverNews Ash spilled in train derailment could harm fish in Banff creek http://bit.ly/173sTTZ #Vancouver #BC #News

Repair efforts for the track are already underway, as well as an investigation by the Transportation Safety Board. Officials are unsure what caused the derailment, and workers were quick to the scene in attempts to minimalize its environmental impact. After the spill, workers observed that the creek, which is usually clear, was ruddy and brown. Although officials have stated that the stream is currently unharmed by the spill, ThinkProgress reports that it could be more impactful than it seems.

The creek is downstream of Banff’s Bow River, but so far, officials say the spill isn’t affecting the river. However, the fly ash could ultimately alter the pH of the water and can create piles of sediment in the creek. It could also threaten the health of the creek’s fish, according to University of Alberta ecology professor David Schindler, because of the traces of metals it contains.

Environmentalists are concerned that these sediments could interfere with spawning habitats, even though the substance isn’t classified as dangerous under Canada’s Dangerous Goods Act. According to CBC News, large amounts of sediment in the water could prevent fish eggs from getting the proper amount of oxygen and the creek bed.

The lentils could also have a negative impact on the region. According to the Calgary Herald, the grain could draw bears into an unsafe territory. However, because most bears are in hibernation this time of year, experts say the immediate risk is minimal. The bigger concern is cleaning the lentils up before the bears in the area come out of hibernation to ensure it doesn’t draw them into danger.

The derailment has raised the already heightened concern that transporting certain goods by rail is dangerous. Rail is the primary means of transporting crude oil when pipelines are unavailable, and everyone fears more catastrophes like the explosion in Lac-Megantic, Quebec, which killed some 30 people, and the disaster in Casselton, North Dakota, which brought the dangers of oil-by-rail close to home for many in the state. In the last five years, 99 trains have derailed in Alberta alone, and Canada has collectively seen over 400 in the same period. Across North America, citizens hope to avoid another calamity while officials work to come up with a viable solution.

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Bakken Crude, Bridge safety, Crude By Rail, Massive increase in crude-by-rail, Rail inspection

KCBS 740AM PART I: Aging Bridges Raise Safety Concerns As Bay Area Receives Dramatic Increase Of Crude By Rail

Repost from CBS SF Bay Area 740AM (Part 1 of 3)
[Editor: Important coverage of bridge and infrastructure safety issues by Bay Area radio station KCBS 740AM.  See and listen also to Part II, Safety Information For Alhambra Trestle In Martinez And Other Bridges Kept By The Railroads AND Part III, Emergency Plans Stall Out For Trains Transporting Bakken Crude Oil In The Bay Area.  – RS]

Aging Railway Infrastructure Raises Safety Concerns As Bay Area Readies To Receive Dramatic Increase Of Bakken Crude Oil

Alhambra Trestle in Martinez, CA (Jeffrey Schaub)
Alhambra Trestle in Martinez, CA (Jeffrey Schaub)

KCBS Cover Story Special, Part 1 of 3, Produced by Giancarlo Rulli, December 29, 2014   – KCBS reporter Jeffrey Shaub and producer Giancarlo Rulli investigate the Bay Area’s aging railway bridges that will carry increasing loads of highly volatile Bakken crude oil from North Dakota in this three-part KCBS Cover Story Special.

MARTINEZ (KCBS) — Questions are being raised about the safety of the century-old Alhambra railroad trestle in Martinez. Some local residents and officials are concerned because the bridge is carrying an increasing number of loads of a highly volatile cargo.

kcbs mic blue Aging Railway Infrastructure Raises Safety Concerns As Bay Area Readies To Receive Dramatic Increase Of Bakken Crude Oil, Part 1 Of 3LISTEN: Aging Railway Infrastructure Raises Safety Concerns As Bay Area Readies To Receive Dramatic Increase Of Bakken Crude Oil, Part 1 of 3 click here, then scroll down to play

As the train rumbles its way across the 115-year-old Alhambra trestle in Martinez, loud creaks and rattles can be heard. And unlike more modern bridges, dozens of its bolts and bridge supports are rusted.

The trestle was originally built in 1899 and reinforced in 1929. The railroad replaced the rail deck in 2003, but the trestle’s support structures are 85 and to 115 years old.

“The railroad told us, actually, that the rust strengthens it,” City Councilman Mark Ross told KCBS, but he isn’t buying it.

He said that residents are worried about its safety, especially because it carries up to mile-long tanker trains loaded with highly volatile—and controversial—Bakken crude oil from shale fields in North Dakota.

“It really begs for inspection and a full report to the community as to its status,” Ross said.

Paul King, the Deputy Director of Rail Safety for the California Public Utilities Commission, agrees.

King said the Bay Area will soon see a dramatic increase in Bakken crude shipments over the Alhambra trestle.

“Somebody needs to be looking, overseeing it, and somebody needs to be doing it for the state of California.

A CPUC report identified railroad bridges as a significant rail safety risk, including many that are over 100 years old—structures like the one in Martinez.

That report and concerns about the Alhambra have the federal government also worried.

“We can’t wait because they will eventually collapse, fall apart—damage will be done,” Rep. John Garamendi (D-Walnut Grove) said.

He cites the derailment of a Bakken crude oil train in Quebec, Canada, which wiped out half the town of Lac-Mégantic, killing 47 people in July 2013.

Firefighters douse blazes after a freight train loaded with oil derailed in Lac-Megantic in Canada's Quebec province on July 6, 2013, sparking explosions that engulfed about 30 buildings in fire. A driverless oil tanker train derailed and exploded in the small Canadian town of Lac-Megantic, destroying dozens of buildings, a firefighter back from the scene told (François Laplante-Delagrave/AFP/Getty Images)That blaze burned for 36 hours.

“It’s a ticking time bomb—it’s just a matter of time,” Martinez resident Bill Nichols, who lives near the trestle, said.

But Lena Kent, a spokeswoman from the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway said that concerns about the Alhambra are perceptions and not reality.

“At BNSF, safety is our first priority in everything that we do,” she said.

In Part II, we’ll look at how the state, federal cannot even obtain safety data about the Alhambra and other bridges carry Bakken fuel because—in part because there are so few inspectors.

 

 

 

Bakken Crude, Crude By Rail, Emergency Readiness & Response, Hazmat notification, State regulation

New California Law Gives Emergency Planners Oil By Rail Information

Repost from KPBS, San Diego
[Editor: Here is the PDF, Assembly Bill 380.  Here is history and documentation on AB 380. See also previous posts on BenIndy: Oil Train Bill heads to Governor and Oil train regulation passes in California Assembly.  – RS]

New Law Gives Emergency Planners Oil By Rail Information

Monday, December 29, 2014, Amy Quinton / Capital Public Radio 
Smoke rises from railway cars that were carrying crude oil after derailing in downtown Lac Megantic, Quebec, Canada, July 6, 2013. Credit: Associated Press
Smoke rises from railway cars that were carrying crude oil after derailing in downtown Lac Megantic, Quebec, Canada, July 6, 2013. Credit: Associated Press

A new law that goes into effect Jan. 31 in California requires railroads to give more information to emergency planners about crude oil shipments.

Local and state emergency responders say they are given very little detail about the movement of trains carrying crude oil.

A 2013 Bakken crude oil train explosion that killed 47 people in Quebec raised awareness of the danger that poses.

Kelly Huston with the California Office of Emergency Services said with the predicted increase in the amount of imported crude oil, more information is needed.

“Being able to know what’s coming and then being able to prepare for it and take actions that may be needed whether it’s moving hazardous materials crews or whether it is, perhaps we know about an event that’s going on in a highly populated area and we would want to make sure the railroad is aware of that,” Huston said.

Under the new law, railroads will have to submit weekly schedules of trains, and the volumes of crude oil they carry. They would also have to set up a communications center for first responders and give local authorities access to emergency plans.

The California Energy Commission has estimated nearly a quarter of the oil imported into the state will be delivered by rail by 2016.

“It’s not only having the knowledge but also how we use that knowledge to both prevent an accident from occurring and then having adequate hazardous materials resources and first responder resources to respond in the event there is an accident,” Houston said.